imc

Mapping The Role of IMC in ‘Ad-World’ 1

Introduction to IMC

Introduction

Pepsi, announced some time back that it was scrapping its familiar

red, white, and blue design and switching to a radical new electric

blue package and logo design, the reason being that Pepsi's image,

particularly in international markets, had been losing something in

translation.

As The Wall Street Journal observed in reporting on the Project Blue

launch, "Pepsi’s image is all over the map." The story explains that a

grocery store in Hamburg uses red stripes, a bodega in Guatemala

uses '70s-era lettering, a Shanghai restaurant displays a mainly white

Pepsi sign, and a hodgepodge of commercials feature a variety of

spokespeople, ranging from cartoons and babies to doddering butlers.

It's not just Pepsi's marketing communication that sends different

messages to different people. Consumers say the cola tastes different

in different countries, so PepsiCo's plans also called for revamping

manufacturing and distribution to get a consistent-tasting drink

marketed throughout the globe. And some of its European marketing

communication partners mixed in their support to the plan because

they felt they weren't consulted about how it was to be implemented,

so there's work to be done there, too.


Introduction to IMC

“Everything Sends a Message”

What happened to Pepsi dramatizes the point that message consistency

is a systemic problem, as well as strategic. It has to be approached from

the viewpoint of the whole company and its total business operations,

not just from how the company executes its marketing

communication or corporate image programs.

As Nicolas Hayek, CEO of Swatch, says, "Everything we do, and the

way we do everything, sends a message." And that’s where

Integrated Marketing Communications comes in. Integrated

marketing communications is a process that manages all of a company or

brand's interactions with customers and other key stakeholders. Its premise

is that everything a company does, and sometimes what it doesn't

do, sends a message.

In the marketplace of the 21st century the driving force is not a

company with products to sell but customers controlling what, where,

and how they want to buy. Thanks to the Internet, 24-hour toll-free

phone numbers, credit cards, and express delivery services,

consumers are accessing information on demand and seeking out the

products and services that interest them.

Gone are the days when a company determined where, when, and

how it sells its product. Integrated marketing communications (IMC)

is a customer-centric, data-driven method of communicating with

consumers. Nestle, IBM, Microsoft, Apple computers, Nike and many

other companies have adopted this IMC approach.


Introduction to IMC

Integrated Marketing Communication

Integrated marketing is a comprehensive approach to internal and

external organizational communication.

Definitions of IMC

As per American Association of Advertising Agencies –

“The concept of integrated marketing communications planning that

recognizes the added value of a comprehensive plan that evaluates the

strategic role of a variety of communication disciplines - for example, general

advertising, direct response, sales promotion, and public relations - and

combines these disciplines to provide clarity, consistency and maximum

communications impact”

According to Don Schultz –

“Integrated marketing Communications is a new way of looking at the whole

picture, where once we only saw parts such as advertising, public relations,

sales promotion, purchasing, employee communications, and so forth. It is

realigning communications to look at it the way the customer sees it - as a

flow of information from indistinguishable sources.”

A successful IMC campaign requires that the firm finds a right

combination of promotion tools and techniques, defines their roles

and the extent to which they can or should be used, and coordinate

their use.


Introduction to IMC

In the words of Duncan and Everett –

“Integrated Marketing Communications may be defined as “The strategic

coordination of all the messages and media used by an organization to

influence the perceived brand value”

The focus here is on two aspects

1) Being present at all the contact points.

2) Managing the communications well so that your brand speaks one

language.

If this does not happen

� One may miss out on some of the contact points where the customer

awaits for communications, and when he does not find it, he

abnegates the brand.

� One may reach different contact points but different

communications speak differently, the customer gets confused as to

what he should associate with brand.

Thus the first aspect creates awareness and the second aspect creates

and maintains loyalty.


Introduction to IMC

Necessary Conditions for an Effective IMC Program

Today, IMC definitions are broader in application, as a brand is

developed in stakeholders' minds as a result of all interactions they

have with a company, and not just as a result of a campaign they are

exposed to. The premise is virtually the same — synergies are

achieved when all brand contacts work in concert.

While definitions differ, the practice of IMC involves the same success

factors and helps organizations build and deepen relationships with

their many stakeholders. The following conditions should be

considered “necessary” but not sufficient conditions of IMC practice:

1. It must speak to all stakeholders with a "single," consistent voice.

2. It must assume the consumers' point of view.

3. Its strategic communications disciplines must be internally integrated.

4. Its messages must cut through the increasingly cluttered commercial

landscape.

5. It must foster a two-way dialogue between consumers and itself.

6. It must build bonds that lead to long-term, consumer-to-brand

relationships.

7. It must not place excellent marketing ahead of corporate reputation.

Thus in the IMC approach, the different communications are in the

form of arcs making up a 360-degree circle, at the center of which lies

the customer. The communications need to be spread and integrated

on a holistic basis what forms the basis of IMC.


Introduction to IMC

An Analogy – A Symphony Orchestra

'Integrated communications' are like a band. The different

communications instruments-advertising, public relations, database

marketing, media specialists, sponsorship, interactive, event

marketing and the rest - are just like different musical instruments:

piano, trumpet, trombone, violin, clarinet, percussion and the rest.

This analogy is neither as silly nor as simple as it sounds.

The first thing to note is that although all the instruments normally

play the same tune, they are not interchangeable; they make different

noises. When each plays alone, the melody will be recognizable. But if

one thinks a piano playing Rule Britannia is the same as a trumpet

playing Rule Britannia, he’s tone deaf. Very few consumers are tone

deaf. They will recognize that the underlying messages being

conveyed, say, by public relations and sponsorship, are identical, but

the tone will be entirely different. The form in which a message (or

melody) is conveyed is nearly as important as its content, sometimes

more important.

Second, all the different disciplines must play in harmony.

But, third, it does not always mean they must play exactly the same

tune. There are many occasions when they should be playing in

counterpoint. On their own, it may not be apparent they are playing

the same melody at all. Each may be exploiting its own virtuosity,

instead of echoing the others.


Introduction to IMC

Similarly, badly done integrated marketing campaigns squeeze

different communications media into restrictions which minimize

their individual vitality. To force all types of communications to use

the same message, instead of allowing them to deploy their own

strengths and complement each other is direly inefficient.

A company that wants to make maximum use of the synergy of

integrated marketing communication has to do more than simply

initiate advertising, direct marketing, public relations and data base

management. It requires total management commitment to a multi-

faceted program of operations and marketing.

There Are Two Critical Factors That Influence The Effectiveness Of

An Integrated Marketing Campaign.

• The first is the strategic combination or "mix" of the basic elements.

Achieving the most effective mix is usually the result of experience.

• The second critical factor is the consistency of the theme across all

elements in the campaign. Logically, consistency is best achieved

through the use of a single source responsible for defining the role of

each element, creating the theme, and coordinating the timely

implementation of the campaign. However, consistency is where

most companies who believe they are already integrating their

marketing efforts usually fall short.


Introduction to IMC

Factors Contributing to IMC's rising Prominence

� Fragmentation of media : Both the Print and the Television media

have proliferated dramatically in the past decade which has resulted

in less reliance on mass media and more emphasis on the other

promotional options, such as direct mail and event sponsorship.

� Better audience assessment: More sophisticated research methods

have enabled more accurate and specific targeting, leading the

marketer away from the mass media to promotional tools that reach

only the segment that has been targeted.

� Consumer empowerment: Empowered consumers are more

skeptical of commercial messages and demand information tailored

to their needs.

� Increased advertising clutter: This has diluted the effectiveness of

any single message. There seems to be no end in sight to this 'media'

proliferation.

� Many marketers feel that traditional advertising is too expensive and

is not cost effective. Hence there is a trend of shifting of budgets

from media advertising to other forms of promotions.

� Database Technology: This can be used to create accurate customer

and non-customer profiles for developing highly targeted direct

response & telemarketing programs can be implemented.


Introduction to IMC

� Channel Power: Retail channels are developing power and hence

are able to demand promotional fees and allowances from

manufacturers, which divert funds away from advertising and into

special events or other promotions.

� Increased Accountability: This have led the firms to reallocate

marketing resources from advertising to more short-term and more

easily measurable methods such as direct marketing and sales

promotion.


