Googled yourself lately?

You may laugh at that, but you know that as a business owner or key executive – it’s imperative to understand how you’re showing up to the world. Your virtual appearance is just as important as the impression you make when walking into the office or meeting with a client.

Whether you want to think of yourself as one or not, you are a brand. Your digital image is your personal brand. This is a composite of your basic public information, social media posts (including posts and images you’re tagged in by others), news media exposure, and associations you affiliate with.  Every bit of data about you throughout the internet creates your digital portrait. You don’t have to have your name on the company signage for your online persona to affect your professional image or that of your company. If you represent your company in any fashion, from sales to CEO, your online appearance matters.  In fact, 62% of buyers say they make a business decision based on online content alone.[i] Is your digital image a true reflection of the dedicated professional and industry expert that you are?  If a potential client searches for information about you, what will they find?

Your Reputation Matters

Recently, TopResume released their findings of a nationwide research project around personal branding. They found that nearly 80% of professionals are neglecting their online brand and, in effect sabotaging their business opportunities.[ii] Your virtual persona has the power to:

1. Add to or diminish your creditability.
2. Show bias, stereotype you, or your beliefs.
3. Help clients decide if they trust you enough to hire you or your company.
4. Determine if potential employees will decide if they want to work for you. Do your values align?

People buy brands and invest in people rather than purchase products. Consider that 82% of buyers are more willing to place trust in a company when the C-suite (highest-ranking company executives) are active on social media, according to Lee Odden of TopRank Online Marketing in “War of Words: Myth-Busting Social Media, SEO & Content Marketing.” Odden also says that if a CEO uses social media, a whopping 77% of buyers are more likely to make a purchase. A buyer considering purchasing a Tesla, for example, might solely buy it—or not—based on their impression of Elon Musk. That’s the power behind a personal brand. A well-executed image that fosters credibility can directly boost the believability of the entire company. Skeptics and investors invest in brands they trust.[iii]

Your Personal Brand Should be Working for You

The age we are living in is becoming increasingly digital. A solid online persona is no longer something nice to have but is a need to have. According to Personal Branding Expert Carlii Lyon, “We live in this dimension, but we also exist online. We need to do what we can to ensure our online self resonates and is working for us. Because when we sleep, he or she is working for us.”[iv]

If the thought of Googling yourself now is creating an increasing level of anxiety – take a deep breath and relax! However, I do hope that I have convinced you to take an in-depth look at what your online image says about you. To make managing your personal brand painless and straightforward, I have compiled a list of tips and resources to help you get started:

1. Set up a Google Alert using your name and your business name. Each time it appears in an article, blog, or website, you will be emailed.
2. Claim your name in all of the social media networks – even if you do not want or intend to have a public profile. You want to own the page before someone else claims your name. Search for it beyond Facebook and Twitter – Snapchat, TikTok, Caffeine. Even if your profile is private and you never post a single thing, this is a preemptive strike.
3. Make sure your active profiles are complete; add interesting and noteworthy information such as volunteer activity, links to your work, and connect with individuals and organizations that represent you.
4. Buy your domain and any variation of your name. I own korenakeys.com (and similar variants). I do it and have the URL redirect to my company website. You can leave it as is or redirect it to a LinkedIn page – you get the idea.
5. Publish content – blogs, articles, research papers – that represent you and the image you want to project. This can be published on your website, but also shared on partner websites or newsfeeds such as Medium.
6. Through social media branding, you have the power to influence what comes to mind when a potential client thinks of you. Be engaging and conversational. Connect with your audience authentically. Try not to put a sales spin on all of your content.

Your online self should be an extension of who you truly are and what you represent. Even while you sleep, your online self is networking and connecting with others 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  Your personal brand is something you will be building upon for the rest of your life. Be intentional about how you shape it.

[i] (Blue Corona, 2019)

[ii] (Augustine, n.d.)

[iii] (Chan, 2020)

[iv] (Armstrong, 2021)

Does this sound familiar to you? Your brand new, state-of-the-art website is finally Live! Eagerly, you await a return on your investment, giving it more and more time to deliver the results you initially anticipated.  After a few months, you are confounded by the lack of qualified leads, stagnant site traffic, and your ranking on Google Search is buried deeper than the distant relatives you recently discovered while searching Ancestory.com.

Unfortunately, this scenario is one we hear about all too often. As disappointing as it is for us, we understand that it is exponentially more frustrating and disheartening for you – the business owner, especially, after investing large sums of money into the empty promises of easy sales.

