Branding: direct response with a longer conversion window

Is it branding? Is it direct response?

Allow me to pose a question. If the ultimate goal of most for-profit companies is to drive sales, is there a real difference between branding and direct response? Isn't the end goal of both to generate more sales? Isn't the real difference the impact and time it takes? For example, someone exposed to a "branding" ad might convert in 3 months because the brand is now top of mind or they had interacted with an ad or a site. Shouldn't that conversion count? Someone exposed to "branding" who becomes a loyalist, will hopefully spend more, increase share of wallet, and become an evangelist thus driving sales from others.

This is where innovation in measurement comes in and needs to play a HUGE role. For example, I would argue that companies should not measure DR and branding separately, but they should measure how they impact each other. Does branding build cookie pools that can be re-targeted with DR? What is the effect that branding has on search queries? Do DR efforts hijack dollars with offers of sales, discounts, etc? These are all things that can now be measured. Holistic measurement is coming and can be done with online programs. Companies should take the time to look at how their marketing is performing together and how programs influence each other. Measuring the traditional way, a program at a time, is not giving anyone a real picture.