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Case
has always brought up to his superiors the viability of strategy formation regarding the
analysis of this topic and at times fails to understand the reasons or logic behind certain
By delving into this project paper, the author intends to have better insights into
how the Integrated Marketing Communication tools are thought up, formulated and then
imparted down. The author hopes to have an in-depth understanding as to how the
extremely intense.
In order to reinforce the learning objectives, two key focal issues were focused
upon i.e. innovation and diversity. Innovation was discussed with regard to Integrated
constantly innovate. Diversity came under strategic thinking and formation as the author
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Nokia is one of the world's leading telecommunication companies in terms
of profit and sales volume. The company has also the widest presence among
Nokia uses the name of both the company and its mainstream mobile phone
labels, and this strategy has allowed the company to pursue an integrated marketing
approach directly related to the company name. There are also a variety of Integrated
Marketing Communication (IMC) tools available that Nokia could make use of in order to
advertising, branding and personal selling. When used appropriately, these IMC tools
will be able to help Nokia to consistently disseminate the valuable information that they
regarding IMC tools. Since their income is relatively higher than most of their
competitors, the time for implementation of their chosen IMC tools would take
longer than usual, aside from being expensive. But since the goal of Nokia is
then the pursuit of these promotional campaigns will be beneficial for the
INTRODUCTION
The telecommunication industry over the years has developed an efficient and
effective process of implementing the policies and tasks necessary to satisfy its
consumers and management of companies and organizations. There has been a recent
focus on the careful management of the processes involved in the production and
More often than not, small telecommunication companies don't really have the
and distribution.
However, international marketing strategies deal with all operations done within
control of inventories, logistics and evaluations are often related with operations
Nokia will be the model business entity that will be used in this research based
COMPANY OVERVIEW
a. Financial Analysis
In the fiscal year of 2003, Nokia was able to experience a significant progress in
several key metrics. The inventory was reduced from $55 million to $23 million and
inventory turns rose from 12 to 26. The cost of revenues, excluding the benefit from
previous special charges and the applicable portion of the amortization of intangible
sales and marketing, research and development, and general and administrative
expenses was reduced from $ 435 million to $339 million, while at the same time
improving on the pace of innovation. Nokia’s total revenue has approximately grown
from $1 million in fiscal year 1995 to $ 871. 9 million in fiscal year 2003.
b. Marketing
The retailers in Finland represent Nokia’s largest sales and marketing channel
which encompass national and regional office supply stores and mass merchants.
Distributors represent Nokia’s second largest European channel and generally sell to
both traditional and Internet resellers and retailers. In Europe and the US, Nokia’s
market share is still relatively high. Nokia has more than 100 international distributors
located worldwide.
The company also uses online stores as a venue to sell its products. This is
accomplished through the use of e-marketing campaigns and product bundles. The
company is able to build awareness of its products and brands through mass media
advertising, public relations efforts and branded Internet properties. The company also
makes it a point to receive feedback from its customers through market research. The
company then uses these feedbacks to refine its product development efforts and
c. Operations
Nokia out-sources all of the designs of its mobile phones to third party
components to manufacture its products. The majority of the company’s products are
assembled in Europe and the US. Distribution centres are operated on an outsourced
d. Human Resources
Nokia knows that its future depends on the company’s ability to attract new
personnel and retain existing personnel in key areas including engineering and sales.
Strengths:
• Nokia has products that boast of a very powerful retail. This includes a reputation
• Nokia has grown significantly over the years, and has experienced global
expansion.
• Nokia’s main competence lies on the use of information technology (IT) to fully
support its international logistics system. Therefore, the company can see how
their individual products perform within the United States, or even at stores at a
• Nokia is able to deliver good customer care, as the limited amount of work would
• Nokia can afford to change direction quickly if its management finds that the
• Nokia has little deficits and overheads. Therefore the company can offer good
Weaknesses:
weak control of its empire, despite its IT advantages. This could lead to a
decrease in productivity in some areas where they have the least control of.
• Since Nokia sells products across many sectors, the company may lack the
• Nokia operates globally, but its presence is located in only relatively few
countries worldwide.
