[One Thousand Characters a Day] Kim Il-ri's 'Writing for Branding' <1>

Editor's NoteThere is 'writing' behind every process that makes a brand loved by many people, recognized as more stylish than other brands, and endlessly talked about with great stories. It is not just a line of copy relying on trends. It is the writing that supports all elements necessary for marketing, sales, and further planning and strategy. This book covers the entire process of 'writing for branding,' from finding the keywords that form the foundation of a brand, discovering and revealing the brand's core message, to systematically completing a branding project. The author, who has worked as a brand marketer in the field for over 10 years, generously shares his know-how for BX (Brand eXperience) writers. General readers who are brand users and consumers, as well as those who enjoy writing and believe in the power of words, will find it interesting. Word count: 1057 characters.

However, even if we concede a hundred times, marketing and branding are entities whose roles must be clearly distinguished. The reason is just one: they pursue different goals. No one would argue that it is meaningful to distinguish between two airplanes departing for different destinations.

(Omitted)

It may be difficult to define the concepts of marketing and branding as clearly as slicing tofu, but if we distinguish their goals, it could be expressed like this: marketing is 'making someone take a specific action,' while branding is 'striving to have a good character.'

In fact, marketing has relatively clear goals and its units are also finely divided. This is because most activities that induce specific actions to achieve set objectives?such as selling our products or services, making many people recognize us, or encouraging sign-ups/downloads/event participation/post creation?belong to marketing. One reason why marketers’ roles and titles are so diverse is precisely this.

On the other hand, a brand can be said to be the personality of a product, service, or even a company. Therefore, branding is the sum of the philosophy, values, and essence that form the foundation of that product or service.

Perhaps you have had the experience of liking a brand but finding it difficult to pinpoint exactly why it is good. This is not due to a lack of expressive ability but because a brand itself comes across as a comprehensive gift set made up of various attributes. So, if marketing is about carrying out various activities to deliver the message 'I like you,' branding is the process of becoming a good person oneself so that the other party can find you attractive. To put it in terms of the five Ws and one H, 'when,' 'where,' 'what,' and 'how' are closer to marketing, while 'who' and 'why' are closer to branding. If you recall once again that 'who we are and why we must exist' is the most fundamental question about branding, these two concepts will become a bit clearer.

－Kim Il-ri, <Writing for Branding>, Wisdom House, 18,000 KRW

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