The Difference Between Marketing and Branding | GroCurv
If you’re a new business owner or a young start-up still finding its ground, chances are that you’ve probably been hurled into pit of jargons that you simply don’t understand. And very often, the first point of confusion is when you’re discussing marketing and branding for your product.
While the two are deeply interconnected, they aren’t the same and using one term for another might lead to a degree of misunderstanding when you speak to a team of PR and advertising experts who function on its literal meaning.
The best way to avoid such a situation is to, well, sort out the basics. If you’re looking for a crash course on Marketing and Branding for dummies, the post might serve as a great starting point!
Branding
A brand is everything a company or a product stands for. The values, the attributes. The Image.
It is the core identity of the brand. Its personality.
Everything else that is used to present this voice of the brand falls under the category of marketing. Which is why before you set about promoting your business, there are a few fundamental questions you are required to ask yourself regarding the brand strategy.
What is the purpose of the brand?
What do I want consumers to think of it?
Is it a high-end label or a budget brand? Who do I want to influence the most?
What is the core message of the brand?
What values does it stand for?
Unless these questions are dealt with right at the outset, you will find yourself at a loss for direction. These are fundamental to the brand strategy. The promise a brand is making to its consumers. A brand that does not know who it is and what it stands for, will have no way to determine what it wants people to know about it.
Marketing
Determining what the consumer or target demography wants and developing an offering to respond to it. (the Product).
Creating the right Pricing. The right Packaging and then the right Channels of distribution (Place).
Formulating the correct message, knowing who you are speaking to, when is the best time to present your brand - this is where one needs to rely on a solid marketing plan. In other words, the brand is the idea that waits in the wings waiting for a proper marketer to set the stage and introduce it to the audience.
What Matters More
There’s a reason why marketing and branding go together. At the heart of any marketing plan lies the brand. Interestingly enough, while a good marketing plan is required to establish a brand with the consumers, eventually, the brand begins to speak for itself requiring the marketing strategy to work around it.
When consumers own a brand and are central to the brand strategy, they are aligning themselves to the values it stands for. While marketing tactics can be changed from time-to-time the brand voice must remain constant. The core promise of the product to its target audience cannot change.
At GroCurv, we value the fundamentals. It is because we understand the difference between marketing and branding, that we are able to exactly meet your expectations.