Introduction to IMC

4P’s versus the 4 C’s

The current revolution in the market has brought about several

‘Differentiation’. This has led to the replacement of 4 P's of marketing

by the 4 C's of marketing.

�� Not PRODUCT, But CONSUMER

Understand what the consumer wants and needs. Times have

changed and you can no longer sell whatever you can make. The

product characteristics must now match what someone specifically

wants to buy. And part of what the consumer is buying is the

personal "buying experience."

�� Not PRICE, But COST

Understand the consumer's cost to satisfy the want or need. The

product price may be only one part of the consumer's cost structure.

Often it's the cost of time to drive somewhere, the cost of conscience

of what you eat, and the cost of guilt for not treating the kids.

� Not PLACE, But CONVENIENCE

Think convenience of the buying experience and then relate that to a

delivery mechanism. Consider all possible definitions of

"convenience" as it relates to satisfying the consumer's wants and

needs. Convenience may include aspects of the physical or virtual

location, access ease, transaction service time and hours of

availability.


Introduction to IMC

�� Not PROMOTION, but COMMUNICATION

Communicate! Communicate! Communicate! Many mediums work

together to present a unified message with a feedback mechanism to

make the communication two-way. And it is necessary to include an

understanding of non-traditional mediums, such as word of mouth

and how it can influence your position in the consumer's mind. How

many ways can a customer hear (or see) the same message through

the course of the day, each message reinforcing the earlier images?


Introduction to IMC

The Heart of IMC

In keeping with the above trends, there are Five power concepts that

go in IMC and make the communications efficient and effective.

1. Customer Focus: One’s message must be appealing, relevant and

accurately timed and must be based on the understanding and

anticipation of what the customer expects and wants, when he wants

it, and how he wants it to be delivered to him.

2. Customer Empowerment: One should empower the customer to

define the relevance; company shouldn’t define it for him and do not

force the content as per your convenience. Allow the customer to

decide how deeply he wants to be involved in the communications.

This concept extends beyond the permission from customer. Here

the customer takes the lead.

3. Immersive Marketing: One need to be consistent at all the contact

points and need to have continuity such that all the roads of

different media lead down the same path to the brand. The beauty of

the communications lies in that the consumer gets the option only to

decide how far to go and not what different objective to go for.

4. Brand Resonance: Communicating while creating relationship must

stand for something that the customers think is worthy of a

relationship with them.


Introduction to IMC

5. Emotional Bonding: One’s brand develops a relationship with

customer; based on the insights about him. He is not only loyal to

the brand but he treats the brand as a friend, a trustee, a close

relative, or as an inseparable part of his life. In this case he becomes

an advocate for the brand and propagates the message himself. In

other sense he becomes a contact point for the other consumers.

Thus the communications become vital to be managed so well that

even this newly created contact point speaks the same voice.

Correctly implemented, the IMC program is a continuous cycle of

gathering data and implementing response-generating marketing

communications which are based on previously, gathered data. Marketing

communications derived from consumer need can build perceived value

into your product or service, and separate it from the competition in the

minds of your customers and prospects.


Process of IMC

Levels of Integration

Integrated marketing communications is not just merely a piece of

advertising, a piece of public relations and a piece of direct mail that

all look the same. Rather, IMC is the management of all brand

contact points through an integrated, consumer-driven strategy. It

means realigning your communications from your customer’s

perspective so that your public relations are indistinguishable from

your advertising; your direct marketing is indistinguishable from

your promotions and so on.

There exist various levels at which such integration can take place.

The following table details each of such stages.

Stages of Integration of Marketing Communication


Process of IMC

Level 1- Tactical Co-ordination

To create ‘one sight, one sound’ by consolidating communications planning

it often leads to attempts at cross-functionality, where teams of specialists

from different areas of expertise are formed to increase synergy.

Level II- Redefining the Scope of Marketing Communication

Rather than considering communications as an outbound activity, the firm

looks at all points at which the consumer and the brand are in contact.

Most important result of this level of integration is inclusion of Employees

as both target for and proliferators of marketing communication.

Level III- Application of Information Technology

The key ingredient here is the use of databases to capture individual

transactions. This enables the firm to market to groups of individuals

rather than the average customer at the middle of the segment.

Level IV- Strategic and Financial Integration

In this level two issues are paramount:

The ability to measure the return and the ability to use the marketing

communication to drive organizational and strategic decisions.

Rather than measuring say, extra sales resulting from an advertising

campaign, the firm would now measure the returns from a specific group

of customers against costs associated with that group.


Process of IMC

Consumer Psyche & Information Processing

Key to effective communication is understanding how consumers

process the vast amount of information that comes their way each and

every day. To cope, consumers select only that information which

they perceive to be important and ignore the rest. If the marketing

message is to be selected and processed, it must:

• Consist of sensory and life experiences that can easily be identified

and transformed into a unified concept,

• Have mental relationships to other categorized ideas, and

• Fit into the categories and mental linkages that people have already

created for them.

Communication only occurs when the consumer accepts, transforms,

and categorizes the message.

The two models of information processing have been proposed are as

follows:

1. The Replacement Model assumes that it is possible for the marketer

to "replace" previously stored information chunks with new ideas.

What is said does not matter as much as how often and how loud the

message has been transmitted. With enough exposure, the new will

replace the old.


Process of IMC

2. The Accumulation Model of information processing assumes that

message consistency is critical since the consumer accepts, processes,

and stores information about the product or service relative to what

has already been mentally accepted.

The storage and retrieval system works on the basis of matching

incoming information with what has already been stored in memory.

If the information matches or enhances what is already there, then

the new information will likely be added to the existing concepts

and categories. If it doesn't match, the consumer has to make a choice,

either the new information can replace what is already there or the

new information can be rejected.

If rejected, the consumer would continue to use existing concepts and

categories and ignore the new. This is called a "judgment system"; in

which consumers match or test new information against what they

already have and then make a judgment to add to, adapt, or reject the

new material. The judgment system (perceptual consistency) prevents

consumers from having multiple concepts or categories for the same

message.

When consumers reject the information or do not add or attach it to

what they already have, there is a failure to communicate. In many

cases, the failure to communicate is the result of the marketer being

unable to match his or her messages or fields of experience with those

of the prospect or customer.


Process of IMC

Consumers use the same information processing approach whether

the new data comes from advertising, sales promotions, a

salesperson, an article in a newspaper or magazine or from what their

neighbor is telling them. The marketer who presents non-integrated

messages risks not having any of his or her messages processed

because of the conflict that occurs in the consumer's information

processing system. If for no other reason, than the risk of confusion,

marketers must integrate their messages or consumers will simply

ignore them.


Process of IMC

Characteristics of an IMC Approach

Planning for an Integrated Marketing Communications program goes

beyond merely using the right tool under the right conditions.

Strategic planning for IMC is distinguished from the traditional use of

multi-dimensional promotions by the following four factors:

• An Outside-In approach is used to plan communications that

essentially means that a firm, designing communications, starts with

the customer or prospect and looks backward, identifying what the

customer deems as important information. This approach helps to

deliver the information that the customer wants rather than in the

form at a time that the firm deems appropriate. Similarly Tom

Duncan suggests the use of Zero-based communication planning – it

involves determining what tasks need to be done and which

marketing communications function should be used and to what

extent.

• IMC planning requires comprehensive and detailed knowledge

about the customers, prospects and other stakeholders.

• An IMC plan is built around brand contacts like packaging, employee

contacts, in-store displays etc. Each contact must be evaluated for

clarity and consistency with the overall IMC program.

• Control of the IMC plan is highly centralized. The effectiveness of

the program is highly increased by appointing a single person or

team to control and evaluate all contacts with targeted customers.


Process of IMC

The Actual Process

Integrated Marketing Communications is a process and it involves the

companies, the communication design/creative agencies and the

execution agencies. The first step in this process is consumer research

and planning followed by designing the creative and finally

Implementation.

The planning is at the strategic level. Generally it relates to the entire

strategic framework as to what does the product stand for, its

attributes, the differentiation and then segments which it wants to

enter. As mentioned earlier, IMC is centered around the customer and

has its essence of understanding him to the fullest degree is a must.

Thus the plans need to be based which must answer:

� What contact opportunities do I have (taking into consideration

the costs and the benefits)?

