What Is Marketing Communications — and Why Does It Matter?

In his book “The 1-Page Marketing Plan: Get New Customers, Make More Money, And Stand out From The Crowd” author Allan Dib offers this delightful analogy to explain several parts that comprise marketing:

• If the circus is coming to town and you paint a sign saying “Circus Coming to the Showground Saturday,” that’s advertising.
• If you put the sign on the back of an elephant and walk it into town, that’s promotion.
• If the elephant walks through the mayor’s flower bed and the local newspaper writes a story about it, that’s publicity.
• If you get the mayor to laugh about it, that’s public relations.
• And if you planned the whole thing, that’s marketing.

Dib wrote the book in 2016, before today’s explosion of AI, social media channels, podcasts, and digital content. He could have added tactics in his analogy such as digital advertising, website creation, TV and radio scriptwriting, podcasting, a brochure, billboards, and e-newsletters. He could have added a plethora of social media marketing channels (the elephant could have its own IG account!). The circus ticket sales team could benefit from a host of sales enablement materials from battlecards to cold emails to sales decks.

In my 20-plus years in marketing and public relations, I have done all that and more (sans the elephant). All of those functions entail copywriting, the workhorse of marketing communications.

Marketing communications is the collection of messages, content, and channels a business uses to communicate with the people it wants to reach.

 The real job of marketing communications is making sure all of those pieces work together to tell a clear, consistent, persuasive story about your business. Before you write that brochure, craft that newsletter, hit “send” on that eblast — before you invest time or money in any individual marketing tactic — you should determine your strategy. Then make sure all of your marketing pieces dovetail into that strategy.

The first question you should ask is: What are we trying to communicate?

Before choosing the tactic, you need to understand:

• Who are we trying to reach?
• What do they need or want?
• What do we want them to understand about us?
• Why should they believe us?
• What makes us different?
• What do we want them to do next?

Once those questions are answered, the right communications tools become much easier to choose.

Your Website and Your Sales Team Should Tell the Same Story

One of the most common marketing problems I see is inconsistency. Not necessarily in logos or colors. In the message.

The website describes the company one way. The salesperson explains it another way. The brochure emphasizes something else. LinkedIn talks about a different specialty. The newsletter rarely mentions the services the company most wants to grow.

Although everyone involved is technically telling the truth, nobody is telling quite the same story. That makes it harder for prospective customers to understand what the business actually stands for. Strong marketing communications creates a common thread.

Your website doesn’t have to sound exactly like your sales presentation. Your newsletter shouldn’t read like an advertisement. Your social media posts don’t need to repeat your brochure. But underneath all of them should be a consistent understanding of:

• Who you are.
• Who you serve.
• What you do particularly well.
• Why it matters.

Good Marketing Communications Meets People Where They Are

Not every prospective customer is ready to buy. Some are just becoming aware that they have a problem. Some are researching possible solutions. Some are comparing providers. Others are almost ready to make a decision and simply need reassurance. That means different communications have different jobs.

An educational article might answer an early question. A case study might provide evidence when someone is comparing options. A newsletter might maintain a relationship until the customer is ready to act. A service page might explain exactly what you provide. A testimonial might reduce uncertainty. An email might prompt the next step. No single piece has to do everything. In fact, it usually works better when it doesn’t try.

Clarity Beats Cleverness

Marketing has always had a weakness for clever slogans and impressive-sounding language. Sometimes clever is wonderful, but never at the expense of understanding. Consider the sort of language that appears on thousands of business websites:

“Innovative solutions customized to meet your unique needs.”

Huh? It sounds professional. It also tells you almost nothing.

• What solutions?
• For whom?
• What makes them innovative?
• What needs?
• Why this company instead of the five competitors saying essentially the same thing?

Effective marketing communications replaces vague claims with specifics. Instead of simply saying you have expertise, demonstrate it. Instead of saying you provide exceptional service, explain what that service looks like. Instead of saying customers trust you, show evidence. Specificity gives people something to understand—and something to believe.

Marketing Communications Has Another Audience Now

For years, we primarily thought about two audiences for online marketing content: people and search engines. Now there is a third – artificial intelligence.

If you’re wondering how AI changes the way businesses need to structure online content, I explain that in “What Is AI Optimization? A Small Business Guide to AIO”

Prospective customers increasingly use AI-powered platforms to research businesses, compare services, identify experts, and answer questions. That makes clear, consistent marketing communications even more important.

If your website says one thing, your LinkedIn profile says another, your service descriptions are vague, and your strongest evidence is buried three clicks deep, humans may struggle to understand your business. AI systems may struggle, too.

The technology may be new. The communications problem isn’t.

You still need to clearly establish who you are, what you know, what you offer, and why someone should trust you.

So Why Does Marketing Communications Matter?

Because customers rarely make decisions based on one message. They encounter pieces of your business over time. Each interaction adds another piece to the picture. Strong marketing communications helps make sure those pieces fit together. It builds familiarity, demonstrates expertise, reduces confusion, establishes credibility, and, ultimately, it gives prospective customers a clearer reason to choose you.

Before You Choose the Tactic, Start With the Message

I’ve worked in marketing, public relations, business development, and professional copywriting for more than 20 years. The tools have changed enormously during that time. The basic questions haven’t.

• Who are we talking to?
• What do they need to know?
• Why should they care?
• Why should they believe us?
• What should happen next?

Answer those questions first. Then decide whether you need a website, newsletter, brochure, case study, ad campaign—or something else entirely. Because effective marketing communications doesn’t begin with the channel. It begins with knowing what you need to say

By Ginny Peterson, Senior Copywriter & Marketing Communications Strategist

October 29, 2026