In this Blog, we will explore the age-old debate of branding versus marketing. We will delve into the roles, goals, and differences between the two to help you clearly articulate these distinctions to colleagues and clients. By the end of this piece, you will have the skills to explain and understand the difference between branding and marketing with ease. We will not be discussing new entrepreneurs, but rather seasoned professionals in the fields of marketing, branding, brand strategy, design, and more. This is not a game of semantics, but a clear distinction between the two. Let’s begin by defining branding.

What is branding?

Branding is often misunderstood as simply a logo or a tagline, but it is much more than that. It is not the purpose, vision, mission, or differentiation strategy of a company. It is not the creation of these elements either. Rather, branding is the act of expressing a brand to attract and nurture its target audience. It is about shaping their perceptions and encouraging them to become or remain customers. In short, branding is the expression of everything that a brand represents, from its position to its internal values and visual identity. It encompasses all the ways in which a brand communicates who it is, whether through visual, verbal, or written means.So this meanswhen you tweet your brand name when you post a piece of content, “you’re branding”.When you place an advertisement in the market, “you’re branding”.When you do some SEO, your branding, when you have a display ad “you’re branding”When you have a customer service representative on the phone, “you’re branding”.So every last touchpoint of your brand, is a piece of branding and that includes all of your advertising and all of your marketing.So what then is marketing?

What is Marketing?

Marketing encompasses the various strategies and tactics used to promote and sell products, services, or brands. It is the process of reaching out to potential customers and convincing them to purchase. Marketing is more directly focused on driving sales and revenue growth through advertising, promotions, and other sales tactics. So,

SEO is marketing

SEM is marketing content promotion, is marketing.

Advertising is marketing.

Anything on the front lines of the brand that drives sales is marketing.When is Branding Not Marketing?Well, the answer to that is “never”.The relationship between marketing and branding is closely intertwined, with all instances of marketing being a form of branding. Any marketing effort at any touchpoint is an expression of the brand, and thus, a part of branding. However, it is important to note that not all branding is marketing. While marketing is focused on promoting and selling products or services, branding is centered on shaping perceptions and building a lasting relationship with customers. In other words, while all marketing is a form of branding, not all branding is marketing. This is the fundamental difference between the two and the key point of this blog post.This is the difference between the two. This is where we’re able to separate branding and marketing. You see there are many different forms of expression of a brand but not all expressions of a brand are in relation to promoting a product or a service that leads directly to a sale. So while branding includes all forms of promotional content and all forms of marketing, where there is a direct sale, linked to that form of promotion, it also includes every other touch point and every other expression of the brand, where there is no sale attached where there is no call to action. And it’s just about nurturing the relationship. So an example of this could be:

Customer service.

It could be packaging design

Email drip sequence, generally any form of communication fed to the audience where there is no ask.

Branding is about building and nurturing relationships with customers, while marketing is focused on driving sales. Any form of communication that is not aimed at making a direct sale, but rather fostering a connection with customers, is considered branding.This encompasses both marketing and promotional efforts as well as any other forms of communication that don’t have a direct sales motive.In contrast, marketing includes all tactics and strategies used to promote and sell a product or service. While branding is a long-term strategy that aims to create a positive image and loyal customer base, marketing is more focused on generating short-term results through advertising, promotions, and other sales efforts.To simplify, branding is about the relationship and nurturing it, while marketing is about making transactions. But it’s important to remember that branding and marketing are interconnected, and a strong brand can support marketing efforts and transactions within a relationship.I hope this blog cleared something up for you there and that you now have the skills to be able to go out and articulate that difference. To colleagues and to clients because this is an argument that’s been going on for a long time and not a lot of people have the clarity or the ability to articulate the difference between the two. But if you are able to do that, and you are able to help your colleagues and to help your clients to understand they’ll be grateful for that clarity. So it is our jobs as brand and marketing agency and leaders to be able to split the difference between those two elements of promoting a business and if we’re able to help the people around us to understand that as well. Well then we’re going to help those relationships and we’re going to help our brand as well. Because anybody with our hands on our brand is expressing our brand and we want them to understand the goals of branding the goals of marketing so they can go ahead and do their jobs properly.