An optimized website is an important foundation- but just because you built it doesn’t mean they will come!  Your website (if easily found) is only one piece of the digital puzzle.  To reach your ideal customers and obtain qualified leads depends upon the complete picture presented online.

What is a Digital Brand Presence?

Your Digital Brand Presence is the perception of your company based on all available information across the internet.  This online portfolio consists of your corporate website, social media platforms and posted content, media exposure, and digital advertising. These components connect to create a lasting impression of your business on potential customers and ultimately tell your story.

• Corporate Website – Your digital location that houses all information about who you are, what you do, why you do it, where you do it, and when you do it.
• Social Media Platforms – These should display any corporate events, celebrations, milestones, announcements, answer questions, display product or service videos, and notify customers of pertinent information regarding your company.
• National or Local media coverage of your business should be shared throughout all of your online social media platforms and website.
• Digital advertising- Google Ads, boosted social posts, etc. should be placed in front of your target audience when and where they hang out online.

Why is a Comprehensive Digital Brand Presence Important?

Simply put, your customers are located on the internet and that is where they spend the majority of their time. Having a comprehensive digital presence where you have the strongest visibility is vital.

• As of 2019 and 2020, the average daily social media usage of internet users worldwide amounted to 145 minutes per day, up from 142 minutes in the previous year.[1]
• In 2019, Americans spent over 12 hours a day on major media including television, newspapers, magazines, radio, and digital formats.[2]

Therefore, if a brand is lacking an online presence they are missing out on beneficial interactions with their audience. These interactions could help increase brand awareness, brand relevance, and overall company growth.

How does a Digital Brand Presence Impact your Business?

Nine out of 10 B2B buyers say online content has a moderate to major effect on purchasing decisions.[3] Establishing trust and credibility for a brand is one benefit to having an online presence. More times than not, a consumer or B2B buyer is going to do their research on a business (and their competitors) before they ever decide to make a purchase.  In order for consumers to do their research and prove your validity they must be able to find you online as 67% of the buyer’s journey is now done digitally.[4]

One of the biggest impacts digital brand presence has on a business is the ability to engage with consumers on a human level. This engagement could come in the form of replying to comments, answering questions, or responding to problems or criticism in real time. Additionally, being able to reach customers on a massive scale has a non-disputable impact of curating a consistent web presence. Not only will you be able to be seen by more users, but you will increase your brand’s relevancy.

How Do you Own your Brand Presence?

Be proactive, take control of your online image and potential customers perceptions.  Start by creating a webpage that best reflects your brand and is optimized to the way your customers are trying to find you. But don’t just focus on your website – think beyond that. Look at your social media pages, what information is there, how often it is updated, and what story you are telling through it? Does the information posted reflect your true brand identity? Your content should be original and consistent in tone, style, and messaging. Review your Google My Business listing to make sure it is complete and accurate.  In addition, you may need to look into adding an online directory listing service to improve your 1^st page rankings.

It is also crucial that your site is optimized for mobile devices. In 2021, 53.9% of all retail e-commerce is expected to be generated via (mobile) m-commerce.[5] Here are some tips to ensure your website is mobile-optimized. [6]

• Your website should be programmed to intuitively adapt to whatever device is accessing it in order to provide the most user-friendly experience
• Tap-Friendly: make sure all buttons, links and calls to action have the appropriate size and margin to prevent errors.
• Text Phone Numbers: Make sure all phone numbers are text and not images so users can tap-to-call, or copy and paste the number to share with a friend.
• Visual Content: Since mobile websites are usually viewed on the go and on much smaller screens, utilizing visual content such as infographics and videos will be preferred over reading lengthy text.
• Main Navigation: increase padding around menu items so it’s easy for the user to read and tap on menu items.
• Contact Forms: Increase form input fields so it’s easy for the user to fill out the form.[7]

A comprehensive digital brand presence connects you with your target audience where they reside online.  By consistently engaging your current and potential customers with accessible information and value-added content (how-to-videos, demonstrations, FAQs, etc.) consumers are seeking about your brand adds to your brand relevancy, increases your brand awareness, and helps to continuously grow your business.  By following the tips and strategies presented here you are sure to set your brand far above the competition.  If you would like further information or assistance on developing a digital brand presence, our digital experts are ready to help! Contact us today.    

