What is the difference between marketing and advertising?

Some folks seem to have a bit of confusion when it comes to marketing and advertising and knowing how they differentiate. Fear not, we are going to clear that up. It might be best to give you Webster’s take on these two terms before breaking it down.

marketing is defined as:
1a: the act or process of selling or purchasing in a market
1b: the process or technique of promoting, selling, and distributing a product or service
2: an aggregate of functions involved in moving goods from producer to consumer

“marketing.” Merriam-Webster.com. 2013. http://www.merriam-webster.com (20 Feb 2013).

advertising is defined as:
1: the action of calling something to the attention of the public especially by paid announcements
2: advertisements (the magazine contains much advertising)
3: the business of preparing advertisements for publication or broadcast

“advertising.” Merriam-Webster.com. 2013. http://www.merriam-webster.com (20 Feb 2013).

In layman’s terms, advertising is how a company communicates its message to the public and connects producer to consumer, with the desired end result being a sale of goods, services or ideas. Advertising is just one piece of the marketing puzzle and it falls under one of the Four P’s (promotion) that comprise the “Marketing Mix”.

The 4 P’s of the Marketing Mix are:

1. Product – The good or service that is being offered.

2. Place – The good or service must be available to your target audience through physical stores, e-commerce (online shops), distributors or via catalog.

3. Promotion – Advertising the good or product to the public through avenues such as magazines, TV, billboards, websites, social media, etc.

4. Price – Competition and target audience are key factors in setting the price, it must be well-suited for the exchange of good or service being offered.

In addition to these four marketing basics, other components of marketing should be considered. Some of these are marketing research, competition, marketing strategies, budget, goals and market analysis… all of these help complete the all-encompassing idea of marketing.

The Marketing Mix is just one of many takes on the idea of marketing, but it is a great way to understand what the basic components of marketing are and how advertising fits in.

In conclusion, advertising is a very important key factor within the gamut of marketing, whereas marketing is the bigger picture and contains much more than just advertising.