Integrated Marketing Communication Program for Yellowglen XV - Example

Integrated Marketing Communication Student’s Name: Instructor’s Name: Course Code: Date of Submission: Introduction For very many years, marketing in organizations has remained a very important issue. This is because the market has continued to evolve and therefore demand that the marketing evaluate and consider their marketing strategies in order to be able to realize the intend impact. This is important in ensuring that each every marketing tool is effective (Fitzpatrick, 2005). However, what remains to be an important consideration is communication and how different elements of marketing communication can be integrated to cause the intended impact in the market and also help an organization enhance on its performance and compete favorably with the rest. In this article therefore, the focus will be to discuss how the various element of marketing communication which include: direct marketing, internet marketing, personal selling, sales promotion, and publicity can be integrated to give maximum impact to the target audience for a chosen product. The product that will be under consideration and that the integrated marketing communication will be intended at promoting is, Yelloglen XV. Yellowglen XV is a wine that is manufactured by Australian House of Sparkling. This product was launched in 2004 in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia. The wine is very famous in the region and in particular it’s loved by many consumers in the region because of its taste and content. Yellowglen XV is Pale Straw in color and it opens with an enveloping bread and brioche notes from the nose as shown in appendix 1 below. In sense therefore, this discussion will be to try and show how an integrated marketing communication can be used to promote and market the product to other markets where it is yet to gain acceptance. Integrated marketing communication An integrated marketing communication according to Belch et al (2011) refers to a well coordinated effort by the marketing team in integrating various elements of communication in order to be able to create a strong relationship with the market. The approach is post-modern in the marketing field in the sense that it helps bring together all various promotional elements to make an impact in the market. In the past, the marketers have managed to create their own barriers with regard to promotional strategies. This is because each and every marketing and promotional function is planned and managed separately. In this form, budgets, views about the market and even the goals and objectives of an organization were done separately. Because of this reason, many organizations failed to recognize the wide impact that an integrated and well coordinated promotional mix can be able to do in the market (Ratnatunga and Ewing, 2005). With a disintegrated approach, communications is not effective as much of the communication to the market is not consistent. This to a greater extent tended to hurt the relationship that existed between the marketer and the market. However, with the emerging trends in the market, marketing communication has continued to evolve towards the Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC). The IMC involves the process of coordinating the various elements of the promotional mix and other important activities in order to be able to communicate with the company customers. If this approach is embraced, then the marketers will be able to migrate from just mere advertising to using different promotional strategies. According to Holm (2006), IMC is considered one of the most current marketing approaches that companies can use to better focus their marketing efforts to the market. This is important in the sense that it will help acquire, retain and promote the relationships that exists between the company with its customers and other stakeholders. Embracing IMC as indicated by Grove et al (2007), is also important in developing a marketing model that is focused on enhancing the relationship with the market. This is important for building customer loyalty is a strong pillar to brand building. This idea is also supported by Beard (1996), who maintains that IMC is actually a platform for ensuring that the marketing approach used by a company is executional and that helps attain strategic consistency among the customers and stakeholders’ perceptions. In simple terms therefore, marketing is much more than traditional and this will be demonstrated later when trying to show how the IMC could be applied in a situation of a real product and which is Yellowglen XV. Promotion is defined as the process of coordinating the seller initiated efforts in order to set up a set of various channels of information and customer persuasion with the aim of helping sell goods and service or even an idea (Beverland and Luxton, 2005). While the normal communication takes place within the various elements in the marketing mix, in many organizations, communication with the market is done as part of a carefully planned, managed and controlled promotional package. In the tradition promotional mix, only four elements were included and which include: advertising, sales promotion, publicity and personal selling. However, for the sake of understanding how marketing in the modern market is done six major promotional-mix elements and which include: direct marketing, internet marketing, personal selling, sales promotion, and publicity. Direct marketing As already mentioned, the intention of this IMC program is to show how the various elements in the modern promotional mix can be integrated in