Sources:

[1] H. Tankovska, Daily social media usage worldwide 2012-2020 (Feb 8,2021) (available at https://www.statista.com/statistics/433871/daily-social-media-usage-worldwide/#:~:text=As%20of%202019%2C%20the%20average,minutes%20in%20the%20previous%20year.?ref=DigitalMarketing.org).

[2]  A. Watson, Time spent with media in the U.S. 2011-2022 (Jun 17,2020) (available at https://www.statista.com/statistics/278544/time-spent-with-media-in-the-us/).

[3] https://www.themarketingblender.com/statistics-boost-sales/(cmocouncil)

[4] https://www.themarketingblender.com/statistics-boost-sales/(siriusdecisions)

[5] https://www.statista.com/statistics/249863/us-mobile-retail-commerce-sales-as-percentage-of-e-commerce-sales/

[6] https://www.outerboxdesign.com/web-design-articles/mobile-ecommerce-statistics

[7] https://www.outerboxdesign.com/web-design-articles/mobile-ecommerce-statisticsar

The evolution of digital marketing has outpaced the financial sector in recent years. The industry has been slow to transition to the digital demands of today’s modern consumer. Banking and insurance are highly competitive markets with products perceived as interchangeable.  Consumers view financial products the same as the next, regardless of where they are offered.  A checking account is a checking account and a mortgage is a mortgage.  Due to this commoditization, brand loyalty is less meaningful to consumers when it comes to where they do their banking. In a recent study, only 8% of those surveyed said they had faith in their financial institutions. This lack of trust in the finance sector is yet another obstacle for those trying to connect with their target audiences.  In highly regulated industries like finance and insurance, Brands have to deal with oversight groups like the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), putting further restrictions and timelines on financial marketers. While these challenges may seem insurmountable, there is a digital marketing solution to them all.

Financial service companies need to change the perception of commoditization in relation to financial products.  Companies need to set themselves apart and distinguish why their products and services are better than those offered by the competition. Financial products are intangible offerings and what companies are actually selling is the idea or concept of wealth growth and security.  By utilizing programmatic advertising tactics, businesses can personalize messages to existing and potential clients showcasing the uniqueness of their brand and how they can help consumers grow their wealth while protecting their assets.

Build trust with consumers by being transparent while focusing on the customer experience.  Gain brand loyalty and recognition by highlighting the stories of your real-life customers. Detail how your products and services have helped them succeed.  Data analytics can provide key insights into how consumers are interacting with your brand.  Customer testimonial videos strategically placed on the right digital platforms will grow brand recognition and trust.

Provide consumers enablement content pushed through your social media channels.  People need sound financial advice and expertise. The National Foundation for Credit Counseling found that only 25% of U.S adults would turn to a bank or credit union if they needed financial guidance, a number on the decline in recent years. However, 35% of adults would have no problem trusting a financial planner or accountant.   What is your target audience in need of that you can give them?  For example, State Farm Insurance did a series of articles on Safe Teen Driving that went viral on social media.  Giving information on the cost of potential repairs that are covered by your insurance products or how to prevent home catastrophes from happening is content that helps people and builds trust.  Promoting this content through automated tactics will increase ROI and improve coordination between branches on timely ad campaigns.

Regulations can put restraints on your marketing plans and timelines in the financial world.  Begin by establishing a good relationship with your compliance team and asking someone from legal to sit in on an editorial or marketing meeting.  Train your team to know the ins and outs of regulatory guidelines and create your workflow around approval timelines.  Remember you need to keep your message in compliance, but you are free to be as creative as you like with how you share it!  Craft your content to fit with regulations and your brand message.  Highlight video testimonials, free financial calculators, and the content your target audience is looking for through the social platforms they use.

For more advice on solving the marketing challenges of the financial sector, contact one of our digital experts at KeyMedia Solutions today.  We have the answers to all of your digital marketing questions.

Client Case Study

KeyMedia Solutions has been partnering with SDN Communications, a business-to-business broadband service provider to run multiple digital marketing campaigns for the past couple of years. The client’s campaigns seek to reach business decision-makers in certain industries in order to gain leads, specifically business’s looking for broadband services. B2B targeting can be challenging, but KeyMedia Solutions has been able to help businesses such as this meet campaign goals within their specified marketing budgets.

Execution

The campaign started branding efforts before the network buildout was complete to build name recognition and generate leads for the sales team. As the campaign progressed, different tactics were introduced and tested.

Promoted Video, Pre-roll & Display ads: These ads were served to IT professionals and other industry-specific business decision-makers.

