How Do Branding and Sales Work like a Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich?
Recently, I had the opportunity to discuss branding and sales with a few business owners at our local Chamber. The consensus was that companies have gone on a restrictive diet due to the tough economy; they’ve cut back on branding efforts in favor of beefing up sales. I reacted strongly to this since I believe that emphasizing sales versus branding is not a savvy marketing strategy and could adversely affect growth.
What about the fiber that a complete marketing effort offers? What about the antioxidant rich sustenance of branding – as an essential part of a well-balanced marketing plan or diet? Well, let’s analyze the situation. Branding creates loyalty, differentiation, credibility and the incentive to buy. “Sales” generates purchases too, which is hardly news to you or your sales forces. They’re out there every day, eager to make a pitch and close a deal. The distinction between these two parts of your marketing mix is that branding is a longer-term process that takes a while to make its sale. “Sales” has much more of an immediate impact and can generate instant results.
This is in part because your sales people can sit down face-to-face with clients and not only sell the big brand picture – but sell the delicious sales-details, too, which can include price reductions and whatever else closing takes. What we need to do is recognize the distinct differences of these marketing tools, in terms of timing, mindset and creative approach, to name a few distinctions. But, we also have to recognize and applaud their commonalities. Branding and sales have the same goals – raising the bottom line and increasing profits and growth.
They’re simply on different parts of the marketing menu, that’s all. The truth is we need sales and branding to work together hand-in-hand to reach our target markets and corporate objectives. When we decide to focus on one and ignore the other it’s like peanut butter and jelly. You can eat them separately and they’re good, but they’re so much better together as a scrumptious sandwich. Shouldn’t we consider these elements as equally important? Shouldn’t we be thinking short and long-term? What would happen to your investments if you didn’t think long-term? Would there be an investment? Would there be a long-term? Small businesses can’t afford to favor immediate savings at the expense of brand image and brand building.
It may look good on the books at the moment, but this kind of marketing approach can be costly over time. Luckily, one solution is social media marketing. At Devarj, it works for many of our clients because it makes branding your business affordable, integrated and easy. Using Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Google Plus, among others, you can sustain your branding efforts for peanuts while Sales sails on. Everyone’s happy and everything’s in harmony – like a good, old PB&J.
Silva Devarj
Owner, Brand Strategist
