Difference between a designer and marketer...

Marketers and Designers are the same. This is what a lot of people think, however they are not. In the course of work, many marketers work directly with designers or work as a designer as well. We assume that they see the world and approach their work the same way. This, of course, is wrong.

Designers

Good designers are masters of what looks good, the key thing is what looks good might not perform good, and designers in nature might be very subjective as well.

Marketers

They are trained to focus on results. If something works, do more, if not, change. This applies to all activities we are involved in, Copy, Sales, Targeting, Design etc.

Who is right?

Both! They are right to some extent. No one will accept a design that does not meet the minimum standards that a brand sets for themselves. The problem is this, Marketers will favor the stronger performer, while the designer will try to convince the marketer that the poor design hurts the brand and a better design will do more.

The middle-ground...

Test multiple designs and find one that both sides can agree on. Let's face it, with no client, there won't be a need for both roles ya. The key thing is the campaign looks as good as possible and also perform as well as possible in the aspect the client that has an interest in.

The combination...

The reason why the combination of the both roles can be very good for your campaign is that if we have someone in a way that can help with an artwork that can be firstly work in a way the market can accept and yet design can also be presentable. To be proficient in both is challenging for both the designers' soul and marketers' heart.

- Jason Tan

Mass Marketing vs Targeted Marketing

A simple explanation would be, the former is trying to reach as many people as possible, while the latter is only trying to reach a specifically defined and profiled people. There is actually no right or wrong in using both types of marketing. One is not better than the other, they are both effective in their own ways and will actually be better in different businesses and/or different purposes.

For Mass Marketing, the content has to be constructed in the most basic form so that the message can have the broadest appeal possible and may become “out of point” for certain groups and blur to the real group of people that you are trying to reach. Mass Marketing can be very expensive as the distribution of high volume even at a low rate. There are actually networks that you can tap to reduce certain distribution costs but generally, the percentage cost can be a few times more than then actual print prices.

Targeted Marketing, on the other hand, allows great flexibility and profiling in the use of databases. Targeted marketing allows you to clearly define your unique value and seek to engage your audience in a personal and effective way. Essentially. your strategy and planning must be comprehensive, great design, a clear message and not forgetting a fantastic copy. It also means more time may be required to create and construct specifically targeted campaign to achieve the results you desire. The number of prints that required to be distributed is much lesser than what Mass Marketing employs, yet the per piece value of mailing and the low print quantity will cost the per piece value of print to be much higher, but the total cost will usually be lower. 

Either method can be effective taking into consideration, either way defining the target market, getting the message right and being consistent will produce results.