Content Distribution: Using LinkedIn, KeyMedia Solutions sponsored posts and shared content in relevant groups that had active business decision-makers, allowing for direct interaction on the posts.  Additionally, we tested sponsored posts, sponsored ads, and company page updates.

Paid Search: To support the display and content tactics, a targeted paid search campaign using specific, relevant keywords to business connectivity was developed. This effort was backed through precise ad copy, site links, and ad extensions.

Coordinated Efforts: In addition to paid digital media, KeyMedia Solutions worked closely with the internal marketing team to ensure a keyword-rich landing page was developed with conversion points built-in. Constant communication between the teams allowed for mutual support of the local events, email strategy, direct mail, radio, television, out of home, print, and Facebook efforts.

 

Campaign Results

Since starting in early 2015, the campaign has continued to see success in both brand awareness and lead generation.

• Online form submissions have increased by 350% year over year.
• Site traffic in the new territory doubled; while paid traffic increased by 359% in 2016.
• The users new to the site increased by 311% in 2016.
• Average session duration was up 109% compared to the previous year.
• Referral traffic from LinkedIn increased by 15% as a result of the promoted content.
• Monthly searches within related keywords driving traffic to the site increased 25% year over year.

 

 

 

Over 3,000 years ago, the ancient Egyptians used pictures and symbols called hieroglyphics to tell their stories. Thousands of years later in the world today we continue to use a similar idea to communicate to each other. Emojis have become modern day hieroglyphics in the way we use them in messages and social media.

As businesses continually try to connect with customers in any way possible, many have tried incorporating emojis into their marketing. Today’s blog is going to help you try and find out if marketing with emojis is the right fit for your business.

Emojis in marketing today

Emojis have taken over a significant part of online communication. According to a study from Emogi, about 92% of the online population use emojis in texts and social medial. Some common ways people use emojis are to:

• Lighten the mood by using sarcasm or humor
• Find a more comfortable way to express themselves
• Communicate when we can’t find the right word

The term “emoji” has become so popular that it was named by Oxford Dictionaries as Word of the Year for 2015, which means that we weren’t surprised when we noticed an increase of branded messages that included emojis. It’s common for brands to attempt to be part of a trend. Some brands excel, but there’s always the risk of trying too hard and having a voice that sounds forced.

Should your brand use emojis?

Emojis may help a brand add a personal element to its marketing messages and create an additional appeal to its audience, but this doesn’t mean that every case is similar.

Before diving in to the world of emojis, here are some things to consider:

• How does my target audience interact online?
• Would emojis enhance the branded message?
• Which emojis could be most relevant for my brand?
• Do I really know the meaning of the emojis I’m going to use?
• How often should I use them?

Once your brand is ready to include emojis in your next campaign, you might need some inspiration on the best possible uses to do so.

Brands using emojis today 

Google

Recently, Google announced they will be able to interpret emoji via its Twitter handle. All you have to do is tweet an emoji to @Google and the service will give you relevant results.

For example, if your wedding anniversary was coming up and your significant other loves flowers, you could tweet a flower emoji to Google and they will respond with a GIF and a link for flower shops nearby in a matter of seconds. Google says the feature will work with over 200 different emojis for food, sites, and activities near you. It’s also promised some “Easter eggs.”

 

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Taco Bell

Taco Bell launched a campaign to ask for a taco emoji and its Change.org campaign had over 30,000 signatures for its request! Once the taco emoji finally arrived, Taco Bell took to social media. They created over 600 GIFs and photos to celebrate the emoji’s arrival. Taco Bell created the #TacoEmojiEngine, an engaging way to interact with its customers. And it’s still working today!

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Domino’s Pizza

Domino’s created one of the most popular and iconic emoji-related campaigns when they asked for customers to order pizzas by tweeting or texting the pizza emoji. The customer still has to go to the website to verify their order, but it still was a creative and fun way to give their customers a new way to order pizza.

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Start using Emojis! 

Use emojis to tell stories, to stand out, or to show emotions greater than words. Emojis represent the future of marketing: expressing emotion, which builds trust: which is exactly what we as marketers aim for. They are trendy, and probably here to stay.

 

“Do your customers know what your business believes”

– Ryan Diess

You own a business and you’re passionate about the work that you do. You believe that your products or services are above and beyond the quality of your competitors, but you still aren’t converting leads into customers like you imagined. Why is this? While I was at the 2016 ICON event for small businesses, I had the opportunity to listen to Ryan Diess talk about this very problem. A problem many businesses face today.

