The Value of Brand vs. Lead Generation
In the latest Engage Media podcast, marketing experts Sue Slominski and Ron Adams discuss the importance of brand building in marketing and how it can work in harmony with lead generation strategies. They explain how critical it is to employ a diverse media mix to achieve both short-term and long-term success.
While it might seem like lead generation, with quantifiable measurements and immediate results, is the be-all and end-all in marketing, brand awareness is equally vital. The best marketing strategies include a mix of both lead generation and brand building. Lead generation delivers instant results, pinpointing individuals willing to share their contact information for your content, while brand development expands your audience, building a long-term foundation of awareness and recognition.
What is ”brand” for a company?
Brand is everything in marketing. Studies have shown that brand lift positively impacts both short and long-term ROI while driving acquisition. Building your brand will get your name out there while creating a personality and meaning for your company and products. Branding increases recognition of your company’s name and builds awareness of your goods and services. It allows consumers to understand what your company stands for, even if they’re not currently looking to buy your products. If a time comes when they are in the market, they’ll be more likely to think of your business when they’re ready.
Successful brand building requires consistent messaging and advertising. If you invest in building your brand over the long term, your brand will become well-established. Well-established brands are of significant value. When customers know a brand well, it is more likely to be top of mind when they are ready to make a purchase. While branding doesn’t achieve overnight results, it is a long-term strategy for capturing future customers.
Brand awareness produces many positive results, promoting trust and increasing the credibility of your brand, as well as building customer loyalty and perceived value. Happy customers are more likely to promote your business by word of mouth, contributing to organic growth. Strong brand awareness will also help your business stand out in a crowded market, giving you an edge over the competition.
What is lead generation?
Lead generation is marketing that results directly in potential customers contacting the company for information about their business. Leads may be generated from social media and search engine ads, and may target individual consumers or geographic areas based on demographics, zip codes, interests, keyword searches, or other advanced metrics. The interested consumer will likely be required to fill out a form requesting contact information, or they might be directed to a landing page requiring the same. The company will then be able to measure conversions, providing instant, quantifiable results.
Getting instant results from lead gen
Lead generation is attractive to companies because of its immediate results, enabling lead capture while boosting SEO rankings. Once leads are captured, if they are well-nurtured through relationship building, higher conversion rates are likely. Lead generation strategies effectively target niche markets, enabling personalized contact with prospective customers. The leads captured can then be used for a cost-effective email campaign, increasing your ROI.
When launching a new product or promotion, lead generation can accelerate early adoption, connecting you with interested consumers. It can also drive fast results for campaigns through cold outreach and advertising.
Lead generation can be very useful to your sales team. Providing your sales team with quality leads will help them generate more sales. If you’re looking for customer leads to meet sales goals, lead generation can fill the pipeline with potential clients.
Lead generation provides the opportunity to collect and analyze data. You can track and analyze lead behavior and preferences, gaining insights that will help you optimize your advertising spend.
Focusing on brand sustainability
While lead generation provides instant results, it can also contribute to long-term brand sustainability. As your lead list grows over time, your campaigns will enjoy more conversions from the leads you’ve already captured. The connections forged from lead generation build brand loyalty while positioning your company as a market leader.
Which is more important?
Neither lead generation nor brand awareness is more important than the other. Each strategy has benefits and disadvantages. It’s important to examine your business’s goals, then determine the right mix of both strategies and use them in concert.
There are a few pitfalls to look out for in lead generation. This tactic tends to provide instant gratification, resulting in companies prioritizing quick wins over sustainable brand building. Branded search can be futile, resulting in paying for someone who already knows about you, similar to a modern-day Yellow Pages. Brand spending is often the first to be cut by finance departments, but it’s critical for building a long-term foundation for future growth.
Long-term brand building comes with delayed but long-lasting results. While lead generation provides prospects immediately, brand awareness eventually leads to customers due to a company’s name becoming well-known in the area. It might take months or years, but it’s a longer-term investment that must be sustained over the years. Due to the cost and delayed results, many companies are hesitant to invest in brand building, but it is vital for the long-term success of your business. A stable brand foundation can sustain your business even if you stop lead generation tactics. Without a solid brand awareness, when lead generation is paused, leads might completely stop coming in.
Finding the balance between
A successful marketing strategy requires a balance between immediate acquisition and long-term brand building. While lead generation doesn’t necessarily require brand awareness to achieve quick results, in order to have long-term success, brand building needs to be part of your marketing mix. With the plethora of media choices available today, a mix of strategies is the best way to optimize marketing spend, attract new clients, and build your brand for long-term success.
Keeping consumers’ preferences and behaviors top of mind is crucial in a successful marketing strategy. Don’t be swayed by personal biases or opinions of senior executives, who might not look at the big picture.
Finance departments often prefer lead generation versus brand building due to measurable ROI, but it’s important to employ econometric modeling and other data available to demonstrate the broad, long-term impact of investing in brand.
Brand building and lead generation are both important in their own right. Generating leads and driving conversions only work successfully in concert with continuous brand building.
Engage Media is here to help
The team at Engage Media has many years of proven marketing expertise and can guide you in your quest to achieve the perfect balance between long-term brand building and immediate lead generation. We can help you optimize ROI by creating the perfect mix of media that works best for your specific needs. Call, click, or email to get in touch today.
