Content Marketing Vs Advertising

By Author: James Brown
Total Articles: 8
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If you are a business owner, you will know the importance of getting across your products in front of the right people. Advertising has been responsible for this for the longest time. Mediums like the radio and television have advertised the name and products of businesses to popularize the goods. It has been effective but now the current is changing with a majority of people going on the internet for all their needs.

Content marketing has gained immense heat with many companies opting for it over traditional forms of advertising. The topic that has become a part of the debate in the world of marketing is- content marketing vs advertising.

This article will cover the major differences when it comes to content marketing vs advertising. Firstly let's discuss the mediums used by the two forms of marketing.

Regular advertising focuses on the following:

=> Radio commercials
=> Television commercials\
=> Banners
=> Billboards
=> Brochures
=> Flyers or daily mailers

Meanwhile, ...
... content marketing focuses on the following:

=> Company blogs
=> External blogs
=> Online articles
=> YouTube
=> Social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.

Content marketing differs from advertising in that it creates types of content such as email newsletters, videos or podcasts, ebooks, seminars, white papers, blog posts, and more.

Some major differences

While the methods are a source of the great difference when it comes to advertising vs content marketing, there are a few more major differences.

Nurturing vs Showing

All the traditional forms of marketing or advertising focussed on conveying or showing everything about a particular product, service, or business. Using images and direct information, it explained to customers directly whatever the company is selling.

Content marketing differs from advertising in that it is not as direct as the latter. This is a style of advertising that puts across information that consumers will find interesting to read. The content is valuable and useful. It also conveys to the customers how aware the business is about the industry it is a part of.

Instant vs Long Term

Studies have shown that ideally a product must be presented for a consumer to view at least 7 times in 18 months for it to sell. Advertising relies on the fact that customers will see the product and buy it. This seldom works with all kinds of services and products.

When it comes to the difference between marketing vs advertising, the former aims at a more long-term impact on customers. They use a gradual process of putting the product in front of the consumers in different ways without essentially pushing it.

Talking to vs Talking with

Advertising is that part of mass media that talks to customers. It is a one-way conversation and not a dialogue. When businesses simply advertise, they tell the customers about the products and their benefits.

Online marketing offers a much wider scope for a conversation with potential consumers. For example, be it blog posts or YouTube snippets, the buyers can always leave their comments. This allows for more personal interaction and in turn, helps promote your business better. In this tiff between content marketing vs advertising, the former has a more powerful hand because it always has the chance of getting to know the customer base better and improving on criticism.

General vs Specific

Advertising has a very simple goal in mind- get the products to reach as many people as possible. Quantity is what matters. Whereas, when people opt for content marketing what they are looking for essentially is not many people but the right people who will buy the products.
Thus, advertising is more general while content marketing is targeted or more specific. They target a specific audience and work on the needs or commercial demands of these customers. Content marketers research their potential customer base, analyze trends through blogs or articles that are doing well, and even find out the location of customers so that the products can be specifically marketed accordingly.

Peer-to-peer marketing tactic

In this discussion on content marketing vs advertising, the former has leverage over the latter because the content is more easily shareable and is peer-driven. People buy products or hire services based on how often their peers have bought the same or recommended it. With advertising, the business itself is everything and it runs the show. Nothing else matters. It is not bothered about developing relationships with the customer base.

Conclusion

To sum up, it can be said that advertising is a more in-your-face way of selling products while content marketing is all about providing potential buyers with the information they will find useful or valuable. The reason why the latter is doing so well is that people prefer that personal touch from the company as it shows that they are trustworthy and responsible.

Businesses in the present times are gradually moving in the direction of content marketing. They are aiming at creating a work ethic that shows that they nurture relationships, care about customer feedback, etc. They try to get the company to be noticed by the right people.

Advertising also has its benefits. It allows products to become popular among a larger number of people. With the right advertising techniques, your product can become a household name. However, you will have to incorporate some form of content marketing for the products to sell well.

While the debate on which is better- content marketing vs advertising, is an ongoing one, there is a company that has excelled both. Janbask Digital Design is best at content marketing as well as advertising. The company boasts of a team of experts who handles all aspects of marketing. They have a wide customer base and rank high when it comes to customer loyalty. If you are planning to create valuable content for your business, Janbask Digital Design is the company you are looking for.

We hope this article helps you decide which one to choose- content marketing or advertising.