Introduction to Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC)

http://www.mbaknol.com/marketing-management/introduction-to-integrated-marketingcommunications-imc/ (Accesses on 16.11.12) You are Here: Home > Marketing Management > Introduction to Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) is a marketing concept of the 1990s. It will be necessary for survival in the 21st century. The advent of integration is causing marketers to take a fresh look at all the components of marketing, specifically the unique dimension that public relations bring to the marketing mix. Public relations people in turn are seizing the opportunity that integration offers them to make a difference where it counts most to their companies and clients on the bottom line. IMC is the culmination of the shift that began in the post World War II period, from selling what the companies make to making what the consumers want. IMC is focused on what to know about product and services, not what the marketers want to tell them in order to sell them. Thirty years ago, the president of the American Marketing Association (AMA) said that marketers were wasting too much time and money on advertising, public relations and promotion programmes that were poorly if at all coordinated. He said that these desperate efforts were counter-productive and confusion to consumers and that marketer should start coordinating their marketing programmes.But in those days, there was no compelling reason to get serious about integration especially if it meant shaking up the organization. Those were glory days for marketing and American companies were doing very well. They had money and were in the mood to spend it on all manner of merchandise that was advertised on TV and magazines. Advertisement was king, promotion was underdeveloped, direct marketing was in its infancy and public relations was largely an afterthought. The mass market is now fragmented. Nowadays consumers are better educated, more skeptical, and less vulnerable to a slick sales pitch. We are bombarded with an endless stream of sales messages wherever we go. IMC is a deceptively simple idea. It is, in a word, synergy. In marketing, synergy mans that when all product and corporate messages are strategically coordinated, the effect is greater than when advertising, sales promotion, public relations etc. are planned and executed independently, with each competing for budgets and power and in some cases sending out conflicting messages, according to Tom Duncan, director of the Integrated Communications graduate programme at the University of Colorado. Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) Defined:

The Northwestern Universitys Medill School of Journalism defines IMC as: The process of managing all sources of information about a product/service to which a customer or prospect is exposed which behaviorally moves the customer toward sale and maintains customer loyalty. In short, Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) is Joint planning, execution and coordination of all areas of marketing communication and also understanding the consumer and what the consumer actually responds to.

Why many companies are adopting Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC)? Companies look at Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) as a way to coordinate and manage their marketing communication programmes to ensure that they give customers a consistent message about the company or its brands. IMC represents an improvement over the traditional method of treating the various marketing and communication elements as virtually separate activities. The IMC approach helps companies identify the most appropriate and effective methods for communicating and building relationships with their customer as well as other stakeholders such as employees, suppliers, investors, interest groups and the general public. Factors contributing to IMCs growing popularity Several significant and pervasive changes in the marketing and communications environment have contributed to its growing prominence:

Fragmentation of the media: A huge number of media options are available to marketers. Broadcasting media now offer narrow casting so specific that advertisers can reach consumers at precise locations, such as airports and supermarket checkout counters. The print media has proliferated dramatically as well. Better audience assessment through database technology: The ability of firms to generate, collate and manage databases has created diverse communications opportunities

beyond mass media. Databases can be used to create customer and non-customer profiles. This information is important to identify target markets. Consumer empowerment: Todays consumers are more powerful and sophisticated. Empowered consumers are more skeptical of commercial messages and demand information tailored to their needs. Increased advertising clutter: The proliferation of advertising stimuli has diluted the effectives of any single message. Desire for greater accountability: In an attempt to achieve greater accountability for promotional spending, firms have reallocated marketing resources from advertising to more short-term and more easily measurable methods, such as direct marketing and sales promotions.