• Some of the company’s personnel still lack the essential skills base in many
areas.
• The company is still vulnerable to the temporary losses of its vital staff (e.g. being
sick, leaving).
• The company’s cash flow is unreliable especially in the early stages of a new
product development.
Opportunities:
• Taking over, merging, or forming strategic alliances with other fashion companies
while focusing on strong markets like Europe or the Greater China Region.
countries all over the world. Thus, this would open the opportunities for future
India.
• The opening of new locations and branches offer Nokia the opportunities to
• Opportunities exist for Nokia to continue with its current strategy of establishing
success.
• The local councils of Nokia are in the process of encouraging local businesses
• The competitors of Nokia may be slow to adapt to new mobile gadgets especially
Threats:
• Being number one means that Nokia is the target of competition, the company to
• Being a global retailer means that Nokia might be exposed to political problems
outsourcing to low-cost regions around the globe. This phenomenon could lead
the markets might challenge the company’s ability to adapt to these changes
• A slight shift in focus of a large competitor might wipe out any market position
that Nokia has achieved over the years. This could force the company to
specialize in rapid response but good value services to local businesses. This
A. ADVERTISING
markets that have the capacity to purchase a product, advertising, on the other hand, is
the paid communication through which relevant information about the product is
campaign is achieved effectively, this can lead to an increased demand for the product.
to purchase the advertised product; and, (3) keep the company under the watchful eyes
of the public (Hancock et al. 2002). Most successful advertising campaigns usually mix
the elements of all three objectives. More often than not, newly established products are
supported with informative and persuasive ads, while strongly established products
Evaluation of Advertising
1) Advantages
The existence of Internet and the continued revolution in the world of Information
Technology are certainly positive signs for the blossoming of many new advertising
opportunities. For instance, Popup ads and email ads have started to invade the
Internet. Most advertising firms have also started to exert efforts to make their
2) Disadvantages
In recent years, the public opinion regarding advertising has become very
negative. They view it as a medium that only promotes lies. This is of course contrary to
stating opinions or portraying a product or service in a totally distorted idea away from
reality. It is this alarming situation regarding the true objectives of advertising that have
led to an increase in the responsibilities that companies and advertising firms face
(2004).
B. PUBLICITY
Publicity is a term that is closely related to public relations. While public relations
refers to the proper management of all means of communication among the companies
and the people involved, publicity, on the other hand, is the careful management of a
product or service’s means of communication between the company and the general
the promotion of products and services being offered by a company. Thus, a publicity
plan is being made along the process in order to obtain excellent press coverage for the
company’s products.
The most commonly used tool of the publicist is in the form of a press release,
but other methods including Internet releases have also been widely used recently.
However, in order for these tools and techniques to be effectively utilized by the media,
they must be able to generate a great interest from the public. More often than not, the
press release is manipulated in order to be a perfect match to the media vehicle that it is
being sent to. A publicist’s task is to always ask the company about its characteristics or
features that will have a generally good appeal to the public and thus make a good
story. The most successful publicity releases are often related to topics that the general
Evaluation of Publicity
1) Advantages
The advantages of publicity include having low costs, and its credibility. New
technologies such as web cameras and convergence are gradually changing the cost-
structure.
2) Disadvantages
The disadvantages include the lack of control over how the releases will be used,
and the accumulation of frustration regarding the low percentage of releases that are
C. PERSONAL SELLING
Sales are an important part of any commercial transaction. The most common
measurable methods in which the person selling describes his offered products or
services in such a way that the buyer will be able to visualize how to benefit from the
( 2003).
that convinces a buyer to achieve his goal at a reasonable cost is the main
responsibility of the sales person. On the other hand, the main objective of professional
sales is to be able to know the needs and satisfy the wants of consumers effectively,
and therefore convert possible customers into actual and reliable ones (2002).
Some of the distinct advantages of personal selling include the immediate access
to feedback, the persuasive nature of the endeavor, the option of choosing a target
audience for the sales person, and its capability to give detailed information.
