Do you know the difference between brand marketing and direct response marketing? The real problem with brand marketing There are plenty of cynics out there who say that brand marketing can never work, and that every form of brand marketing is a scam. But, before I even dive into that, let me give you a simple definition of brand marketing: Brand marketing is any form of marketing designed to increase the status, positioning or name recognition of your business. Speaking of which ... Why direct response marketing is the backbone of your business Time for another simple definition: Direct response marketing is any form of marketing designed to lead your prospect directly to a sale. The most classic form of direct response is the sales letter. In fact, let me give you a step by step process you can start using now to install direct response marketing in your business. Your direct response marketing formula Step 1: Read The Ultimate Sales Letter by Dan Kennedy. Step 2: Use that formula to write a sales letter for your product or service. Step 5: Send out your sales email and start collecting sales! In fact, the most successful businesses in history almost always started with direct response marketing, then found ways to blend branding and direct response together as they grew.
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Do you know the difference between brand marketing and direct response marketing? If not, there’s no shame in it, just make sure you keep reading this so you can learn the difference today.
Here’s why you need to know the difference: For a startup, or even an established business that’s struggling to grow, the difference between brand marketing and direct response can lead to explosive growth or expensive failure. And here’s where I get brutally honest with you, so hang tight.
If you are not already making six figures in your business, brand marketing will bleed you dry. Best case scenario, you’ll get a tiny trickle of new customers or clients from all your “branding” and it will be enough to keep you at break-even, which really just means you’re losing market share. Worst case scenario, you’ll get zero new customers or clients while still pouring an obscene amount of money into marketing that doesn’t grow your business.
Does that sound insane? Are you too smart to ever make a mistake like that? I certainly hope so, but every day I see small businesses and startups that fail for that exact reason. That’s why I feel compelled to share this message with you.
The real problem with brand marketing
There are plenty of cynics out there who say that brand marketing can never work, and that every form of brand marketing is a scam. Turns out, that’s not true. Brand marketing can be extremely effective if you have a business that’s already generating six figures and you want to accelerate its growth. For example, I just recently hired a PR company for my fitness franchise, Fit Body Boot Camp, to secure our position as a household name.
But, before I even dive into that, let me give you a simple definition of brand marketing: Brand marketing is any form of marketing designed to increase the status, positioning or name recognition of your business. That includes things like PR, billboards, TV commercials, charity events and even things like podcasts and social media.
The key word there is “increase.” Quite frankly, if your business doesn’t already have any status, positioning or name recognition to expand on, no amount of brand marketing will help you. That’s exactly why so many small businesses and startups fall into the trap I was talking about. They read something about branding online, or some marketing firm sells them on the idea that they can get on CNN or whatever, and next thing you know they’ve spent hundreds or…
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