Are You Wasting Time and Money with Your Marketing Efforts? If You Don't Have a Brand You Have Nothing to Market!

<p>Here's a secret: if you are going to invest time and money in marketing, you must have a brand.  Confused?  Let's take a deeper look at branding versus marketing.</p> <h3>Branding Versus Marketing</h3> <p>You need a brand, everyone says.</p> <p>Marketing is a must, everyone says.</p> <p>So, which do you do?  Which one do you spend your time, money and energy on?</p> <p>If you are feeling your heart skip a beat at the thought of spending money on marketing, stop right there!</p> <p>I am going to share the difference between branding and marketing and help you discover the steps you need to take to not only get the word out about your business, but also attract more clients.</p> <h3>Branding</h3> <p>Branding is about crafting and telling a story.   The story of your business and of you as the CEO of your business.</p> <p>You are what differentiates your business from any other in your niche or area of expertise.  I've said it before.   You have gifts that no one else has.  There may be a thousand other people in your niche or area of expertise, but only you have the unique gifts that are meant to serve the specific people you are here to solve problems for.</p> <h5>Branding is:</h5> <ul> <li>Who you are</li> <li>Your why</li> <li>Differentiation</li> <li>Positioning</li> <li>Mission Statement</li> <li>Personality</li> <li>Creating a perception</li> <li>Core values, visions and passions</li> <li>A strategy</li> </ul> <h3>Marketing</h3> <p>Marketing is communicating your story and spreading the message of what you do and the problem you uniquely solve for your ideal audience.</p> <h5>Think of Marketing as:</h5> <ul> <li>Communication</li> <li>SEO</li> <li>Content Marketing</li> <li>Social Media</li> <li>Print campaigns</li> <li>TV</li> <li>Radio</li> <li>Pay per click marketing</li> <li>Influencer marketing</li> <li>Podcasts</li> </ul> <h3>Which Comes First?</h3> <p>Branding!  Your brand is at the core of your marketing and must come first.  Therefore, without a brand you don’t have anything to market.</p> <p>This