� What depth do I want to gain in any media?

� What is my media strategy i.e. whether I want to just ensure my

presence in the medium or I want to dominate that particular

medium?

The marketing manager needs to provide the agency with

information about the consumer segments, product, positioning ideas,

competition etc. This is the basic framework, based on which all the

communications are designed. This plan is briefed to the creative and

the execution agency and discussed.


Process of IMC

The promotional planner after reviewing all the information should

see how IMC fits into the marketing program and what are the

objectives set for IMC to achieve. (Thus the objective could either be

only to communicate to the customer about the product or service to

achieve a certain market share or growth in sales).

The next step following is the designing of the creative which rests

on the creative / advertising agency. Nowadays increasingly most of

the advertising agencies handle the entire account of a brand single

handedly (even including the consumer researches for media and

advertising).

The creative here is designed for all the communications whether the

tangibles or the intangibles e.g. packaging, print ads, TV ads,

interstitial etc. This also includes the coordination of the events and

PR based on a one-voice platform.

The final step in the process is the Implementation. This includes the

actual communication and the different activities communicating

about the brand like promotions and events etc.


Process of IMC

Model for Planning IMC

Tension, Stress, creativity,

deadlines, collaboration,

synergy, conflict,

misunderstandings, expertise,

complexity, details, details,

details….are all things that

characterize the process of

preparing to launch an IMC

campaign.

There are many different models that guide the process of planning

an IMC campaign. One such model being discussed is the ‘Strategic

Planning Triangle’ proposed by advertising researchers Esther

Thorson and Jeri Moore in their book ‘Integrated Communication :

Synergy of Persuasive Voices’.

As shown alongside, the apexes of the planning triangle entail the

segment(s) selected as targets for the IMC campaign, the brand’s

value proposition, and the array of persuasion tools that might be

deployed to achieve campaign objectives.

(a) The firm starts with customer, prospect, stakeholder definition, as

identification and specification of the target segment as a paramount

apex of the triangle. Building a consensus between the client and the

agency about which customers will be targeted is essential to the

campaign’s effectiveness. Complex IMC campaigns may end up

targeting multiple segments. In such a case it is critical to analyze if


and how different target segments will interact to support or

disparage the campaign. The description of the target hence has to

be both Personal and Precise.

(b) The second important apex in the Planning triangle entails a

specification of the Brand’s Value Proposition. A brand’s value

proposition is a statement of the functional, emotional, and self-

expressive benefits delivered by the brand that provide value to the

customers in the target segment. Factors like what the brand has

stood for in the past, as well as what new types of value or benefits

one wants to claim for going forward need to be considered here.

(c) The final apex of the planning triangle considers the various

persuasion tools that may be deployed in executing the campaign.

The mix of the various tools should depend on the objectives that are

set for the IMC campaign.

Collaboration between the agency and the client is the key to ensure

that the approval process proceeds in a timely fashion.

The Process of an Integrated Marketing Program thus

• Encourages the establishment of a marketing-team approach to

discuss strengths and weaknesses, mission and vision, and niche

and quality, and to reach a consensus on the primary messages to be

delivered to priority audiences.

• Involves working in teams, typically with members from other

campus offices, to reach prospective students, parents, donors, and

community and government officials with maximum impact.


• Uses quantitative and qualitative research techniques, including

focus groups and survey research, to determine constituent attitudes

and opinions, and effectiveness of various communications

messages and techniques.

• Calls for a communications analysis to determine what messages are

being sent to key audiences, including the sequence and flow of

these messages.

• Calls for the examination of your existing message vehicles for

clarity, consistency, and effectiveness. Combines this assessment

with the results of your research to provide your key audiences with

the information they need, in the ways they have asked to receive it.

• Focuses on long-term advantages and incorporates interactive

communication to develop more personal relationships. May

include the use of technology like email and the World Wide Web to

get feedback from key audiences.


Process of IMC

Barriers to Integrated Marketing Communication

Despite its many benefits, Integrated Marketing Communications has

many barriers.

In addition to the usual resistance to change and the special problems

of communicating with a wide variety of target audiences, there are

many other obstacles which restrict IMC. These include: Functional

Silos; Stifled Creativity; Time Scale Conflicts and a lack of

Management know-how.

Take functional silos. Rigid organizational structures are infested with

managers who protect both their budgets and their power base.

Sadly, some organizational structures isolate communications, data,

and even managers from each other. For example the PR department

often doesn't report to marketing. The sales force rarely meets the

advertising or sales promotion people and so on. Imagine what can

happen when sales reps are not told about a new promotional offer!

And all of this can be aggravated by turf wars or internal power

battles where specific managers resist having some of their decisions

(and budgets) determined or even influenced by someone from

another department.

Here are two difficult questions - What should a truly integrated

marketing department look like? And how will it affect creativity?

It shouldn't matter whose creative idea it is, but often, it does. An

advertising agency may not be so enthusiastic about developing a

creative idea generated by, say, a PR or a direct marketing consultant.


Process of IMC

IMC can restrict creativity. No more wild and wacky sales promotions

unless they fit into the overall marketing communications strategy.

The joy of rampant creativity may be stifled, but the creative

challenge may be greater and ultimately more satisfying when

operating within a tighter, integrated, creative brief.

Add different time scales into a creative brief and you'll see Time

Horizons provide one more barrier to IMC. For example, image

advertising, designed to nurture the brand over the longer term, may

conflict with shorter term advertising or sales promotions designed to

boost quarterly sales. However the two objectives can be

accommodated within an overall IMC if carefully planned.

But this kind of planning is not common. A survey in 1995, revealed

that most managers lack expertise in IMC. But it’s not just managers,

also agencies. There is a proliferation of single discipline agencies.

There appear to be very few people who have real experience of all

the marketing communications disciplines. This lack of know how is

then compounded by a lack of commitment.


Process of IMC

Golden Rules to Make Integrated Marketing Communication

Successful

Despite the many benefits of Integrated Marketing Communications

(or IMC); there are also many barriers. Here's how you can ensure

you become integrated and stay integrated - 10 Golden Rules of

Integration.

(1) Get Senior Management Support for the initiative by ensuring

they understand the benefits of IMC.

(2) Integrate at Different Levels of management. Put 'integration' on

the agenda for various types of management meetings - whether

annual reviews or creative sessions. Horizontally - ensure that all

managers, not just marketing managers understand the importance of

a consistent message - whether on delivery trucks or product quality.

Also ensure that Advertising, PR, Sales Promotions staff are

integrating their messages. To do this you must have carefully

planned internal communications, that is, good internal marketing.

(3) Ensure the Design Manual or even a Brand Book is used to

maintain common visual standards for the use of logos, typefaces,

colours and so on.

(4) Focus on a clear marketing communications strategy. Have

crystal clear communications objectives; clear positioning statements.

Link core values into every communication. Ensure all

communications add value to (instead of dilute) the brand or

organization. Exploit areas of sustainable competitive advantage.

(5) Start with a Zero Budget. Start from scratch. Build a new

communications plan. Specify what you need to do in order to


Process of IMC

achieve your objectives. In reality, the budget you get is often less

than you ideally need, so you may have to prioritize communications

activities accordingly.

(6) Think Customers First. Wrap communications around the

customer's buying process. Identify the stages they go through before,

during and after a purchase. Select communication tools which are

right for each stage. Develop a sequence of communications activities

which help the customer to move easily through each stage.

(7) Build Relationships and Brand Values. All communications

should help to develop stronger and stronger relationships with

customers. Ask how each communication tool helps to do this.

Remember: customer retention is as important as customer

acquisition.

(8) Develop a Good Marketing Information System which defines

who needs what information when. A customer database for example,

can help the telesales, direct marketing and sales force. IMC can help

to define, collect and share vital information.

(9) Share Artwork and Other Media. Consider how, say, advertising

imagery can be used in mail shots, exhibition stands, Christmas cards,

news releases and web sites.

(10) Be prepared to change it all. Learn from experience. Constantly

search for the optimum communications mix.

