Advertising is "stating" what your business or service is, and why a customer should do business with you. It requires the customer to notice the ad in a sea of other ads, take the time to pay attention, and then make a decision on whether to consider acting. Then the customer must believe it, remember it, and actually act on it. That's a whole lot to expect of a potential customer, especially considering that there probably are countless other ads competing for that attention. Get real... In today's world, who has the time or patience to go through that antiquated process to make buying decisions. Very few, and you are deceiving yourself if believe differently. Would you?? Do you??

Marketing "positions" your company with "mind share". McDonalds has "mind share" when it comes to inexpensive food, served quickly and consistently. Your marketing strategy has to focus on gaining mind share for your business, and the contemporary way to do that is with "Image Branding".

Image branding and USP

Brands are typically built by Public Relations campaigns and marketing. If a particular product is featured on the TV, the product is perceived as endorsed by a trustworthy source, and the brand gains huge credibility. That is public relations. People tend to believe articles written about a product or service (like a restaurant review) and endorsements by credible sources (Consumer Reports, etc.). They rarely believe advertising.

Marketing your business involves a more thoughtful method of positioning the product or service in the customers mind in a positive way, and gaining "mind share" with time and repetition.

Most Image Branding involves the use of a USP - or unique selling position. A unique selling position is a phrase or image that is created to position the product or service as unique in the eyes of consumers - sometimes called the Purple Cow. In a field of black and white cows, it's hard for any one "black and white" cow to stand out, but a purple cow would surely stand out from the crowd.

Any marketing campaign should use a carefully considered image and/or USP to make your business the Purple Cow. Image Branding and a USP go hand in hand. For the small business with limited resources, image branding is best achieved with visual aids - a picture - eliminating the need for a potential customer to have to absorb anything but the "vision" you want them to see of you. "A picture speaks a thousand words". Allow the customer to visualize themselves in the "picture" that you have created, and the message becomes memorable.