order to be make the desired impact in the market with regard to promotion. The product under promotion is Yellowglen XV which is a wine that is manufactured and sold by Australia’s Premier House of Sparkling. One of the fastest growing sectors of the leading economies of the world is direct marketing. With direct marketing, various organizations are able to be able to direct directly with the target market audience in order to be able to generate the required response and close transactions. In the traditional market context, direct marketing has not been considered as one of the promotional mix. However, because of its role in role in marketing it’s a very important element that should be considered in the case of promoting Yellowglen XV. To start with and also very important in the case of Yellowglen XV, direct marketing will involve various activities which include database management, direct selling and telemarketing as well as direct response. The direct response will include the use of direct mail, the internet, broadcast and print media (Belch et al, 2011). One important advantage of using direct marketing in promoting the Yellowglen XV is that it will allow the manufacturer engage in a one-on-one with the customers. This is actually important in the sense that the marketers will be able to create a platform to establish a personal relationship with the potential consumers. This will go a long way in creating a close relationship between the marketers and the customers. This is the case because the customers will have the opportunity various questions about the product including its content, distribution process, availability price and any other general information about the product (Kliatchko, 2005). With direct marketing, the marketers of Yellowglen XV will be able to encourage the consumers to buy the product from the manufacturer. This is because the marketers will be able to communicate about the product. In addition to this, direct marketing is important in helping the marketers understand the lifestyles of the consumers and more especially with the increase in income which is a very important factor in the consumer behaviours. With the advent of internet and increased use of the internet world over, it’s becoming increasingly important to consider direct marketing as one of the elements in the promotional mix and more especially in the IMC (Kliatchko, 2005). This is because direct marketing can be done even online where the marketers can interact with the market on various social platforms such as social media like facebook, twitter and many others. The reason as to why this should be the case and direct marketing should be integrated in the promotional mix is that it will help Premier House of Sparkling is the fact that it helps in the distribution of the products through their existing distribution channels or even through their own workforce. Further, in using direct marketing, Premier House of Sparkling will be able to build its relationship both with the consumers and other companies. This is because the company will be able to build an integrated marketing communication program upon which the company, the consumers and other businesses will be able to interact (Balmer and Gray, 2003). This could be done building an integrated database with the consumers and other companies where the addresses and phone numbers of the potential customers can be accessed. This will help the company ensure that it is always in touch with the customers and the market as a whole. This is particularly in important in helping the company reduce its expenses of developing and maintaining their own databases. Further, also important with direct marketing and the reason as to why it should be integrated to the marketing communication program is because it allows the use of telemarketing to interact with the customers (Kliatchko, 2005). With telemarketing, the marketers will be able to call the potential customers direct in an attempt to try and convince them buy Yellowglen and also try to qualify some of the customers as potential leads. The reason also to why the direct marketing should be integrated in the marketing communication program to be used in promoting Yellowglen is because the marketers should send the mail pieces which include simple letters and flyers to the customers (Belch et al, 2011). These mail pieces contain very important information about the product and the company. The mail pieces may contain such information as brochures’ and catalogs as well as videotapes. These mail pieces will actually be used by the marketing team to provide the customers with as much information about Yellowglen as possible. Finally, the integration of direct marketing to IMC program to be used in promoting Yellowglen XV is important in the sense that it will also be used in distributing product samples to the target market. Interactive/internet marketing Since the beginning of the new millennium, the world of marketing perhaps has experienced so much revolution in the way the internet is being used for marketing. These revolutionary changes have actually have had a very serious impact on the traditional of marketing which heavily relied on the traditional advertising and promotion. These changes are actually as a result of advancement in technology as demonstrated by the increased use of the internet by the consumers (Swain, 2004). Given the amount of information that flows through the internet and between the business and the customers and other business, the process of integrating this element of the promotional mix into the IMC program by The House of Sparkling, will be of great significance