Test..!! Test..!! Test..!! Improve each year. 'Kaizen'


The Integrated Marketing Mix

The Promotional Mix- “Tools for IMC”

Promotion has been defined as the coordination of all seller initiated

efforts to set up channels of information and persuasion in order to

sell goods and services or promote an idea. While implicit

communication occurs through the various elements of the marketing

mix, most of an organization’s communications with the marketplace

take place as part of a carefully planned and controlled promotional

program. The basic tools used to accomplish an organization’s

communication objectives are often referred to as the promotional

mix.



The Promotional Mix or the Marketing Communications Mix is the

specific mix of advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, public

relations, and direct marketing a company uses to pursue its

advertising and marketing objectives

� Advertising

Advertising is the best-known and most widely discussed form of

promotion, probably because of its pervasiveness. It is also a very

important promotional tool, particularly for companies whose

products and services are targeted at mass consumer markets. There

are several reasons why advertising is such an important part of

many marketers’ promotional mixes. Advertising can be used to

create brand images and symbolic appeals for a company or brand, a

very important capability for companies selling products and services

that are difficult to differentiate on functional attributes.

For example, since 1980 Absolut has used creative advertising to

position its vodka as an upscale, fashionable, sophisticated drink and

differentiate it from other brands. The advertising strategy has been to

focus attention on two unique aspects of the product: the Absolut

name and the distinctive shape of the bottle.

Another advantage of advertising is its ability to strike a responsive

chord with consumers when differentiation across other elements of

the marketing mix is difficult to achieve. Popular advertising

campaigns attract consumers’ attention and can help generate sales.



These popular campaigns can also sometimes be leveraged into

successful integrated marketing communications programs.

For example, Eveready used the popularity of its Energizer Bunny

campaign to generate support from retailers in the form of shelf

space, promotional displays, and other merchandising activities.

Consumer promotions such as in-store displays, premium offers, and

sweepstakes feature the pink bunny. Pictures of the Energizer Bunny

appear on Energizer packages to ensure brand identification and

extend the campaign’s impact to the point of purchase. Eveready has

extended its integrated marketing efforts to include tie-ins with sports

marketing and sponsorships.

The nature and purpose of advertising differ from one industry to

another and/or across situations. The targets of an organization’s

advertising efforts often vary, as do advertising’s role and function in

the marketing program. One advertiser may seek to generate

immediate response or action from the customer; another may want

to develop awareness or a positive image for its product or service

over a longer period.

� Direct Marketing

One of the fastest-growing sectors of the U.S. economy is direct

marketing, in which organizations communicate directly with target

customers to generate a response and/or a transaction. Traditionally,

direct marketing has not been considered an element of the

promotional mix. However, because it has become such an integral

part of the IMC program of many organizations and often involves



separate objectives, budgets, and strategies, we view direct marketing

as a component of the promotional mix.

Direct marketing is much more than direct mail and mail order

catalogs. It involves a variety of activities, including database

management, direct selling, telemarketing, and direct response ads

through direct mail, the Internet, and various broadcast and print

media.

One of the major tools of direct marketing is direct response

advertising, whereby a product is promoted through an ad that

encourages the consumer to purchase directly from the manufacturer.

Companies that distribute their products through traditional

distribution channels or have their own sales force are also using

direct-marketing tools and techniques. Direct marketing plays a big

role in the integrated marketing communications programs of

consumer-product companies and business-to-business marketers.

These companies spend large amounts of money each year

developing and maintaining databases containing the addresses

and/or phone numbers of present and prospective customers.

They use telemarketing to call customers directly and attempt to sell

those products and services or qualify them as sales leads. Direct-

marketing techniques are also used to distribute product samples or

target users of a competing brand.



� Sales Promotion

The next variable in the promotional mix is sales promotion, which is

generally defined as those marketing activities that provide extra

value or incentives to the sales force, the distributors, or the ultimate

consumer and can stimulate immediate sales. Sales promotion is

generally broken into two major categories: consumer-oriented and

trade-oriented activities.

Consumer-Oriented Sales Promotion is targeted to the ultimate user

of a product or service and includes couponing, sampling, premiums,

rebates, contests, and various point-of-purchase materials. These

promotional tools encourage consumers to make an immediate

purchase and thus can stimulate short-term sales.

Trade-Oriented Sales Promotion is targeted toward marketing

intermediaries such as wholesalers, distributors, and retailers.

Promotional and merchandising allowances, price deals, sales

contests, and trade shows are some of the promotional. These

promotional tools encourage consumers to make an immediate

purchase and thus can stimulate short term sales.

� Public Relations

A public relation is defined as “the management function which

evaluates public attitudes, identifies the policies and procedures of an

individual or organization with the public interest, and executes a

program of action to earn public understanding and acceptance.”



Public relation uses publicity and a variety of other tools including

special publications, participation in community activities, fund-

raising, sponsorship of special events, and various public affairs

activities to enhance an organization’s image. Organizations also use

advertising as a public relations tool.

Traditionally, publicity and public relations have been considered

more supportive than primary to the marketing and promotional

process. However, many firms have begun making PR an integral

part of their predetermined marketing and promotional strategies. PR

firms are increasingly touting public relations as a communications

tool that can take over many of the functions of conventional

advertising and marketing.

� Personal Selling

The final element of an organization’s promotional mix is personal

selling, a form of person-to-person communication in which a seller

attempts to assist and/or persuade prospective buyers to purchase

the company’s product or service or to act on an idea. Unlike

advertising, personal selling involves direct contact between buyer

and seller, either face-to-face or through some form of

telecommunications such as telephone sales. This interaction gives the

marketer communication flexibility; the seller can see or hear the

potential buyer’s reactions and modify the message accordingly. The

personal, individualized communication in personal selling allows

the seller to tailor the message to the customer’s specific needs or

situation.


Advertising

Personal Selling

Sales Promotion


Here are some things to keep in mind

Reaches large, geographically dispersed audiences,

often with high frequency; Low cost per exposure,

though overall costs are high; Consumers perceive

advertised goods as more legitimate; Dramatizes company/brand;

Builds brand image; may stimulate short-term sales; Impersonal, one-

way communication; Expensive.

Most effective tool for building buyers’

preferences, convictions, and actions; Personal

interaction allows for feedback and adjustments; Relationship-

oriented; Buyers are more attentive; Sales force represents a long-term

commitment; Most expensive of the promotional tools.

May be targeted at the trade or ultimate consumer;

Makes use of a variety of formats: premiums,

coupons, contests, etc.; Attracts attention, offers

strong purchase incentives, dramatizes offers, boosts sagging

sales; Stimulates quick response; Short-lived; Not effective at building

long-term brand preferences.


Sales Promotion

Sales Promotion


Highly credible; Very believable; Many forms:

news stories, news features, events and

sponsorships, etc.; Reaches many prospects missed via other forms of

promotion; Dramatizes company or product; Often the most under

used element in the promotional mix; Relatively inexpensive (certainly

not 'free' as many people think there are costs involved)

Many forms: Telephone marketing, direct mail,

online marketing, etc.; Four distinctive

characteristics: Nonpublic, Immediate, Customized,

Interactive; Well-suited to highly-targeted marketing efforts.



Emerging Tools of Integrated Marketing Communication

The concept of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) makes

absolute sense – so much so that novices in the field may wonder

what all the commotion is about. IMC suggests that marketers look at

the customer first – his or her preferences, buying patterns, media

exposure, and other factors – and then expose that customer to

products and services that fit the customer’s needs via a mix of

communication methods he or she finds attractive and credible. Thus,

in addition to the Promotional Mix of IMC, the marketers are also

opting for other emerging tools of IMC.

These emerging tools can be classified as follows:

� Outdoor Advertising

� Sponsorships

� Roadshows

� Point Of Purchase Display

� Broadcast Advertising



� Outdoor Advertising

Outdoor advertising is a very popular

form of advertising, which makes use of

several tools and techniques to attract the

customers’ outdoors. The most common

examples of outdoor advertising are

billboards, kiosks, and also several events

and tradeshows organized by the company. The billboard

advertising is very popular however has to be really terse and catchy

in order to grab the attention of the passersby. The kiosks not only

provide an easy outlet for the company products but also make for

an effective advertising tool to promote the company’s products.

Organizing several events makes for an excellent advertising

opportunity. The company can organize trade fairs, or even

exhibitions for advertising their products. If not this, the company

can organize several events that are closely associated with their

field. For instance a company that manufactures sports utilities can

sponsor a sports tournament to advertise its products.

