The Difference Between Marketing and Advertising

The Difference Between Marketing and Advertising

From Kanawha Valley Hustlers by Joe Justice

April 7, 2026 · 10 min · Episode 290

About this episode

The episode discusses the distinction between marketing and advertising, using the Bud Light and Dylan Mulvaney campaign as a case study.

I break down the difference between advertising and marketing and explain why so many business owners confuse the two. I argue that advertising has one job: getting attention. If people see it, react to it, and talk about it, the ad does its job. I use the Bud Light and Dylan Mulvaney campaign as an example because it got massive attention, which makes it successful as advertising. But I also explain why it failed as marketing. The issue is not whether people like or dislike the people involved. The issue is that the message does not match the brand Bud Light spent years building. From there, I define marketing as the larger system behind the ad, including the offer, the audience, the pricing, the messaging, the branding, and the sales process. My point is simple: ads get attention, but marketing turns that attention into paying customers. If those two pieces are out of sync, the business pays for attention without getting results.

People in this episode

Host: Joe Justice

Topics covered

  • marketing
  • advertising
  • business strategy
  • branding
  • customer engagement

Keywords

  • marketing
  • advertising
  • Bud Light
  • Dylan Mulvaney
  • business owners
  • customer attention
  • branding

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Bud Light

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