in ensuring that the information shared about Yellowglen Wine is consistent across all marketing functions and activities. This is the case because so much information is being shared through the internet. The interactive media which is also known as internet marketing is one of the most elements of promotional mix in the IMC program. One important feature that qualifies this element to be integrated in the IMC is the fact that is one of the best platforms that enable the fastest back-and-forth exchange of information between the marketers and the users of the products. Given the fact this product is common only in South Australia, it makes it very vital for the internet to be used in the promotional mix and as one of the major components of the IMC program. The reason as to why this is important for the case of Yellowglen Wine is the fact that the information that flows through the internet is not controlled and can be used in other areas that are related to its marketing. For instance with the internet use, The House of Sparkling will be able to be able to perform several functions related to marketing of the product and which include receiving and altering the information about the product, making inquiries about the customer tastes, responding to the questions of the customers about the products and at the same closing sales. While the internet has continued to impact on the ways that companies design and even implement their specific business and other related marketing strategies, it is becoming absolutely important that it’s affecting their IMC programs. This can be witnessed from the way thousands of company globally are investing so much in the development of their websites. The ultimate objective of doing this is to try and ensure that they have the platform that will use to promote their products and services (Cornelissen, 2000). This is possible because so much information can be exchanged between the company and the customer. In the case of Yellowglen XV, integrating internet marketing into the ICM program is very fundamental because many of the consumers now explore the internet to search for the information they want about their products and services. This is because many consumers are aware that companies various companies have their websites where they promote their products and services. To integrate this promotional element to the IMC program of The House of Sparkling is important in ensuring that the company has the base upon which to various promotional incentives like coupons, contests and sweepstakes (American Marketing Association, 2007). This element is integrated to the IMC therefore by the fact that other elements such as direct marketing, personal selling and publicity use the internet to ensure that they are efficient and effective in their operations. Sales promotion The next and most variable in the promotional mix and that is one component in the IMC program is sales promotion. Sales promotion is defined as those marketing activities that are committed by the company and that are aimed at providing extra value or even incentives to sales force and the distributors as well as the consumers (Balmer and Gray, 2003). The aim of doing this is to try and stimulate the sales. Sales promotion can be broken into two main. The first category is sales promotion which is consumer oriented and the other one is sales promotion which is trade-oriented. However, the goal of the two categories remains the same and this to try and stimulate the sales of the company. To start with, the sales promotion that is consumer-oriented is aimed at helping the business increase its results which results from the purchases that the customers make. In other words, this is the type of promotion that is target at the final consumer with the aim of trying to stimulate him make more purchases (Carlson et al, 2003). In the case of The House of Sparkling, this category of promotional mix could be used to stimulate the lovers of wines to buy more of Yelloglen Wine. This could be done using such techniques as coupons, premiums, contests, sampling and sweepstakes as well as the point-of-purchase (Belch et al, 2011). On the other hand, the sales promotion that is trade-oriented is aimed at stimulating the sales that arise from the purchases that other business make. The other business in this could include the retailers, the distributors and wholesalers. Some of the trade-oriented sales promotion techniques that The House of Sparkling could be used in order to boost the sales of Yellowglen Wine include merchandising allowances, sales contests and price deals as well as trade shows. The reason as to why this element could be integrated into the IMC program is the fact that will rely on other elements and more especially the internet marketing in order to communicate to the customers and business on the available promotional programs (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). This is to ensure that as many customers as possible are reached with the information about the company promotional activities. Publicity/public relations Another important element in the promotional mix and that forms part of the IMC program is the publicity or public relations. Publicity is defined as the non-personal selling that is related to an organization, a product, service or even an idea (Swain, 2004). In most cases it is not directly paid for or even run by an identified sponsorship. On the other hand, the public relations is the defined as that management function of an organization that is used to evaluate the public attitude, the available policies and process of a particular organization