Marketing vs. Branding

Branding and marketing are very much related business tools, so closely related that they are too often confused as one in the same. You have to put into consideration that marketing is extroverted while branding is introverted.

Marketing communicates speedily and single-mindedly while Branding is slow and multi-faceted. In fact, quick communication is an essential aspect of marketing: because communication is costly, the proficient marketer will look to express a message that has the ability to prompt a fast response.

Branding, on the contrary, is a slow process. That’s because communicating what a brand is about is parallel to communicating one’s character: accomplishing this cannot be done promptly. You do not become convinced that someone is “cool” because they say “I’m cool!” The only way others can truly convince you of their coolness is by demonstrating cool attributes in situations you witness. This takes time. Communicating the character of a brand is time consuming for the same reason.

And, contrary to the focused marketing message with its trigger quick turn around and “show me the money” mantra, branding is complex by design: a great brand is a collage made of many messages, associations and character traits. After all, a person with a single character trait could hardly be described as “having character.” Likewise, the values and associations that form the character of a strong brand are never one-dimensional. The plurality of messages, which is a liability to the marketer, is an asset to the brand.