Are you SURE it’s branding marketing you really want? (No, really)
Sales Director: "We've got the proposition sorted, we just need more people to be aware of us."
Marketer: "No problem. Let's dig into your customers and we can then work out a plan to get your brand appearing earlier in the buying process for this segment. We'll measure impressions, placements within podcasts, and new followers on LinkedIn. We can also look at your events plan and what collateral marketing can create to meet prospects where they're at."
Sales Director: "I don't know, this feels fluffy. Plus, these events are really expensive - we need to convert as many into sales as possible."
Marketer: "Yeah I get it, but you said you wanted branding, you said you wanted more people to be aware of you. What do you really mean?"
Sales Director: "Leads - yeah, leads."
Marketer: "Great. Well, your advertising budget is going to have to be pretty hefty to get those leads because you dropped the initial brand work."
Sales Director: “Wait, what?”
When you say you want help with brand marketing... do you really mean that?
This is an all too common situation when a company says they want one thing but then, when we dig into what they really want, it turns out they’re putting pressure on marketing. Trying to mold it into something it’s not (or it’s not set up to support).
When a company thinks it needs brand marketing there are usually hurdles that get in the way of actually being able to implement it. These are just some of my favourites that I’ve personally experienced.
Going from a largely and historical organic marketing approach and expecting it to generate results without paying for advertising. (I spend my time explaining that paying a consultant isn't the same as having an advertising budget.)
Libby in accounts having an opinion because she's got a CIM accreditation. Her views are valid, but her CIM qualification was based on working for an existing company with a budget and scalable marketing already in place. She’s likely not navigated the build of the marketing and sales alignment funnel headache from scratch. (No offence, Libby).
Sales being unable to convert enquiries and blaming it on the website or the marketing, when actually everything has been pretty scattered until now. Signing up to random events or putting referral schemes in place with no connection to where the market actually is.
Brand marketing versus performance marketing - the fundamental distinction
There are a few ways to distinguish the difference between the two types of marketing. Seth Godin explains it best, in my opinion.
Brand marketing is designed to build trust in, and awareness of, your brand - and is mostly unmeasurable. This happens when the type of marketing that will work needs to be indirect.
It’s the “what”. The goal is around building long-term recognition and building that instilled preference over one product or another. Think about why you prefer one brand over another.
Performance marketing is designed to drive a specific action (clicks, impressions, purchases) and is 100% measurable. This happens when the type of marketing that will work needs to be direct.
It’s the “how”. Think clicks, downloads, leads, etc.
So, when most founders say "brand" they mean "performance." They want the long-term benefits of brand building but need the immediate, trackable results of direct marketing.
The problem is, you can’t have one without the other.
This misunderstanding of what each means is the reason why you probably hate marketers
Here's the pattern I see a lot: organisations expect results when there's no advertising budget, hoping that organic marketing will magically drive leads. It doesn't work that way.
Organic marketing takes time. Real time. We're talking months to see meaningful traction, and that's if you're doing everything right. Budget speeds it up, but even then, you need both brand and performance elements working together.
Think of it this way: performance marketing without brand work is like trying to sell to strangers who've never heard of you. Brand marketing without performance elements is like being famous but never asking for the sale.
Here’s just how different the two types of marketing are. Look at some of the metrics you should be paying attention to:
Brand marketing metrics:
LinkedIn follower growth and engagement quality
Podcast placement reach and frequency
Event attendance and stand traffic
Website traffic from branded searches
Time spent on brand-focused content
Direct marketing metrics:
Cost per lead (CPL)
Cost per acquisition (CPA)
Click-through rates (CTR)
Conversion rates by channel
Return on ad spend (ROAS)
Sales qualified leads (SQLs)
Customer lifetime value (CLV)
Notice how different these are?
Brand metrics are about awareness and perception.
Performance metrics are about immediate action and revenue impact.
How brand marketing works: an example
Brand marketing is all about getting your company added to the psychological list that forms when someone realises they need to solve a problem.
It doesn't mean they're going to do anything with that awareness immediately, but there's a chance you'll make it onto their shortlist when they're ready to buy. This take is rooted deeply in Jobs to be Done.
But for that to happen, a catalyst has to occur - a nudge that moves them from awareness to action. This is entirely based on the buyer's timeline, not yours. You can read more about it in my article on b2b content strategy (includes a pretty image to demonstrate).
Let's say you're selling project management software.
Your brand marketing gets you known as "that company that makes project management simple*". When a startup hits 20 employees and their Slack channels become chaos, you're already in their mind. But they still need a trigger - maybe a missed deadline or a frustrated client - to actually start researching solutions.
That's where performance marketing steps in.
Your retargeting ads catch them when they're actively searching. Your lead magnets capture them when they're comparing options. Your demo booking funnel converts them when they're ready to make a decision.
*I know, that was a poor positioning example. Don’t hate me.
Reality check time, amigos.
If you're a founder reading this and nodding along, here's what you need to accept:
You probably need performance marketing first if you're early stage and need revenue now… but know that it’s going to be TOUGH to convert those leads
You definitely need brand marketing if you want sustainable growth that doesn't require constantly increasing ad spend
Your website probably isn't ready for either until you fix the conversion fundamentals. Chances are you need to sort your website messaging and proposition.
Both require budget - organic reach is largely dead, and quality costs money.
The companies that get this right allocate roughly 60% of their marketing budget to performance marketing and 40% to brand building in the early stages, gradually shifting toward 50/50 as they mature.
Summary
When you say you want brand marketing, ask yourself:
Am I ready to invest in something that will pay dividends in 6-18 months, or do I need leads next month?
Both answers are valid. But they require different strategies, different budgets, and different expectations.
The founder who understands this distinction is the one who builds businesses that don't just survive the next funding round, but actually create lasting market presence.
