DEFINED | Advertising, Marketing, PR, and Branding

It has come to my attention that certain words have certain meanings. I mention this because this information can be important - particularly when describing one's profession.  Say, for instance, that you practiced in one of the following fields:

• Advertising
• Marketing
• Public Relations
• Branding

If you were asked to explain the difference between them all, could you do it?  Go ahead.  Think on it for 30 seconds... How did you do?  Did you come up with anything?  Or did you quit after you envisioned a car commercial, your frazzled company marketing director, the White House Press Secretary, and your favorite cereal?

Differentiating between these terms is surprisingly difficult because all of these disciplines are very much connected in their intent - that being the communication of "ideas" from one entity or organization to another.  Where they differ, however, is in the measurements of success. Did the customer buy the product?  Do more people know about our company this year versus last?  Are we well-considered by the community?  Does every aspect of our organization represent our company culture and value system?

As you can see, these questions are all somewhat related.  But, the preferred answer to each can only be obtained in a particular manner, utilizing the tools of a particular discipline.  The disciplines in question are, of course, Advertising, Marketing, Public Relations, and Branding.

And, in the spirit of meaningful words, the definitions of each discipline are as follows:

ADVERTISING

The activity of attracting public attention to a product or business, as by paid announcements in the print, broadcast, or electronic media.  The business of designing and writing advertisements - (from Dictionary.com)

MARKETING

Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large - (from the American Marketing Association)

PUBLIC RELATIONS

• Anticipating, analyzing and interpreting public opinion, attitudes, and issues that might impact, for good or ill, the operations and plans of the organization.
• Counseling management at all levels in the organization with regard to policy decisions,courses of action,and communication, taking into account their public ramifications and the organization’s social or citizenship responsibilities.
• Researching, conducting, and evaluating, on a continuing basis, programs of action and communication to achieve the informed public understanding necessary to the success of an organization’s aims. These may include marketing, financial, fund raising,employee,community or government relations, and other programs.
• Planning and implementing the organization’s efforts to influence or change public policy.
• Setting objectives, planning,budgeting, recruiting and training staff,developing facilities — in short,managing the resources needed to perform all of the above.

- (from the Public Relations Society of America)

BRANDING

Branding is how you go about establishing your brand's differentiated meaning in people's minds...Branding is about signals - the signals people use to determine what you stand for as a brand.  Signals create associations. (from BrandSimple by Allen P. Adamson)

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: Public Relations Society of America, American Marketing Association, American Association of Advertising Agencies, Brandchannel

STRATEGY | What Is Branding?

via labbrand.com

At the root of the branding challenge is the development of a clear understanding of the current brand and, subsequently, addressing the obstacles that may be precluding an organization (or individual) from becoming the strong and differentiated brand they want to be.

This article is a basic introduction to the essential elements of brand equity - the value of a brand in terms of its ability to "stand apart" from others in the marketplace.

Successful brands remain vigilant in their quest to maintain strong brand equity over the lifetime of the brand. As changes in the marketplace effect how brands are perceived, it is necessary for those in organizational leadership to continually evaluate their positioning, making the necessary adjustments to maintain future relevance and strength.

DEFINED | Design

What better place to begin a design-related blog than to start a conversation about the nature and purpose of design? According everyone’s favorite dictionary, the Merriam-Webster, DESIGN means to: 

• create, fashion, execute, or construct according to plan
• have as a purpose
• to devise for a specific function or end
• to indicate with a distinctive mark, sign, or name
• make a drawing, pattern, or sketch of
• draw the plans for
• draw, lay out, or prepare a design

Each of those definitions sounds appropriate and accurate to me, as definitions go.  But if I could be so presumptuous as to add to this very thorough list, I would also note a few of my own thoughts about Design – those things that intrigue both designers and non-designers alike.

DESIGN, it seems, is the ultimate in accessibility.  There is something engaging about a process that allows us to communicate with one another across cultures and often beyond language.  DESIGN enables individuals and organizations to summarize who they are and what they're about in a non-verbal way.  It's the ultimate communication tool for a wallflower.  It may take the form of a logo, a built environment, or a product...anything that expresses the intended message.

Most importantly, I believe DESIGN allows each of us the opportunity to continuously explore just a little bit more of who we are – in all of our simplicity and complexity.  On a blank sheet of paper, everyone is afforded the freedom to experiment without consequence, taking on fears and testing out the ‘what-ifs’.  If you ask me, and I know you were about to, this may be the one thing that those of us who do this thing called Design for a living take for granted. 

So take a few minutes to think about your definition of DESIGN and test out your own ‘what ifs’.  And the next time someone asks you to ‘Tell me about yourself’, give them an answer Designed for you.