Marketing Advertising Sales Branding - Oh Myy!
Posted on November 18, 2014 by Jill Poulton, One of Thousands of Leadership Coaches on Noomii.
You go into business because you see a need to fill. Now you need to learn how to do business so you can stay in business. Here are some basics.
Marketing is a critical success factor to any business, and it often presents the biggest mystery to many small business owners, along with some of their biggest frustrations. The mystery is mainly due to a lack of understanding of what marketing is and what it is not. The frustration stems from the money vortex that marketing can pose when it’s not executed effectively.
In my work, coaching small business owners, there are 3 areas that are often confused or interchanged with the business side of marketing – advertising, sales, and branding. Interestingly enough, when you do a little Google research one finds that even some “marketers” confuse these terms and their purposes! So it comes to no surprise that business owners can feel lost in the abundance of how-to’s for getting the word out that they are open for business, and frustrated that their efforts aren’t producing their desired results.
I’m going to attempt to make the complex world of marketing a little bit simpler by clarifying these differences, the importance of each one, and how they relate to one another. Knowing the differences can help you grow your business by being more effective with your efforts.
MARKETING – An overall picture for how a business will promote and distribute its goods or services. Marketing is like looking at the bigger picture of a puzzle. Pieces of the puzzle then represent things such as: research, strategy, digital, public relations, advertising, sales, customer service, and more. Each piece must work on its own, and when put together with other pieces can create an enticing invitation.
ADVERTISING – This is typically the largest expense of a marketing plan, and when done ineffectively can be a huge cost with little return. Advertising is a means of calling public attention to something, usually through a form of paid media. It is persuasive and informational, and is intended to influence the market to take action.
SALES – the process in which a client actively engages in making a buying decision.
BRANDING – It’s more than a logo! Branding is about a promise, it’s about creating a desired impression, its relating the essence and the value of the business, and product or service to its intended market. Branding communicates characteristics, values, and attributes that address ideas like “This is what I am. This is why I exist. This is what I believe.”
Marketing efforts get the word out and invite the target client to the door. Selling proactively engages a decision making process that hopefully leads to a favorable financial transaction. Branding is what remains after the marketing efforts have passed and the sale is completed. It’s the end impression, the residual feeling, and memory created. Branding creates loyal customers and advocates.
Bottom line is this: know who you are, the value your business provides, the experience you want to create, who your business aligns to best serve with which product or service, and the road map that leads the customer to you.