In my blog today, I’ll outline Ryan’s keynote presentation and explain why a majority of today’s businesses are relying on the wrong marketing strategy to convert customers instead of investing in branding to promote their own business. I’ll also include Ryan’s four methods of successful branding and explain why each of them will make your business stand out in your customer’s mind.

Last Week Recap

Before we go on, I want to take second and recap what I talked about last week in my blog, “ICON 2016: Generate More Leads.” My first blog in this three week series focused on a breakout session which I attended lead by Tyler Garns. His breakout, “How to Generate 25,000 Leads in a Month,” focused on the strategy that he put in place which helped his company jump from 100 leads to 25,000 leads in just one month. I outline Tyler’s strategy and discuss how his plan can work for you.

Direct Response Marketing vs. Branding

The founder and CEO of Digital Marketer, Ryan has invested over $15 million on marketing tests, generated tens of millions of unique visitors, and sent well over a billion emails. Over the course of his approximately 3,000 split and multi-variant tests, Ryan discovered the winning formula for a successful business marketing strategy.

In his presentation, Ryan began by explain why today’s marketers are relying on Direct Response Marketing even though they should be focusing on ways to use branding to promote their business. Direct Response Marketing is the process of delivering advertisements to potential leads in hopes that they’ll make a purchase right there. He explains that this strategy is essentially like asking a complete stranger for money.

Branding, on the other hand, moves marketing in another direction. A branding strategy takes the focus away from the sales driven conversation between business and customer. Instead, it highlight the beliefs, quality, and personality of a business to create customer interest and loyalty. Customers are drawn to businesses that they find appealing or interesting. The question then becomes how can you project your business’s personality in such a way that will attract leads?

4 Methods of Branding

Ryan’s research found four different ways that businesses can attract the attention of potential customers through branding. Each of these methods focuses on either echoing the personality of a business or delivering something the customer finds useful.

Method #1 – Make them laugh

It might be obvious to say, but making people laugh is a great way to build their trust and remain at the top of their minds. However, this method can be difficult to pull off, but when done correctly, can create a lasting relationship with customers and makes them come back for future purchases.

Method #2 – Make them cry

While also difficult to market successfully, creating an emotional response to your product or service will grab the attention of customers and separate your brand from the competitors.

Did you ever think a gum commercial could give you the chills?

Method #3 – Make them feel a part of something

This method promotes the practice of including your customers in groups or conversations that make them feel less excluded and more involved with your brand. An example of this would be creating social media groups that customers can join to ask questions or receive helpful information. A successful branding strategy is centered around building relationships with potential customers and this method creates a conversation with customers that can lead to brand loyalty and repeat purchases.

Method #4 – Deliver actual value in advance

Customers want their problems solved. Branding with this method is designed specifically to give the potential customer a reason to interact with your business. Start thinking about how your product or service makes your customer’s lives easier. What information or content can you give your leads right away that is going to help them and make them want to come back in the future? This branding method puts the focus on the customer and makes them feel valued by your business.

Start Branding

To wrap my blog today, I want to include the example that Ryan used to explain branding during his keynote presentation. He compared finding a potential customer as starting a bank account. When opening a new bank account, everyone starts with a balance of $0. Direct Response Marketing is like going to the bank and trying to make a withdrawal out of your account before putting anything into it.

During the presentation, he defines branding as the act of making deposits into your potential client’s account. Through the four methods of branding mentioned above, you can begin compiling saving so when it’s time to make a withdrawal from your account, the potential customer will have seen the value or recall the emotion that your brand has delivered and won’t hesitate to make a purchase.

For Next Week

This being the second installment in my three week series recapping my ICON experience, I want to continue next week by talking about the different tools that you can use to promote and distribute your content to potential customers. And if you haven’t already, make sure to read my last week’s blog about how you can generate more leads for your business.

If you’s like a sneak peak into what I’ll be talking about next week, download our free Remarketing whitepaper by clicking below.

Voice, as we have discussed previously on this blog, is an integral part of any marketing campaign or initiative. At its heart, "voice" is the method by which a company can speak informatively about its brand so that consumers can learn more, gain trust and, in time, make a purchase.

A recent article in Forbes entitled "Game of Tones" took an interesting look at the topic of branding voice. Saying that "your brand needs a voice", the article laid out a series of ideas that are certainly food for thought for companies that are in the process of figuring out exactly how they want to bring their message to the masses. 