� Sponsorships

Sponsorship is an increasingly

common form of promotional

activity is sponsorship. Sponsorship

in simple words is “Supporting an event, activity or organization by

providing money or other resources that is of value to the sponsored event.

This is usually in return for advertising space at the event or as part of the

publicity for the event.”



� Road shows

Roadshow is a program comprising

a series of marketing events that

companies organize at multiple

locations to generate interest

regarding a subject that they want to promote. It could about new

products/services targeted at customers, new investment offerings

(IPO) targeted at investors, new social initiatives targeted at the

community, etc.

� Point Of Purchase Display

Point of Purchase display is

marketing materials or advertising

placed next to the merchandise it is

promoting. These items are generally

located at the checkout area or other

location where the purchase decision is

made. It is also known as Kiosks, End caps, Point of Sale Display.

E.g. the checkout counters of many convenience stores are cluttered

with cigarette and candy POP displays.



� Broadcast advertising – Television, Radio and the Internet

Broadcast advertising is a

very popular advertising

medium that constitutes of

several branches like

television, radio or the

Internet. Television

advertisements have been

very popular ever since they have been introduced. The cost of

television advertising often depends on the duration of the

advertisement, the time of broadcast (prime time/peak time), and of

course the popularity of the television channel on which the

advertisement is going to be broadcasted. The radio might have lost

its charm owing to the new age media however the radio remains to

be the choice of small-scale advertisers.


Role of Ad-Agency in Implementation of IMC

Introduction

Developing and implementing an Integrated Marketing

Communications program is usually a complex and detailed process

involving the efforts of many people. As consumers, we generally

give little thought to the individuals or organizations that create the

clever advertisements that capture our attention or the contests or

sweepstakes we hope to win. But for those involved in the marketing

process, it is important to understand the nature of the industry and

the structure and functions of the organizations involved. As can be

seen from the opening vignette, the advertising and promotions

business is changing as marketers search for better ways to

communicate with their customers. These changes are impacting the

way marketers organize for marketing communications, as well as

their relationships with advertising agencies and other

communication specialists. For most companies, advertising is

planned and executed by an outside ad agency. Many large agencies

offer a variety of other IMC capabilities, including public relations,

sales promotion, and direct marketing.

The participants in the integrated marketing communications process

can be divided into five major groups: the advertiser (or client),

advertising agencies, media organizations, specialized

communication services, and collateral services. Each group has

specific roles in the promotional process.

The advertisers, or clients, are the key participants in the process.

They have the products, services, or causes to be marketed, and they

provide the funds that pay for advertising and promotions. The



advertisers also assume major responsibility for developing the

marketing program and making the final decisions regarding the

advertising and promotional program to be employed. The

organization may perform most of these efforts itself, either through

its own advertising department or by setting up an in-house agency

Many organizations use an advertising agency; an outside firm that

specializes in the creation, production, and/or placement of the

communications message and that may provide other services to

facilitate the marketing and promotions process. Many large

advertisers retain the services of a number of agencies, particularly

when they market a number of products. For example, Kraft Foods

uses as many as 8 advertising agencies for its various brands, while

Procter & Gamble uses 12 ad agencies and 2 major media buying

services companies. More and more, ad agencies are acting as

partners with advertisers and assuming more responsibility for

developing the marketing and promotional programs.

Media organizations are another major participant in the advertising

and promotions process. The primary function of most media is to

provide information or entertainment to their subscribers, viewers, or

readers. But from the perspective of the promotional planner, the

purpose of media is to provide an environment for the firm’s

marketing communications message. The media must have editorial

or program content that attracts consumers so that advertisers and

their agencies will want to buy time or space with them.

The next groups of participants are organizations that provide

specialized marketing communications services. They include



direct-marketing agencies, sales promotion agencies, interactive

agencies, and public relations firms. These organizations provide

services in their areas of expertise. A direct-response agency develops

and implements direct-marketing programs, while sales promotion

agencies develop promotional programs such as contests and

sweepstakes, premium offers, or sampling programs. Interactive

agencies are being retained to develop websites for the Internet and

help marketers as they move deeper into the realm of interactive

media. Public relations firms are used to generate and manage

publicity for a company and its products and services as well as to

focus on its relationships and communications with its relevant

publics.

The final participants are those that provide collateral services, the

wide range of support functions used by advertisers, agencies, media

organizations, and specialized marketing communications firms.

These individuals and companies perform specialized functions the

other participants use in planning and executing advertising and

other promotional functions.



Advertising Agencies in Action

During the late 1980s and into the 90s, the advertising industry

underwent major changes as large agencies merged with or acquired

other agencies and support organizations to form large advertising

organizations, or superagencies. These superagencies were formed so

that agencies could provide clients with integrated marketing

communications services worldwide. Some advertisers became

disenchanted with the superagencies and moved to smaller agencies

that were flexible and more responsive. However, during the mid-90s

the agency business went through another wave of consolidation as a

number of medium-size agencies were acquired and became part of

large advertising organizations. Many of the mid-size agencies were

acquired by or forged alliances with larger agencies because their

clients wanted an agency with international communications

capabilities and their alignment with larger organizations gave them

access to a network of agencies around the world. For example,

TBWA and Chiat/Day merged and became part of the TBWA

Worldwide agency, which is part of the Omnicom Group, the world’s

largest agency holding company.

Many major companies use an advertising agency now to assist them

in developing, preparing, and executing their promotional programs.

Many of the advertising organizations and major agencies have been

acquiring companies specializing in areas such as interactive

communications, public relations, direct marketing, and sales

promotion so that they can offer their clients an ever broader range of

integrated marketing communication services. Recently the activity of

the advertising holding companies has moved in a new direction as



they have begun pursuing alliances with talent agencies. By having a

stake in the talent business, ad agencies can negotiate deals with

current, as well as up-and-coming, celebrities for their clients.



Main Types of Advertising Agency

� Full – Service Agency

Such agency provides a range of services to clients, including

booking advertising space, designing and producing

advertisements, devising media schedules, commissioning research,

providing sales promotion advice, and acting as a marketing

consultant. The departments within an agency include research,

planning, creative design, media bookings, production, and

accounts. Most advertising agents work on the basis of a commission

on the total sums spent by the client.

� Specialist Advertising Agencies

In addition to the full-service, general-line advertising agencies,

there are also agencies that specialize in particular kinds of

advertising: recruitment, help-wanted, medical, classified, industrial,

financial, direct-response, retail, yellow pages,

theatrical/entertainment, investment, travel, and so on.

� In-House Advertising Agencies

These Agencies may specialize in one or more advertising functions,

such as planning and creating advertising, buying, billing, and

paying. Advertisers who choose this option believe that the in-house

agency can provide services equal to or better than those available

from full- or limited-service agencies. In addition, some advertisers

believe that they can provide such advertising services to themselves

at a lower cost than would be charged by an outside agency.



Functions of Advertising Agencies

Professionals at advertising agencies and other advertising

organizations offer a number of functions including:

� Account Management – Within an advertising agency the account

manager or account executive is tasked with handling all major

decisions related to a specific client. These responsibilities include

locating and negotiating to acquire clients. Once the client has

agreed to work with the agency, the account manager works closely

with the client to develop an advertising strategy. For very large

clients, such as large consumer products companies, an advertising

agency may assign an account manager to work full-time with only

one client and, possibly, with only one of the client’s product lines.

For smaller accounts an account manager may simultaneously

manage several different, though non-competing, accounts.

� Creative Team –The principle role of account managers is to manage

the overall advertising campaign for a client, which often includes

delegating selective tasks to specialists. For large accounts one task

account managers routinely delegate involves generating ideas,

designing concepts and creating the final advertisement, which

generally becomes the responsibility of the agency’s creative team.

An agency’s creative team consists of specialists in graphic design,

film and audio production, copywriting, computer programming,

and much more.



� Researchers – Full-service advertising agencies employ market

researchers who assess a client’s market situation, including

understanding customers and competitors, and also are used to test

creative ideas. For instance, in the early stages of an advertising

campaign researchers may run focus group sessions with selected

members of the client’s target market in order to get their reaction to

several advertising concepts. Researchers are also used following

the completion of an advertising campaign to measure whether the

campaign reached its objectives.

