Brand Marketing vs Marketing

What's the Difference?

This is a frequent question I receive and I'm glad for it! The differences may seem subtle on the surface but are significant when you dig in.

Short Definition

• Brand Marketing is more the backbone of your business, your strategy and consistency
• Marketing is more the nuts and bolts how of marketing, the tools and methods you use to share your opportunity

Resources
This post will pull together information from four resources: 

• Vistaprint
• Shopify
• Kantar
• Aventi Group

Comparisons
We'll review the basic differences between brand marketing and marketing, pulling thoughts together with a beautiful graphic courtesy of the Vistaprint article cited. 

Brand Marketing

• ​This is the unique identity of your company, what differentiates you from competitors
• Shares your core values
• Reflects your target audience's preferences—reflects your Ideal Client Persona (ICP).
• Establishes your brand reputation
• Remains consistent
• Creates trust, loyalty, and awareness of your business
• Pieces can include your logo and brand color scheme—your brand voice

​
Marketing

• Strategies—the how of your message—that evolve over time, may change depending on products, services, or even campaigns
• SEO tactics
• Social media content
• Email newsletters
• Sales or donor campaigns

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Image created with assistance of Gemini AI

Great Marketing Quotes Courtesy of Vistaprint

• Marketing can be a great way to get a customer’s attention, but branding is a great way to keep their attention
• Marketing drives sales, branding drives recognition and loyalty
• Branding comes first, marketing comes second - ah, the chicken or the egg question is settled!
• Marketing strategies come and go, but branding is forever

Recent Poll Results
I conducted a poll on LinkedIn recently asking what the biggest frustration is about marketing?

• Responses overwhelmingly noted it's a "time suck"—a necessary "evil" of doing business and all would far rather be doing client work.
• Less noted an admission of not really knowing how to market! It's not like it's an intuitive skill, yet somehow we all need to be an "expert" marketer in addition to a business manager. 

Get to the Point
I provide brand marketing services, which includes marketing services, but I start any conversation by identifying your brand marketing pieces to see if we need to strengthen or establish your plan. 

Your Turn!
Do you have a solid brand marketing plan in place yet or simply random thoughts as your foundation? Are you able to see the difference between brand marketing and marketing?

I'd love to hear your brand marketing and marketing journey--Let's Chat or find me on LinkedIn or Substack!