Everything a brand does is advertising.
An ad should be an appetizer, not a buffet.
Good advertising is a dialog with people.
Hey! You can be more than just a car company. You can be more than just a pet food company. You can aspire to loving dogs, rather than just feeding dogs.
When creatively passionate people get together to start a company, the energy and camaraderie is really pretty stimulating.
Ultimately, if you are doing great work, the money will come.