� Media Planners – Once an advertisement is created, it must be

placed through an appropriate advertising media. Each advertising

media, of which there are thousands, has its own unique methods

for accepting advertisements, such as different advertising cost

structures (i.e., what it costs marketers to place an ad), different

requirements for accepting ad designs (e.g., size of ad), different

ways placements can be purchased (e.g., direct contact with media

or through third-party seller), and different time schedules (i.e.,

when ad will be run). Understanding the nuances of different media

is the role of a media planner, who looks for the best media match

for a client and also negotiates the best deals.



Advertising Agencies Help Develop Business Image

All businesses that reap huge revenues have a strong marketing arm.

A company prospers only if it knows how to effectively plan, manage,

create and handle different forms of promotion for its products and

services. However, sometimes, a company's own marketing arm is not

sufficient to reach out to its prospective consumers or customers. This

is where the services of advertisement agencies come in. Focusing on

specialized marketing communications, advertisement agencies have

the expertise to come up with strategies on branding and sales for

their clients' present and future customers.

Advertising agencies know how to manage a company's business

image in order to gain its customers' loyalty in purchasing its

products or services. This is done through a tedious creation and

execution of different marketing techniques to build a public positive

outlook on the company and its product and services line. Ad

agencies live with the promise of increasing a company's perceived

value to its customers and consequently increase its target sales and

opportunity for expansion.

Ad experts, in coordination with their clients think of means through

which the public can have a degree of respect towards a company and

the quality of the products and services that it carries. Together with

the respect of the public to the company, uniqueness is also

established. In creating a particular business image of the company,

ad agencies are concerned with persuading the public to be patrons of

the company through bombarding promotions that assert that the

company is the best choice among the heap of other companies

providing similar products and/or services.



In establishing the quality of a company's line of products and

services, Ad Agencies basically require the brand names to be easily

pronounced, remembered and recognized. Whether in print, in radio,

or in television, the advertisements that ad agencies produce employ

well-thought communication techniques that can translate the

company's implied message into a language that its consumers speak

and understand. Before shown to the public, these ads are initially

tested to a sample audience to guarantee that they attract attention

and stand out among other commercials.

Next to creating a unique business image, Ad Agencies implement

advertisement continuity, planning and executing marketing activities

that are in line and consistent with the company's image.

Advertisement continuity thence tries to maintain the loyalty of the

customers to the company. This means coming up with ads that will

strengthen and edify the company's high quality standards and

outstanding appeal, churning out ads that stick to the company's

image but are definitely showing quality growth better than those of

its rivals.

The success of creating a specific business image for a company is

determined by the revenue that it gains after the advertisements have

been shown to the public. Creating a business image is crucial in as

much as it will either decrease or increase sales and dictate the

chances of the company to charge higher prices for its products and

services, a main factor for future expansion.



The Role of an Advertising Agency

Probably the main reason outside agencies are used is that they

provide the client with the services of highly skilled individuals who

are specialists in their chosen fields. An advertising agency staff may

include artists, writers, media analysts, researchers, and others with

specific skills, knowledge, and experience who can help market the

client’s products or services. Many agencies specialize in a particular

type of business and use their knowledge of the industry to assist

their clients. For example, “Mentus Inc.” is an agency that specializes

in integrated marketing communications for the high-technology, e-

commerce, and bioscience industries. An outside agency can also

provide an objective viewpoint of the market and its business that is

not subject to internal company policies, biases, or other limitations.

The agency can draw on the broad range of experience it has gained

while working on a diverse set of marketing problems for various

clients. For example, an ad agency that is handling a travel-related

account may have individuals who have worked with airlines, cruise

ship companies, travel agencies, hotels, and other travel-related

industries. The agency may have experience in this area or may even

have previously worked on the advertising account of one of the

client’s competitors. Thus, the agency can provide the client with

insight into the industry (and, in some cases, the competition).



Responsibility for IMC “Agency versus Client”

Surveys of advertisers and agency executives have shown that both

groups believe integrated marketing is important to their

organizations’ success and that it will be even more important in the

future. One agency executive recently noted that 75 percent of the

requests for proposals the agency now receives are from clients

seeking total communication solutions. However, marketers and

agency executives have very different opinions regarding who should

be in charge of the integrated marketing communications process.

Many advertisers prefer to set strategy for and coordinate their own

IMC campaigns, but most agency executives see this as their domain.

While agency executives believe their shops are capable of handling

the various elements an integrated campaign requires, many

marketers, particularly larger firms, disagree. Marketing executives

say the biggest obstacle to implementing IMC is the lack of people

with the broad perspective and skills to make it work. Internal turf

battles, agency egos, and fear of budget reductions are also cited as

major barriers to successful integrated marketing campaigns.

Many ad agencies are adding more resources to offer their clients a

full line of services. They are expanding their agencies’ capabilities in

interactive and multimedia advertising, database management, direct

marketing, public relations, and sales promotion. However, many

marketers still want to set the strategy for their IMC campaigns and

seek specialized expertise, more quality and creativity, and greater

control and cost efficiency by using multiple providers. Most



marketers do recognize that ad agencies will no longer stick primarily

to advertising and will continue to expand their IMC capabilities.

There is an opportunity for agencies to broaden their services beyond

advertising—but they will have to develop true expertise in a variety

of integrated marketing communications areas. One thing is certain:

as companies continue to shift their promotional dollars away from

media advertising to other IMC tools, agencies will continue to

explore ways to keep these monies under their roofs.


Mapping the Role of IMC in Ad-World

The Growth of Advertisement and Promotion

Advertising and promotion are an integral part of our social and

economic systems. In our complex society, advertising has evolved

into a vital communications system for both consumers and

businesses. The ability of advertising and other promotional methods

to deliver carefully prepared messages to target audiences has given

them a major role in the marketing programs of most organizations.

Companies ranging from large multinational corporations to small

retailers increasingly rely on advertising and promotion to help them

market products and services. In market-based economies, consumers

have learned to rely on advertising and other forms of promotion for

information they can use in making purchase decisions.

Evidence of the increasing importance of advertising and promotion

comes from the growth in expenditures in these areas. In 1980,

advertising expenditures in the United States were $53 billion, and

$49 billion was spent on sales promotion techniques such as product

samples, coupons, contests, sweepstakes, premiums, rebates, and

allowances and discounts to retailers. By 2002, nearly $240 billion was

spent on local and national advertising, while spending on sales

promotion programs targeted toward consumers and retailers

increased to more than $250 billion. Companies bombarded the U.S.

consumer with messages and promotional offers, collectively

spending more than $30 a week on every man, woman, and child in

the country—nearly 50 percent more per capita than in any other

nation.



Promotional expenditures in international markets have grown as

well. Advertising expenditures outside the United States increased

from $55 billion in 1980 to nearly $214 billion by 2002.2 Both foreign

and domestic companies spend billions more on sales promotion,

personal selling, direct marketing, event sponsorships, and public

relations, all important parts of a firm’s marketing communications

program.

The tremendous growth in expenditures for advertising and

promotion reflects in part the growth of the U.S. and global

economies and the efforts of expansion-minded marketers to take

advantage of growth opportunities in various regions of the world.

The growth in promotional expenditures also reflects the fact that

marketers around the world recognize the value and importance of

advertising and promotion.



Advertising and Promotion “An Integrated Marketing

Communication Perspective”

For many years, the promotional function in most companies was

dominated by mass media advertising. Companies relied primarily on

their advertising agencies for guidance in nearly all areas of

marketing communication. Most marketers did use additional

promotional and marketing communication tools, but sales

promotion and direct-marketing agencies as well as package design

firms were generally viewed as auxiliary services and often used on a

per-project basis. Public relations agencies were used to manage the

organization’s publicity, image, and affairs with relevant publics on

an ongoing basis but were not viewed as integral participants in the

marketing communications process.

Many marketers built strong barriers around the various marketing

and promotional functions and planned and managed them as

separate practices, with different budgets, different views of the

market, and different goals and objectives. These companies failed to

recognize that the wide range of marketing and promotional tools

must be coordinated to communicate effectively and present a

consistent image to target markets.

