From time to time, I’ll get questions from readers about marketing issues. Some are basic, and some are incredibly complex. This post will answer a few of these inquiries.
What is the difference between marketing and branding?
Janice, thanks for this question. I have a simple view about marketing and branding.
Marketing is the image you are trying to present to others.
How do you want others to perceive the company? What promise are you making to your customers? It should convey the vision and values of the business and express it in a way the public will understand. Marketing is a strategic activity aligning with your business goals, and it is how you present yourself to the world.
Branding is how others see you.
While marketing is how you want others to see you, branding is how they do. From a business perspective, understanding how consumers perceive your business is crucial for how you decide to execute a marketing strategy. Branding is often grounded in consumer research about perception, attitudes, and usage of a brand in a consumer’s life. Most marketing professionals believe a brand exists in the mind of your consumer. It is how they retell your story to their friends. It isn’t what you want your customers to say; it is what they actually say about you.
You mention focus and narrowing your target in most of your posts. Why not sell to more people to have more sales?
Clive from London, England
Clive, if I sound like a broken record, it is because of all the marketing lessons I have learned; focus is the most useful construct to help businesses succeed. I can’t think of one company or client I worked within the last 25 years who didn’t benefit from my pushing them towards fewer products, few market segments, more straightforward messages and a narrowing of their targeting.
When someone sees that you understand them, they want to buy from you. If you are trying to reach everybody, how can you stand for one group? You don’t seek out a general practitioner to fix your broken bone. You find a specialist called an orthopedic surgeon. When you want to see innovative, healthy products that are celebrating plant-based foods, you don’t go to Food Lion, but you visit Whole Foods, who specializes and focuses in brands that are non-GMO, healthy, organic and local. I recently wrote about a woman, Stacy Brown who started a restaurant that only sold chicken salad. She wanted to be the best in one thing. Or you might remember my post about an online store that only sells products for people who are left-handed called Lefty.
Great brands need to serve one community.
How can I hire the best marketing person for the job?
Trevor from Birmingham, Alabama
Trevor, I need to know much more to help you but let me offer a few basic guidelines and a few thought-starters.
When you hire a marketing professional, it may help for them to have experience in your industry, but that can also be a limiter in how they approach problem-solving. Have you considered that the right person may be a curious thinker with particular skills, but who isn’t from your industry? Depending on the size of the challenge, the right person may be a counter-intuitive choice – and not obvious.
Another consideration is that you want someone who will be a cultural fit for your business. How well will this new hire play and work with others who they will support or lead? People can learn skills and tasks, but if they are a pain to work with, that’s a lot of work to manage.
I always like to find two or three people within the company to interview someone to see if they are a cultural fit – especially if they aren’t judging their credentials and resume but with a focus on the human being in front of them. They don’t interview for job competency, they interview for cultural fit. Do they like this person and want them to be part of the team? Cultural fit doesn’t mean sameness, but it means that they are comfortable with the rhythm and cadence of your company works.
One last thought, I’d ask the person to describe a marketing book or thought-leader that has influenced their worldview in the last year. If they can’t think of one, I wonder about their curiosity. Talented marketers are constantly learning and searching for new ways to think about a challenge. I want evidence that they are always learning and questioning the status quo.
Hope this helps.
Got questions, I have answers. You can set up a time to chat with me about your marketing challenges using my calendar. Email me jeffslater@themarketingsage.com Call me. 919 720 0995. The conversation is free and we can explore if working together makes sense. Try my new chat feature on my site if you have a quick question.
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