How branding, marketing, & advertising work together

Branding, marketing, and advertising are important parts of building your ecosystem...

Branding = what people think about when they think about you

Branding denotes the look and feel of your content. It’s what people think about when they think about you. Branding, in a real sense, conveys your culture. 

Think about it this way.

In the South, a Chik-fil-A restaurant sits off almost every suburban exit and in every shopping mall. We also have KFC. Though they both sell the same chicken, the experience of each establishment is very different. It all has to do with their brand.

To be clear, they sell the same thing, but they deliver the content in radically different ways. The contrast… is in their culture, their brand. 

Your brand is communicated not only by the graphics you use but the kind of graphics you use. It’s not only expressed in the words you say, but in the fonts and colors and tone of those words. Your brand is also demonstrated by the frequency with which you post, as well as the types of topics you post about.  

Every day, you’re building your brand— whether you realize it or not. Your brand is constructed by design and intention or by default. People notice. Even if they don’t “like,” “love,” comment or share your posts, know that they’re paying attention. 

Again, your brand is built by— 

📣 What you do and don’t do on social media, including the platform you’re on 

📣 Your website, your blog, and your podcast

📣 Your videos, including how you look and sound on them

📣  The tools you use to share your message

📣  Everything else you create, re-post, or publish

Marketing = asking for the sale

Marketing is different than branding. Whereas branding refers to how people experience you, marketing refers to a specific request for purchase. Or, to say it a another way, a picture you share on social media builds you brand; a post with an offer to buy your latest book constitutes marketing. 

See the difference? 

You can’t market all the time. If you do, your brand will feel spammy. However, whereas everything you do isn’t marketing, everything you do is branding. 

Advertising = paid marketing

Advertising— in my mind— is paid marketing. That is, advertising refers to money you spend to boost posts, run contests that include giveaways, and more. 

By the way, these are just the ways I understand each of these terms. Other industry experts, including people much brighter than I am— and far more established in their businesses— may offer different definitions. 

That’s OK. 

Whatever terms we use, it’s helpful to delineate between your everyday content, specific requests for purchase, and paid help for either of the above. 

Your next step = learn how to grow your online audience 

Watch the video free here.