Many companies are realizing that communicating effectively with

customers and other stakeholders involves more than traditional

marketing communications tools. Many marketers, as well as

advertising agencies, are embracing the IMC approach and adopting

total communication solutions to create and sustain relationships

between companies or brands and their customers. Some academics



and practitioners have questioned whether the IMC movement is just

another management fad.

The move toward integrated marketing communications is one of the

most significant marketing developments that occurred during the

1990s, and the shift toward this approach is continuing as we begin

the new century. The IMC approach to marketing communications

planning and strategy is being adopted by both large and small

companies, as well as ad agencies and has become popular among

firms promoting consumer products and services as well as business-

to-business marketers.

A fundamental reason is that they understand the value of

strategically integrating the various communications functions rather

than having them operate autonomously. By coordinating their

marketing communications efforts, companies can avoid duplication,

take advantage of synergy among promotional tools, and develop

more efficient and effective marketing communications programs.

Advocates of IMC argue that it is one of the easiest ways for a

company to maximize the return on its investment in marketing and

promotion

Major changes have occurred among consumers with respect to

demographics, lifestyles, media use, and buying and shopping

patterns. For example, cable TV and more recently digital satellite

systems have vastly expanded the number of channels available to

households. Some of these channels offer 24-hour shopping networks;

others contain 30- or 60-minute direct-response appeals known as

infomercials, which look more like TV shows than ads. Every day more



consumers are surfing the Internet’s World Wide Web. Online

services such as America Online and Microsoft Network provide

information and entertainment as well as the opportunity to shop for

and order a vast array of products and services. Marketers are

responding by developing home pages on which they can advertise

their products and services interactively as well as transact sales.

Even as new technologies and formats create new ways for marketers

to reach consumers, they are affecting the more traditional media.

Television, radio, magazines, and newspapers are becoming more

fragmented and reaching smaller and more selective audiences.

The integrated marketing communications movement is also being

driven by changes in the ways companies promote their products and

services. A major reason for the growing importance of the IMC

approach is the ongoing revolution that is changing the rules of

marketing and the role of the traditional advertising agency.

Major characteristics of this marketing revolution include:

� A shifting of marketing dollars from media advertising to other

forms of promotion, particularly consumer- and trade-oriented

sales promotions. Many marketers feel that traditional media

advertising has become too expensive and is not cost-effective. Also,

escalating price competition in many markets has resulted in

marketers’ pouring more of their promotional budgets into price

promotions rather than media advertising.



� A movement away from relying on advertising-focused

approaches, which emphasize mass media such as network

television and national magazines, to solve communication

problems. Many companies are turning to lower-cost, more targeted

communication tools such as event marketing and sponsorships,

direct mail, sales promotion, and the Internet as they develop their

marketing communications strategies.

� A shift in marketplace power from manufacturers to retailers. Due

to consolidation in the retail industry, small local retailers are being

replaced by regional, national, and international chains. These large

retailers are using their clout to demand larger promotional fees and

allowances from manufacturers, a practice that often siphons money

away from advertising. Moreover, new technologies such as

checkout scanners give retailers information on the effectiveness of

manufacturers’ promotional programs. This is leading many

marketers to shift their focus to promotional tools that can produce

short-term results, such as sale promotion.

� The rapid growth and development of database marketing. Many

companies are building databases containing customer names;

geographic, demographic, and psychographic profiles; purchase

patterns; media preferences; credit ratings; and other characteristics.

Marketers are using this information to target consumers through a

variety of direct-marketing methods such as telemarketing, direct

mail, and direct-response advertising, rather than relying on mass

media. Advocates of the approach argue that database marketing is

critical to the development and practice of effective IMC.



� Demands for greater accountability from advertising agencies and

changes in the way agencies are compensated. Many companies are

moving toward incentive-based systems whereby compensation of

their ad agencies is based, at least in part, on objective measures

such as sales, market share, and profitability. Demands for

accountability are motivating many agencies to consider a variety of

communication tools and less expensive alternatives to mass-media

advertising.

� The rapid growth of the Internet, which is changing the very

nature of how companies do business and the ways they

communicate and interact with consumers. The Internet revolution

is well under way, and the Internet audience is growing rapidly. The

Internet is an interactive medium that is becoming an integral part of

communication strategy, and even business strategy, for many

companies.

Companies are thus recognizing that they must change the ways they

market and promote their products and services. They can no longer

be tied to a specific communication tool (such as media advertising);

rather, they should use whatever contact methods offer the best way

of delivering the message to their target audiences. Ad agencies

continue to reposition themselves as offering more than just

advertising expertise; they strive to convince their clients that they can

manage all or any part of clients’ integrated communications needs.

Most advertising agencies recognize that their future success depends

on their ability to understand all areas of promotion and help their

clients develop and implement integrated marketing communications

programs.



Agencies learn that it’s about More Than Advertising

During the late 1980’s many of the world’s largest advertising agencies

recognized that their clients were shifting more and more of their

promotional budgets away from traditional media advertising to other areas

of marketing communication such as direct marketing, public relations,

sales promotion, and event sponsorship. In response to this trend, many of

these agencies began acquiring companies that were specialists in these

areas and ended up turning them into profit-centered departments or

subsidiaries that often ended up battling one another for a piece of their

client’s promotional budget. While the agencies could point to these

specialists when touting their IMC capabilities, there was really little

emphasis on integrating the various communication functions.

During the 90’s, some agencies began taking steps to place more of an

emphasis on IMC by truly integrating it into all aspects of their operations.

For example, the Leo Burnett Agency brought in direct-marketing, sales

promotion, event marketing, and public relations professionals and

dispersed them throughout the agency. Burnetters were expected to interact

with clients not as advertising specialists who happened to know about

sales promotion, direct marketing, or public relations but as generalists able

to work with a variety of integrated marketing tools. Another agency that

embraced IMC was Fallon Mcelligott, which hired a president of integrated

marketing and expanded its capabilities in areas such as PR, events, and

interactive advertising. As we begin the new millennium, the shift toward

IMC is taking place at a number of major ad agencies that are recognizing

they must embrace a way of doing business that doesn’t always involve

advertising.

Many companies are developing campaigns and strategies using event

marketing, sponsorships, direct marketing, targeted radio, and the internet

with only peripheral use of print and TV advertising. The internet poses a



particular threat to traditional agencies as it is not well understood by many

agency veterans and is taking yet another slice from the marketing

communications budget pie.

Foote, Cone & Belding is remaking itself as a new economy ad agency by

building up its capabilities in areas such as direct marketing, interactive,

customer relationship, management database, event marketing, and sports

marketing. FCB touts its ability to offer clients a broad spectrum of

integrated marketing communications services through its “model of one,”

which ensures that all these services are seamlessly integrated and unified.

All efforts are managed under one team and based on one strategy and one

broad creative idea.

At J. Walter Thompson, the agency’s CEO, Chris Jones, has championed a

program called Thompson Total Branding (TTB) that makes JWT the

manager of a client’s brand. TTB involves taking what the agency calls a

“branding idea” and developing a total communications plan that helps

decide which integrated marketing tools can most powerfully and

persuasively communicate it. One of the company executives notes,

“Agencies are finally realizing that our job is creating branding solutions

and, while those may involve advertising, it’s not necessarily about

advertising. That’s a fundamental change in the way we operate.” The

ability to use various IMC tools has helped the agency secure new accounts

and strengthens relationships with existing clients.

While traditional agencies have been preaching integrated marketing for

years, many have not been really practicing it. However, these agencies are

realizing they must alter their course if they plan to be competitive in the

future. They are retraining their staffers in the use and best practices of

various IMC tools and getting them, at long last, to focus on total

communications solutions to their clients’ businesses.


Case Study

How the Entertainment Industry Capitalizes On Integrated

Marketing Communications

With many channels and media options in the league, the

entertainment industry is not left behind in advertising to prove its

existence. Each channel can be viewed as a product for different set of

consumers, in this case, viewers. It is not just enough to air a channel,

it is equally important to communicate it properly. Entertainment

industry thus is convinced that using IMC to advertise itself is the

need of the hour.

As the entertainment industry is forced to become more creative in

reaching its audiences, the opportunities for marketing

communications are endless. With burgeoning franchises,

entertainment companies have begun to delve deeper into marketing

strategies that enable them to connect with their customers across

their whole range of properties and communication divisions. The

hype about integration has created a "buzz" in Entertainment Industry

that has the industry turning out some of the best marketing

strategies and campaigns in years.

