Marketing is extremely important, because without that no one will know that your products or services are even available. But which approach should you choose, advertising or buying leads?

Of course, you can probably guess my answer: The best approach is a combination of both. But advertising and leads have two very different uses, and it’s important to understand the value of both.

Advertising basically lets people know you are out there. Advertising usually refers to paid commercials, direct mail packets, or Internet ads — anything where you are paying for print space or air time in order to relay a message to your target market. For instance, online pawn shops might purchase space for banner ads on certain websites where their target market frequents.

There are also similar ways of getting the word out that aren’t necessarily paid for, so are considered marketing rather than advertising, such as press releases, which may lead to an article in a newspaper or magazine. Press releases are unique because you are reporting company news in an effort to make it interesting enough that a journalist will pick up the story. Examples can range from something as simple as a company getting a good rating from the Better Business Bureau, to a grand reopening after a major overhaul within the company.

Leads, on the other hand, are where you directly contact a person who has shown interest in your product or service. An example is when someone inputs their information into a site such as LendingTree.com, and the site sells their information to a handful of lenders. It’s assumed that since the user provided their information, they are probably pretty serious about getting a loan, which makes a closed deal more likely than when a company simply runs an ad and has no direct contact with their target market.

Both approaches have distinct advantages, but neither really satisfies all your business’s needs when used alone. That is why the best approach involves multiple ways of reaching new customers.

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