Brand Marketing AND (not vs.) Lead Generation

We often hear these two marketing terms with a versus between them as if they are mutually exclusive. I beg to differ.

Brand Marketing is a critical part of building and growing your business. It is your very essence personified. Every business should want its brand to perfectly exemplify its voice. Well developed brands evoke a feeling, idea, sentiment, or impetus. Consider Coca Cola, Target, and Adidas as great examples of brand marketing. Their logos alone tell a story. Anyone want to grab a beverage, go shopping, then work out? Right? Consistent, ubiquitous messaging is key. Whether they are teaching the world to sing or rolling out a new flavor (orange/vanilla? thoughts?), Coca Cola presents a singluar voice to the world. So what about small businesses starting or looking to expand their reach?

Whether you are just beginning or rebooting, be clear about what you are branding. Is it a product or service? What demand does it supply? Who are the consumers who will patronize your brand? Be sure your logo, mission statement, and plan create a consistent voice. Present this uniform voice via as many media outlets and platforms as possible within your plan and budget. Stick with those which reach your target market and track the results. The more ubiquitous you can be, the better chance to grow familiarity and following. Wise brand marketing can create engagement with clear messing and calls to action. A firm who has had success with their own brand and knows your marketing area can help you develop this (hint, Rocket City Mom Media Solutions!).

Lead generation is a part of any good business development plan and doesn’t have to be an aside to brand marketing. As you raise awareness for your product or service, you should also find ways to capture interest. This is best exemplified when you visit a website, and they ask for your email address. Once a business has that information, they can share things with you to entice you to act. If you are running Facebook or Google ads, you know that re-targeting is an important piece of lead management. Those who have acted are most likely to buy. With any digital media, it is good to have a very clear call to action. Don’t stop there, though. Be sure, that when a potential patron clicks, they land somewhere where you can capture their data and lead them to purchase. We can dive deeper into cookies another day, but, for today, the basic takeaway is that you should not have someone visit your shop, site, or store without capturing their interest in some way. You want to be able to reach them again AND you want them to keep your brand in the front and center of their minds (brand marketing circles back).

The combination of visible presence and data capture can create a client base that is always growing and expanding. That is good business. Want to get started on developing or refreshing your brand and capturing leads? Contact us now. We look forward to working with you.