Entertainment companies are defining their success with well-

thought-out, consumer-driven strategies and are using an array of

marketing tools to connect with audiences in more relevant and

creative ways. In the process, integrated marketing communications

(IMC) is beginning to take center stage as the entertainment industry’s

shining star.


Case Study

IMC Takes Center Stage

IMC has taken center stage in the entertainment industry as a result of

several factors and trends. Two of the greatest of these factors driving

IMC principles are:

� The Proliferation of Media Choices

The proliferation of media has fragmented audiences, making it

harder and harder to reach them through traditional means. Today’s

media competitive frame includes approximately 12 networks, 213

cable channels, hundreds of radio stations and even more magazines.

At the same time, consider the number of movies and home videos

released each month. Even still, we must add the thousands of

websites available on the Internet to this media mix.

� The Changes in Consumer Media Consumption.

As the number of media options has increased, audiences have

become more diversified. Viewers are now able to make choices in

their media consumption that match their specific interests.

Using creativity and marketing savvy, the entertainment industry has

successfully capitalized on aligning communication vehicles through

the following four principles:


Case Study

Principle I – “Focus On Consumer”

The industry is increasingly becoming more consumer-focused, using

media outlets to find out what their consumers want and then deliver

it to them through well-defined, specific formats and programming.

Entertainment companies are proving that they know this theory

better than most others. The business is using integrated marketing

principles to connect with its customers not only through its

advertising messages, but also through the entertainment product it

offers.

As explained earlier, the proliferation of media today has resulted in

extreme audience segmentation.

For example, the JAAGRAN network reaches ethnic viewers,

NICKELODEON offers specific children programming, and ESPN

attracts sports fans. The rise of such specific television formats

indicates that the industry is moving toward segmentation strategies.

The effects of audience segmentation in the entertainment industry

have led to marketing strategies shaped by the consumer.


Case Study

Case in Point- “The Rugrats on Nickelodeon”

Nickelodeon demonstrates this principle in its explicit commitment to

its consumers — kids. Nickelodeon is the creator of the first television

network for kids. The network became the 24 -hour cable ratings

leader for the first time in 1995 and continues to hold the title today.

Kids are at the very core of this network. As its website touts, kids are

the creators, drawers, thinkers and writers for everything that takes

place on Nickelodeon.

As a result of this cable channel’s philosophy, much of its programming

follows the same lead. For example, The Rugrats, is an animated series about

life from a toddler’s point of view and is written completely from a child’s

perspective. The growing success of this animated series could be trumpeted

as the result of the audience perspective upon which it is based.


Case Study

Principle II – “Aligning Marketing Communications Vehicles”

Another essential communication principle appearing in

entertainment marketing strategies involves the various

communication tools employed in delivering messages to consumers.

The spotlight on the entertainment industry’s marketing strategies is

most evident through the creative executions that the various

marketing mix elements offer the entertainment industry. With all of

the competition, the entertainment industry can no longer create

something and expect people to come see it. Instead, it has to promote

it and promote it right. This means communicating with its audiences

at every point that they interact with the brand.

Case in Point: “The Rugrats Movie”

The marketing campaign for the release of

Nickelodeon’s The Rugrats Movie

demonstrates how a successful

entertainment marketer builds this

experience across all brand contacts. The

movie was scheduled to open November

25, 1998. The integrated marketing

strategy for this animated film based on

the TV series included computer games, CDs, magazines, books, a

comic strip, toys, an amusement park and a live stage show.


Case Study

� The official buildup of the movie began with on-channel promotion,

including new TV episodes, leading to one that sets up the movie by

revealing that the main character’s mom is pregnant.

� Other Rugrats promotional support included a partnership with

Burger King for a Kids Club promotion.

� Also in the marketing mix was the release of two computer programs in

the month preceding the movie release, one of which was based on

the movie itself.

� Furthermore, the Rugrats marketing blitz included:

• A newspaper comic strip.

• A guest appearance at Paramount’s King Island where kids will

have an opportunity to meet their favorite Rugrats characters

during a "Rugrats Weekend’.

• A live musical tour.

• A Simon & Schuster book series to coincide with the U.K.

release of the movie.

• Rugrats merchandise and hundreds of licenses for Rugrats items

(including dolls, board games, clothing, bedding, videos, fruit

snacks, school supplies, greeting cards and party goods).

• Through this comprehensive marketing strategy, Nickelodeon

brought ‘The Rugrats’ and the movie into the lives of its

audience in all ways that it interacts with the brand.


Case Study

Principle III – “Measurement and Feedback Loop”

As the entertainment industry has moved toward more consumer-

focused strategies, it has integrated the customer into the feedback

loop in order to find out exactly what its specific target is seeking.

The Internet is one of the most recent ways that the entertainment

industry is working to close the loop in communicating with their

audiences. The Internet allows the entertainment industry to receive

first-hand feedback about products from its audiences, while building

relationships in the process.

Case in Point : “Disney.com”

Entertainment franchises are quickly

learning how to take advantage of this

new opportunity called the Internet.

Disney has long set the standard for

marketing success, utilizing several

integrated marketing principles such

as corporate synergy. Recently the

marketing franchise has expanded its ability to connect with its

audience through its corporate home page. According to a survey,

Disney’s website was recently ranked number nine on a list ranking

several websites’ ability to build relationships. Disney.com

incorporates several vehicles to connect with its audience


Case Study

� One method Disney utilizes to accomplish this task is through live

chat events where kids can talk to their favorite Disney stars online.

The use of such tactics is building relationships with their viewers

that were never possible before.

� Another way that Disney.com builds relationships is by expanding

the entertainment experience online. Its website features

opportunities such as Club Disney, real play areas in two locations,

where they can plan their trips, tours and birthday parties online

before they visit.

� In addition, the website provides kids and their families’ direct

access to all aspects of the Walt Disney franchise including its

movies, the amusement parks, the Disney Channel, Radio Disney, its

TV shows, the company’s cruise line, the Disney Vacation Club, the

Disney Magazine, and all of the other various company divisions

spanning computer software to home video.

In this way, Disney is always accessible to kids and their parents.

Also, the way in which Disney.com provides audience contact with all

divisions of the company helps to reinforce all that Disney has to offer

its customers. The outstanding performances that the entertainment

industry has executed certainly suggest that integrated marketing

communications deserves a star on Hollywood’s famous "Walk of

Fame." However, the industry would be amiss if it did not recognize

the ways in which it could further its alignment with IMC practices

and principles.


Case Study

Success Factors

The Entertainment Industry’s use of Integrated Marketing

Communications highlights some success factors for effectiveness

and these include:

� Segmenting valuable customers.

� Analyzing profitability.

� Examining customer, brand & stakeholder contact points with the

company.

� Marketing based on consumer differences, not similarities.

� Using databases for behavioral segmentation and lead management.

� Creating strategic, effective communications-based initiatives.

� Driving communications to a new level of customer and stakeholder

fulfillment retention.

� Achieving consumer satisfaction and bottom-line profitability.


Conclusion

For many years, the promotional function in most companies was

dominated by mass-media advertising. However, more and more

companies are recognizing the importance of integrated marketing

communications, coordinating the various marketing and

promotional elements to achieve more efficient and effective

communication programs. A number of factors underlie the move

toward IMC by marketers as well as ad agencies and other

promotional facilitators. Reasons for the growing importance of the

integrated marketing communications perspective include a rapidly

changing environment with respect to consumers, technology, and

media. The IMC movement is also being driven by changes in the

ways companies market their products and services

A shift in marketing dollars from advertising to sales promotion, the

rapid growth and development of database marketing, and the

fragmentation of media markets are among the key changes taking

place. Promotion is best viewed as the communication function of

marketing. It is accomplished through a promotional mix that

includes advertising, personal selling, publicity, public relations, sales

promotion, direct marketing, and interactive /Internet marketing. The

inherent advantages and disadvantages of each of these promotional-

mix elements influence the roles they play in the overall marketing

program. In developing the promotional program, the marketer must

decide which tools to use and how to combine them to achieve the

organization’s marketing and communication objectives.

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