What is the Difference between Content Marketing & Advertising?

Content marketing is about promoting your brand in front of the right target audience. Advertising is about getting your brand known in front of more people. 

Like so many people, I love history. It gives me satisfaction when I can put a historical perspective on something personal or professional. People often talk about content marketing like it is something new in a marketer's toolbox. In reality, brands have been telling their stories for hundreds of years.

In 1732, Benjamin Franklin published the yearly Poor Richard's Almanack to promote his printing business.

Charles Scribner's Sons began publishing Scribner's Magazine in 1887 to generate sales of Scribner's books.

In 1895, John Deere published the first issue of The Furrow, an agricultural magazine of print advertorials still in print today.

In the early 1900's Proctor & Gamble ventured into the first audio content marketing with their branded radio programs known as "soap operas."

You can use the content as advertising, but rarely can you use advertising as content. Why you may ask?

Because advertising is about what marketers want you to feel, and content shows up in the areas you care about or are curious about.

Telling someone how to feel isn’t natural, which is why you shouldn’t try to pawn advertising off as content.

Put another way, content marketing is a long game built on trust; advertising is an in-the-moment inspiration. Both take craft and both play important roles.

The different types of advertising:

-Traditional ads
-Display ads
-Video ads
-Social Media ads
-Pay per Click
-Native ads
-Retargeting

What distinguishes content marketing from advertising is the content, the target, and audience involvement.

One of the best perspectives to adopt here to truly understand the difference between advertising and content marketing is looking at it in terms of media – earned media, owned media, and paid media.

Earned media is...well...earned – it’s free media you gain through your customers. Examples include followers sharing a brand’s post, press mentions, and bloggers reviewing your product.

Owned Media is controlled by your company. It includes your website, email newsletters, social media profiles, and other media assets you have control over.

Paid media is media you pay for. Examples include PPC, social ads, and any other form of advertising

With content marketing, you’re creating content online. When potential customers search for something related to your industry online, you want them to find you ranking high on the search engine results page (SERP).

With advertising, you're promoting your content to capture your potential clients and ensuring that your content shows up to them.

Avoid a failing content marketing strategy by distinguishing it clearly from advertising strategy and using best practices along the way.