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Branding vs. Advertising: Know the Difference to Grow
Posted on February 28, 2014 by Julie Smith
A common marketing gap is the failure to understand the difference between branding and advertising.
In this guest post Chris Garrett illustrates how knowing the difference between branding and
advertising can strengthen your marketing strategy and your brand. Read about Chris in his bio
below. If you would like to be a guest blogger for BrandTwist contact [email protected] for more
information.
A common marketing gap is the failure to understand the difference
between branding and advertising. While both are a part of marketing
and are done with the express purpose of increasing revenue, they do so
in different ways, and each has the ability to make other more or less
effective. Let’s take a look at branding and advertising and how knowing
the difference can strengthen your marketing strategy and your brand.
Branding
Branding is a lot deeper than we might realize when we’re reading about the newest marketing fads on
the internet. Branding has everything to do with identity: who are you and what kind of business
are you? What’s your name, and why should I remember it? How do you and your brand make me
feel? The answers to these questions should be related to your products and services – but not
limited to them. Your brand is what makes your business feel like a person, and a person is more
than an automatic vending machine, business transaction or product; a person has a personality, and
just like a person, your business’ brand needs to show its personality. For example, in Apple’s iPod
advertisement pictured above, Apple goes beyond simply presenting a “product” for you to purchase.
It’s the explosive size, lively color and the dancing, active “youthful” silhouette that communicates how
the brand wants you to feel when you interact with them.
Let’s take a look at contributing factors and ways to communicate your brand identity.
Logo and Name – Your logo and name are often the first thing people see, and they work essentially as
a visual representation of your name. “Brand Recognition” usually refers to people recognizing your
logo or your company name, but brand-building encompasses more than that, because in brandbuilding, the focus is on what people will think of and how they will feel when they hear or see your
name.
Atmosphere/Mood– Think of Starbucks, what does it make you think of? Wood paneled décor, warm
yellow lighting, comfy seating and the cozy smell of coffee, right? What about McDonalds? Bright
colors, bright lights, play areas and a whimsical looking clown. Consider what you want your customers
to think of and experience when deciding on your décor and environment. How does it make people
feel? If you don’t like the view from your windows, get a wall mural that gives your clientele the view
you want them to experience; customize everything and make your business’ space the one that people
will want to come back to.
Advertising
Your customer’s relationship with your company begins and ends with your brand. What keeps your
business profitable is, of course, sales, but the ideal customer comes to buy from your business or use
your service specifically because they want to support your brand, not just because they want a product.
That’s why it is important to really identify clearly who your ideal target customer is.
Advertising is about communicating what you have to offer through sales, coupons, radio and TV
ads, and posters. An advertisement is soliciting a meeting between your ideal customer and your
company, and the difference between a customer who knows your brand and one who doesn’t is like
the difference between asking a stranger on the street to go to coffee with you, and asking a friend
Advertising, Branding and Trust
Let’s examine this through the lens of a personal relationship. In the two scenarios below, let’s say that
your brand is you; your product is a cup of coffee and your customer is your friend:
Scenario A: You call up your friend and ask them to come over because you have a cup of coffee you’d
like them to purchase. Most likely, your friend will feel you were only interested in making a deal; that
you (the brand) don’t really care for them, their feelings or their experience – because you’re clearly
placing your product and profit before your relationship with them. What’s missing here? A genuine
brand relationship.
Scenario B: You ask them to come over for a cup of coffee because you want to visit with them, engage
in conversation and enjoy some warm and cozy time together. In this instance, you’re making the
relationship between you, and how your friend will feel when they engage with you, more important
than the product – and you are experienced as being a trusted and genuine person (brand).
The bottom line is to consider the many ways that your brand goes beyond colors, logo design or a
jingle, to provide the experience and feeling your consumer is seeking. Once you clearly identify who
your ideal customer is and what they need and are specifically looking for, you can pinpoint what your
brand should be doing to gain your customer’s trust and deliver what they want. Once you do, your
business’ brand can generate loyal followers, who will keep coming back for more.