As we all know, any business conducting marketing activities should demand a “return on their investment” and “revenue growth” from their creative practices. Throughout our business journey, we see business owners erroneously confuse marketing and branding, even adopting the assumption that they are one and the same thing. This is further compounded by so-called “marketing experts” claiming that:
- “being on page 1 of Google” is marketing
- “creating a website” is marketing… or
- “putting a logo on a golf umbrella is marketing!”
The definition of marketing and branding is much wider, and this article aims to dispel these myths and outline the nuances between marketing and branding.
How are marketing and branding different from each other?
Marketing is the tools, processes, and strategies you use to promote your products and services actively and regularly. Branding is one of the marketing practices used to give your business a clear image, identify its values, and differentiate you from other companies in your industry.
By way of an example:
- Branding can be the colour scheme and fonts for your brand; they can also be the logo, website, general style, and guidelines of your brand’s visual identity. More significantly, branding reflects your values, personality, and everything you stand for as a business, creating familiarity and generating association through recall which reinforces your capability and reliability. This burgeoning loyalty paves the way and creates the path to ongoing and sustainable repeat business and revenue growth.
- Marketing involves actions and activities to connect with your target audience, gain their attention, and get your company, products and services noticed.
Central to any enterprise is a marketing strategy evolved from a well-constructed business vision that is revisited and reviewed periodically. In this age of digital marketing, there is added confusion between tactical and strategic marketing, leading to many businesses jumping onto the latest shiny bandwagon!
For an interesting insight into this subject, here is a recent interview with Mona King Creative Design Studios, which addresses this subject in greater depth.
How do marketing and branding interact with each other?
To get noticed and get the best results from lead generation, it is crucial to get marketing and branding to complement each other.
We need marketing strategies to grab the attention of the target audience and drive sales, e.g., SEO, content marketing, social media posts, campaigns, advertising, Google Ads and Analytics. Branding plays a “long game “… as people tend to buy from the companies they are familiar with. So consistent brand identity and positive brand image reinforcement will build familiarity and create a culture of “know, like and trust” within your target audience, enhancing the more frequent selling opportunity for your products or services.
In terms of priorities, branding is the foundation of all marketing strategies; it should come first: a company has to define their target audience and value proposition, develop their unique selling points, and then align these with the most appropriate marketing strategies. No matter what size the company is, it is suggested that both branding and marketing strategies are reviewed and updated regularly to keep your target audience interested and keep your business looking fresh, modern, and vibrant within your sector’s community.
In conclusion, Marketing drives attention, and branding creates loyalty.
If you want some help getting to grips with your branding and marketing, contact us at Business Medics today to see how we can help.
You may ring us on 0 0845 257 4552 or send an e-mail to info@businessmedics.co.uk.