"However, you might not be sure what [that voice] sounds like, who it acts like or why it's even important. It is important, and it needs to be defined before you can even create your messaging, send out that first tweet or launch that website.  Every piece of communication for your company must be consistent and must have that certain personality in order to even interact with your clients and gain their trust," the article reads.

Put more simply, your business needs to have a uniform strategy for how it wants to communicate with the market. This would, in theory, spread out across all major channels: digital, print, social and everything in between. At the end of the day, consistency of voice – regardless of its "tone" – is the most important.

And thankfully, in the age of internet marketing solutions, finding that right sound is easier than you think. 

Last month, we reported that multinational company Proctor & Gamble had decided to rework its marketing department, deeming that division of the company its new "branding" department. The focus, the business said, was to place a special emphasis on the brand itself, accentuating its products directly over other marketing methods.

What does this mean exactly? P&G said quite openly that it wants to break ties with traditional advertising vehicles, suggesting that by doing so, its brands would be more connectible with consumers who may find them otherwise unapproachable.

But in the days since, some in the marketing space have questioned whether or not P&G's move was even necessary. In the age of internet marketing solutions, there are doubts that a specific focus on branding is needed. 

According to CMO Magazine, several executives in ecosystem remarked that the P&G decision isn't necessarily a good or bad thing, but that it highlights the role of brand awareness in a digitized age.

"No one else in the business can be responsible for the brand asset metric. Whereas digital, product development, pricing, portfolio management are often times shared with other parts of the business," Australian Marketing Institute board member Tara Lordsmith told the publication. "However, marketing is about shaping the future, not recording the past. So with that as a guiding light, marketers should be driving the health of the brands and the business."

Ultimately, only time will tell if P&G made the right choice. Given the long-term scale of internet marketing services, there's no doubt that both positive and negative impacts will be felt by any company that makes a decisive shift to their strategies. 

One of the pillars of marketing in the 21st century – and mostly digitized – age is branding. Successful branding means building an identity that consumers respond to, communicate with and are able to interact with on some level. The word "identity" is key here — think about branding as the icing on the cake: easily identifiable characteristics that often define – but don't summarize – what a company is all about.

A recent report from the Harvard Business Review contains a rather stunning but instructive data point. As many as 77 percent of consumers report having little to no relationship with a brand, suggesting that many people out there shopping don't adhere to a particular family of products or services that they recognize. The in-house study noted that the remaining 23 reported having such a connection, but the jury is still out on whether or not the issue has to do with the direct actions of a particular brand.

The study suggested that more interactions don't necessarily translate into stronger branding. As a result, companies may want to step back and ensure that the cohesive strategy they have adopted, which includes internet marketing solutions from knowledgeable sources, is in-line with the realities on the consumer level.

"Instead of relentlessly demanding more consumer attention, treat the attention you do win as precious," the Harvard Business Review notes. "Then ask yourself a simple question of any new marketing efforts: is this campaign/email/microsite/print ad/etc. going to reduce the cognitive overload consumers feel as they shop my category? If the answer is "no" or "not sure," go back to the drawing board. When it comes to interacting with your customers, more isn't better."

The question still remains, however: What's the best way to interact? As many experts have agreed, the key is to be genuine. Once you are able to approach consumers on that level, the value proposition about your business can be more easily made.

A recent article in Forbes detailing the so-called 'end of marketing' at corporate multinational Proctor & Gamble raises an interesting question: Is there a difference between branding and marketing?

The piece, which can be found here, explains how P&G is putting an end to 'marketing', and instead re-branding its consumer outreach divisions to, well, branding. These units include both traditional and internet marketing solutions. This focus on brand will serve as the foundation for a new way of speaking to customers, both current and potential, explained a representative for the company.

"These changes will help us unify brand-building resources to focus on delivering better brand and business results, clarify roles and responsibilities to make faster decisions, and simplify our structure to free up time for creativity and better execution," the spokesperson told Forbes.

So what's going on here? P&G argues that marketing itself is too broad of a function, and risks the wasting of resources on projects that don't contribute to the brand. That is seems to be the distinction that P&G is drawing: That 'branding' focuses on the brand itself, whereas marketing may, for example, focus on a more diverse set of subjects that relate to the company but might not actively build relationships. 

From the perspective of a small business, branding should be utilized to build a concerted narrative about the company. But instead of being its own department, why shouldn't branding be an element of marketing? P&G might be inching into the area of semantics here, but the effort is noteworthy because the organization is realizing the importance of crafting a defined voice that, at its heart, is about selling the 'why' of a business.