in relation to the public interest and the various programs need to be executed. The link between the two elements is that public relations uses publicity and other tools in order to enhance the company image in the public domain (Carlson et al, 2003). There are various techniques that are related to publicity and public relations that The House of Sparkling could use to enhance its image in the public and which include: for publicity are: news releases, feature articles, films, press conferences, photographs and videotapes. The advantage that is used with the publicity element is its credibility. In the case of public relations, the techniques that could be used include: special publications, fundraising, sponsorship of various activities and participating in various community activities as well as other public affair activities (Kitchen, 2005). The objective of doing this is similar to that publicity and which is enhancing the public image. However, one important point to note from this revelation is that like the elements in the promotional mix, the publicity and public relations cannot function in isolation and be able to achieve the goals of an organization (Balmer and Gray, 2003). With this in mind therefore it comes paramount to integrate this element into the IMC program. This is because with publicity and public relations, The House of Sparkling will be seeking to enhance its image in the public. This important for the other elements in the sense it will affect the attention the customers will give to the Yellowglen Wine. A good image will attract more attention to the product and this will increase the number of people browsing the company website, number of people participating in the company sales promotion activities and most important of all, purchasing the product. Personal selling Finally, in the promotional mix there is the element of personal selling. Personal selling is a form of person-to-person communication through the seller representing a company makes an attempt to persuade the potential customer or even the target market to buy a certain product of the company (Swain, 2004). Unlike the traditional advertising, personal selling entails direct contact with between the seller and the customers. However, this can be done either through face-to-face or even using other form of communication like telephone. The advantage associated with this element of promotional mix is that it is flexible and that the seller can always judge the buyer’s reaction. Personal selling can be targeted on individuals or target market in which the company has prospect about its products and services. This element of promotional mix is important and it is inclusion in the IMC program for Yellowglen Wine will help the company convince the target market to buy the Wine. Further, the integration of the element in the IMC program is a must if it is to work more effectively and efficiently (Belch et al, 2011). This is because some information can be collected through personal selling which can be used to enhance the company functions. For instance, in the case of sales promotion, the information collected from personal selling can be used to know which activities will form the sales promotion package. This could also be the case with the internet marketing. Both the internet and personal selling can rely on one another for excellent functioning of the IMC program. For instance, personal selling can use the internet to get in touch with the customers and also make some information exchanges which are aimed at convincing the customers make the purchases. On the other hand, internet marketing can also rely on the information about the customer which is collected during personal selling. This in the case of the Yellowglen Wine, personal selling will rely on the other elements in order to be able to understand the market and most probably who are the prospective customers (Balmer and Gray, 2003). This is important in saving time and being specific on the issues to address when dealing with the customers. This is important because it will a long way in convincing the customers buy the product. Conclusion The analysis has covered on two important aspects of marketing and which are promotional mix and an integrated marketing communication. The intetion was to show how the elements of the promotional mix can be integrated in the IMC program of the Yellowglen Wine which is a product of The House of Sparkling. The various promotional elements that have been considered in the IMC program include: direct marketing, interactive/internet marketing, sales promotion, publicity and public relations and personal selling. To start with, an overview of the whole concept of IMC program has been given. The concept has been defined as a well coordinated effort by the marketing team in integrating various elements of communication in order to be able to create a strong relationship with the market. What has emerged from the analysis is that all the promotional mix can only work well if they are well coordinated. This is because each and every element of the promotional mix is depended on each other for efficiency and effectiveness. 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(2005). Integrated Marketing Communications, Prentice Hall, Harlow. Ratnatunga, J. and Ewing, M. T. (2005). The brand capability value of integrated marketing communication (IMC). Journal of Advertising, 34(4), 25–40. Swain, W.N. (2004). Perceptions of IMC after a decade of development: who’s at the wheel, and how can we measure success? Journal of Advertising Research, 44(1), 46–65. Appendices Appendix 1: Yellowglen Wine Read More