Branding vs. Direct Marketing

Branding
A traditional advertising method used to create an acquired response from a target audience based on cumulative impressions and positive reinforcement. These ads are not purchase for the sole purpose of generating a click or visitor. They are geared towards increased product or company name awareness and lifelong customers.

Direct Marketing
A direct communication to a customer or business that is designed to generate a response in the form of an order, a request for further information, or a visit to a store or other place of business. (Also called Direct Response Advertising)

I've been spending a lot of time thinking about the idea of branding versus direct marketing. Both of them have their value and their time. When is that though? In my mind branding is to be done to benefit your direct marketing efforts. It places your company and products in the forefront of a buyers mind when they go to make a purchase of your product. It then becomes essential to get in front of the right people at the right time so that when they are in front of your product they are driven to make the desired action you are hoping for. To brand effectively requires difficult campaign planning, development and management.

At this point direct marketing, specifically advertising, is then placed in front of the user that helps to drive an action. Direct marketing is more, to put this simply, direct. It is way easier to measure a direct marketing campaigns effectiveness especially online.

When a company decides to brand it needs to be very blatant in it's attempts and should have some value associated with it and should not be an excuse for failed direct marketing attempts.