As a business owner, you’ve heard a lot about branding. Although you know that marketing is essential for business growth, you might not realize that branding is equally important.
The discussion of branding vs. marketing has been an intense one, pervading every facet of understanding of the underlying topic and dealing with the fundamental understanding of what a company does to move their product.
Many people have misconceptions about branding and marketing such as believing that branding isn’t necessary for effective marketing, or that they are the same, or that branding is just a logo or tagline.
The reasons why branding and marketing are both important stems from their definitions.
The Real Difference Between Branding and Marketing
Branding tells your target market about the value of a product or service. It’s a promise that you deliver to your target market.
“Your brand is what other people say about you when you’re not in the room.”
Jeff Bezos
Marketing is the active promotion of products or services through various channels. This messaging takes the form of advertising, blogs, videos, or social media to motivate buyers.
According to Seth Godin,
“Marketing is telling a story about your value that resonates enough with people that they want to give you money for it.”
Seth Godin
So how do they work together? It’s simple, your marketing efforts are built upon your brand.
Read: 6 most Common Branding Myths and Fallacies [Debunked]
4 Reasons Why Branding is Important When Marketing Your Business
Branding is designed to establish a company’s name and unique image to set it apart from competitors. With branding you must have a unified and consistent image across all channels, so your company is easily recognizable. Once you have a solid brand identity, you can then develop a marketing plan.
Marketing provides the brand awareness needed to reach potential customers. Any marketing strategies you implement should send out clear messages about your brand identity.
There are several reasons why branding is important when marketing a business:
1. Helps to Impact and Influence Customer Behavior
With so much competition for products and services, consumers are often overwhelmed. As a marketing strategy, branding is a method for engaging customers. With the right brand, you attract your ideal target audience.
By utilizing marketing strategies that reflect your brand, you influence the decisions of your audience and turn them into loyal repeat buyers.
2. Delivers a Clear Message
Branding done right delivers a coherent, unified messaging to a target audience. The best way to create effective messaging is by having unique products or services and broadcasting this value to your market. Every message you send has to be relevant, concise, true and easy to understand. Messaging should describe what your company is all about and evoke positive feelings.
3. Establishes Credibility On- and Offline
There must be credibility and trust to maintain some level of customer loyalty. You achieve this by establishing your company as an expert. The messaging you use can improve your company’s reputation which affects buying decisions and increases sales.
4. Creates a Connection Between You and Your Consumer
Branding and marketing should focus on the customer experience. Building relationships with consumers is achieved in a number of ways. Quality products and services, excellent customer service, and timely delivery of orders and responses to inquiries are all components for nurturing and maintaining a connection.
Branding and marketing are intertwined for growing your business. You need both to position your business in a crowded marketplace.
Got a branding or marketing idea? Are you ready to put it on paper in the form of business cards, brochures and much more? See how SILKCARDS can help you create something unforgetabble with your brand to market your business with a FREE sample pack.