2) Disadvantages
Personal selling may have the tendency to become extremely expensive per
exposure, and the gathered information may be different among the sales persons
involved. It is a well-known fact that the main objective of selling is to help a consumer
achieve his / her goals in a reasonable way. However, this is not always the case.
that normally does not have any interest to them. Some sales people are being
commanded by their mother companies to sell to consumers odd products that they
sales personnel to increase their total number of sales, incentives from the companies
of service providers to sales personnel to sell their products where other similar
products offered by competitors are offered, and the incentive to sell a consumer a
D. SALES PROMOTION
to have an immediate and lasting impact towards sales. Sales promotion is both a
media and non-media marketing communications tool utilized for a limited time in order
to boost consumer demand and improve product availability. Sales promotions can be
promotions. On the other hand, sales promotions targeted at retailers and wholesale are
more commonly referred to as trade sales promotions. Some sale promotions, however,
make use of unorthodox methods and are often not seriously considered by many.
1) Advantages
2) Disadvantages
The disadvantages of sales promotion include its potential for being abused,
which could possibly lead to disputes regarding promotion. Sales promotion can also be
easily duplicated.
APPLICATIONS / RECOMMENDATIONS
For Nokia to be able to build their brand equity and reach their target markets
effectively, a combination of advertising and personal selling is the key strategy and
communication tool that must be used. There are various kinds of advertising that Nokia
mass-market advertising format, even amidst the high prices TV networks charge for
television commercial production studios often risk astronomical amounts of money for
company is financially capable for this kind of huge expenditures. The resulting number
of high-quality Nokia TV commercials, those with the best production values and the
most popular personalities, will be able to offset the huge expenses later on.
and thus create an immediate impression. They also have to be readable especially
because they are usually noticed in roads and highways while consumers are boarded
at vehicles with high speeds. Therefore, the Nokia billboard must only contain a few
words in large print, with a clear image in bright colors (Jayaratne et al. 2001).
has gained sponsorships of exclusive Green Room Sessions and global world-music
events. This particular music strategy initiated by Nokia in the Singapore market has
gained success and is now being emulated also in other Asian markets, such as in
Malaysia ( 1984). In Thailand, Nokia has also sponsored music events. Nokia Green
Nights are also starting to gain popularity in Vietnam because of the brand’s strong
public. In Thailand, Nokia was able to secure the sponsorship of the premiere of “The
Matrix Reloaded”. In Malaysia, on the other hand, Nokia was among the sponsors of the
James Bond blockbuster, “Die Another Day”. And in Vietnam, Nokia became associated
Nokia also has embarked into securing major sponsorships in tennis and golf,
most especially in Thailand and Vietnam. In Vietnam in particular, Nokia sponsored the
broadcasts of Wimbledon, the US Open and the Australian Open. In Thailand, on the
other hand, Nokia World of Golf hosted the yearly Nokia Thailand Amateur Gold
Championship. To show its support for Rugby World Cup 2003, Nokia undertook a wide
range of promotions in New Zealand where rugby is the national sport ( 1998).
especially important because Nokia consumers still have special needs or technical
questions. Personal selling remains the major promotional ingredient for intermediary
Advertising
TV ($500/30-second ad/station)
Personal Selling
There are several steps needed in order to evaluate and control the
have to be tested first in varying situations and environments, after which a Test-result
database must be established for comparisons. The tests have to determine the relative
impact of the promotional campaigns, which in turn will be the basis towards evaluating
On the other hand, the established test-result database will be the basis towards
the creation of more promotional campaign designs and decisions. The data will also
CONCLUSION
Add to the mix the company’s dedication to high quality of service and the
Moreover, the utilization of the appropriate IMC tools is necessary for their
products to reach out to people even in different cultures. In this case, it is being
recommended that a combination of advertising, branding and personal selling
regarding IMC tools. Since their income is relatively higher than most brewing
companies, the time for implementation of their chosen IMC tools would take
longer than usual, aside from being expensive. But since the goal of Nokia is
towards a long-term dominance and stability in the brewing industry, then the
pursuit of these promotional campaigns will be beneficial for the company in the
long run