Many people are confused about the differences between branding, advertising, promotions, and public relations. In fact, the actual “marketing” process is misunderstood in the same way. To give you a basic understanding, marketing is not a one time event or activity, it is a process, a combination of things that are mixed together. By definition, Marketing is the act of mixing product, price, place, and promotion. But first, let’s…
Brand.
A great example of a brand is Apple. iMac, iPod, iTouch, iPhone, iTunes. Do you get the point? Apple has created a massive branding strategy using the “i” element. Think of the Ritz-Carlton, LifeTime Family Fitness, Hilton Hotels, and what do you see? First class service, luxury amenities, excellent service? Now how about Best Western, 24 hour gym, Motel 6? What kind of “Brand” is each of those? Can you see the contrast? What is the brand of your company? Are you sure? If you think you’re a high-end facility, do you show it? Would you see the receptionist at the Ritz-Carlton wearing a button promoting the frequent guest club? Would you see a front desk clerk at a Motel 6 in a $1000 suit? Is everything he does, says, prints, writes, and delivers consistent with your brand message? If not, you may want to consider who your true target audience is and work to ensure that you continue to provide services that directly engage with them.
Advertising
Advertising is the actual process of displaying your message. Radio advertising… Television advertising… The only act of making something happen. Unite your advertising and your brand, you have the marketing process. If you are just “advertising” with no direction, no goal, no drive, then you are just a lost puppy wandering aimlessly waiting for someone to give you a good home.
specials
A promotion is usually a one-time event for a specific purpose or goal. While marketing is ongoing, a promotion can be a one day, one week, one month or even one hour event. In retail, a “SALE” is usually a promotion. Car dealers offering zero percent interest are a limited time promotion. They typically have a specific start and end date, and have a very clear understanding of the ROI (return on investment) that any particular promotion must achieve in order to be successful.
public relations
Public relations, or Public Relations, usually revolves around non-paid news sources and focuses on their business as far as the community is concerned. If you see a positive, or hopefully positive, story in the news or a newspaper article, this is the kind of press a public relations firm can help you get. They have strong relationships with the media and often feed them stories about their clients, hoping for a free press. You too can harness the power of a free press and public relations, although sometimes it can be difficult to get noticed, which is the strength of the public relations firm.
Marketing
Marketing is the process that drives all of the above elements. Directs the feel, image, and tone of advertising, promotions, and public relations. For each of these elements, there are experts in each of these fields. You can hire one company just to handle your branding and another to handle your advertising, marketing, and yet another for your public relations. Of course, as a small business owner, you may not always have the budget for such ventures. You can learn how to achieve the same results at http://TheMarketingWire.com and get the latest marketing news, education, and resources to help build and grow your business.
