With growing platforms and channels, it’s often hard for a brand to decide what marketing strategy should they use. Should the focus be on the old guard with tactics like ads, direct mails, etc? Or should they focus on new trends like content marketing, social media, etc?
Firstly, let’s look at how two of the prominent strategies, adverts and content marketing, work, and their relevance in today’s marketing world. Further, let’s also examine how they compare to each other.
What is Advertising?
Advertising is a daily part of our lives. Chances are, you’ve been exposed to many ad messages during your day today already!
In simple terms, it is a paid marketing effort by an organization to promote the sales of their product or service. They aim to build awareness about the product/ service by grabbing the attention of the brand’s target audience with the help of persuasive messaging.
Why opt for Advertising?
- Eye Catching: The biggest factor why ads work is how they instantly draw the attention of the user. With the help of catchy slogans, great graphics, etc they grab the reader’s eyes. This allows for brands to put their message directly in front of their buyers and build brand awareness and recall.
In comparison to content marketing, this offers no value to the consumer. It’s purely promotional.
What Are Its Pros?
- Fast Distribution: The biggest benefit of advertising is reaching a large audience in a short period. As it specifically centers on a push strategy it can easily reach its target rather than waiting for the users to find them. This is great when a brand is looking to get the word out about a launch or an upcoming event.
What is Content Marketing?
Content marketing is a new-age marketing strategy that follows a very unique approach vis-Ã -vis all traditional strategies like ads, sponsorships, etc.
The brand creates content pieces like blogs, podcasts, videos, etc which are relevant and offer value to the audience. Such content allows the viewer to understand the brand’s expertise and create a foundation for trust. When done consistently, this creates a loyal customer base that further turns into profitable consumer actions.
Why Opt for Content Marketing?
- Value Centric: Content marketing differs from all other marketing strategies in a core way. Rather than being promotion centric, it is value-centric for the reader. It allows the viewer to learn about your product and how it will make their lives easier rather than just asking them to buy it at a deal.
What Are Its Pros?
- Tailored Content: As the consumers are actively looking and coming to the content voluntarily, the messaging is tailor-made to fit what they are looking for. Such personalization certainly can’t be achieved with a traditional strategy like advertising. Above all, this helps build a long-lasting relation with the viewer.
What is the Difference Between Advertising and Content Marketing?
After a careful look at both, both approaches offer their own unique benefits. There is no right or wrong answer about which is better. The deciding factor for this question is the brand goals and missions.
However, a smart marketer will always use a good blend of both that will give optimal results.