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Chapter 1 Setting the scene

Integrated brand communications (University of Pretoria)

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Chapter 1 Setting the scene

1.1 Introduction

Communication within an organisation compromises of internal communication with owners,

managers and employees and external communication with suppliers, society, government,
customers and stakeholders. Communication with these audiences can occur in many forms and on
many platforms, depending on the organisational objective or the issue at hand.

Marketing communication when organisations communicate their brand, product and service
offering to specific audiences.

Marketing mix elements: Product, price, distribution, marketing communication, processes, people
and physical evidence.

1.2 Defining IMC (Integrated Marketing Communication)

IMC is a concept of marketing communication planning that recognizes the added value of a
comprehensive plan that evaluates the strategic roles of the marketing communication techniques
(example advertising and direct) and combines these disciplines to provide clarity, consistency and
maximum communication impact.

1.3 Any IMC definition should incorporate five crucial attributes (AACDAA)

1. An outside-in approach used to include the target audience at the initial phases of
developing communication and marketing strategy.
2. A well-established relationship between the organisation and its audiences is required
3. Communication effort directed at audiences to influence behaviour
4. Deliver a message consistently and accurately – all communication activities should be
included with the various contact points integrated into strategy
5. A competitive brand needs strong co-ordination between communication and marketing
disciplines

1.4 The Value-add that IMC retains for organisations

• IMC signifies a holistic business approach: The integration of marketing communication

efforts can form part of the core existence of an organisation
• There is contact synergy through IMC: Contact synergy is established through all brand
contact points of encounter
• IMC can assist with brand integration: this entails communication integration where brand
personality and values are strategically, consistently and continuously conveyed during
contact points between the organisations and its audiences
• IMC centres around audience segmentation: IMC efforts are concentrated on all audiences
and not just on target markets. Audiences will include all groups or individuals that have a
direct or indirect impact on the performance of the organisations.
• IMC delivers strategy and message consistency: Through IMC an organisation can achieve
strategy and message consistency, aligning its core marketing communication messages to
the strategic organisational intent to ensure that a consistent message is conveyed to all
different audiences

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Benefits of IMC in organisations

1 All audiences are considered

2 Individual and interpersonal communication is also encouraged
3 There is an increase in synergy and recall
4 It is a complete and well-defined approach
5 This approach usually results in financial benefits

Barriers to the realisation of IMC in organisations

• Organisation character and culture: organisational character and culture can hinder the
implementation of IMC. A rigid organisational culture with common understanding of what
constitutes IMC, as well as resistance to change and fear over who will charge, may be
barriers to IMC.
• Organisation structure: although there is broad agreement among marketing and
communication professionals about the general need for IMC, the very structure of
organisations might obscure it from being effectively implemented
• A validity problem:
• Financial considerations: Marketing communication departments in organisations are in
conflict regarding budget control over communication activities instead of working together.

1.5 Business trends that shape IMC (A MASS MEDIA MESSAGE NUMBER)

• Advances in information technology: Changes in information technology enabled audiences

to communicate interactively with and what they buy directly from manufacturers.
• Increasing number of almost identical products: Retailers are being flooded with new
products almost identical to existing ones
• Increasing mass media costs: Database costs decreased, but space and time in the mass
communication media, increased
• Increasing media fragmentation: the increase in different types of media has increased the
competition for stakeholder attention
• Decreasing message impact and credibility: the explosion of communication messages led
to diminished impact on audiences

1.6 The “Seven C’s” of IMC

1. Coverage - proportion of target audience reached by each communication option, as well as

how much overlap exists among communication options
2. Cost – the financial efficiency associated with the communication options and campaign or
programme
3. Contribution – The inherent ability of a communication option to create the desired effects
and achieve to desired communication objectives independent of prior or subsequent
exposure to any other communication options for the organisation
4. Commonality – the extent to which a communication option is designed to create
communication effects and achieve communication objectives that are also the focus of
other communication options
5. Complementary – the extent to which a communication option addresses communication
effects and objectives not addressed by other communication options

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6. Cross-effects – the effects to which a communication options are designed to explicitly work
together such that interaction or synergy occurs enhanced communication effects emerge as
a result of exposure by audiences to both options
7. Conformability – the extent to which communication works across target audiences
regardless of their communication history or other characteristics

1.7 Ethical considerations of IMC

Ethics connecting marketing and communication can be categorized into individual and social
audience impacts

At individual level

Misleading or deceptive practices that may or may not deliberately seek to create false beliefs about
a brand, goods or services. (Example: Persuasive advertising showcasing someone or a brand more
favourably than the reality)

At social level

Marketing and communication have an impact on social, political and cultural aspects of everyday
life. Messages must be ethically communicated. Used by corrupt business leaders or government
(Example Taking advantage of fake news, propaganda and coercion)

Communication and marketing remain ethical considerations in an organisation due to the

following general issues:

• The vulnerability of children audiences – this is regarded as an ethical issue because

children can be highly susceptible to communication content
• The danger of stereotypes – stereotyping in communication and marketing and a specific
classification of a minority group which is labelled through advertising can leave them
feeling insecure about themselves.
• Tobacco, alcohol and fast foods – cigarette and alcoholic advertising has been banned by
many countries. Fast food outlets and franchising often lower-income groups and the youth.
Fast food outlets often target lower-income groups
• Misleading communication – advertising usually makes items look more sophisticated and
effective, showing farms or green fields on the packaging of highly processed foods, or using
terms such as “pure” or ´natural” when the product actually contains harmful preservatives
• Regimenting the public mind – the criticism that advertising can create unnecessary needs
and wants in the minds of audiences is often leveed against the industry
1.8 Future directions for IMC

What could IMC look like in the future?

1. Integrated communication (IC) or IMC? – integrated communication is the key process

that prompts the behaviour, attitudes, opinions and perceptions of target audiences.
2. Monitoring digital communication for changing audience behaviour – although digital
communication allows more precise targeting behaviourally, it is important to
understand and incorporate the predisposition of audiences to engage with products,
services, brands and communication.
3. Refine directions for specific communication possibilities – the digital area is currently
receiving much research attention as organisations seek a better understanding of how
communication possibilities such as social networking sites, search engines etc

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4. Refine guidelines for coordinating communication possibilities – the true impact of IMC
programmes is the engagement and synergy outcomes that are created through
the competent assembly of various communication possibilities

1.9 The marketing communication mix

• Advertising Advertising is the controlled, and paid-for, non-personal communication about a

product, service, individual, organisation or idea that is directed by an identifiable
communicator via the mass communication media and is geared towards a specific target
audience. Its aim in achieving the objectives of communication and marketing is to inform,
remind, persuade or activate the target audience in a certain way.
• Personal selling
• Sales promotion
• Publicity
• Sponsorship
• Direct marketing Direct marketing entails the direct communication with target audiences
to encourage the latter's response by telephone, mail, electronic means or a personal
visit. Prevalent methods of direct marketing are direct mail, telemarketing.

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