Integrated Marketing Communications for Coca-Cola - Case Study Example

Integrated Marketing Communications Name Institution Introduction Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) refers to an effective and efficient approach essential in the achievement of objectives of a marketing campaign under the influence of diverse promotional techniques, which reinforce each other. IMC focuses on recognizing the value of a comprehensive plan with the potentiality of evaluating strategic roles in relation to diverse communication disciplines such as advertising, public relations, sales promotion, and personal selling. These attributes are ideal in combing to offer clarity, consistency, and maximum communication impact. Organizations tend to focus on adoption of diverse ideas and perceptions to coordinate promotional efforts in pursuit of competitive advantage within the market and industry of operation. In the course of developing appropriate marketing communication program, business entities need to focus on identification of the target audience, determination of ideal objectives, and settling on an advertising budget. The purpose of this essay is to design an integrated marketing communications programs for Coca-Cola. In addition, the research will discuss how each of the elements of the marketing communications mix: direct marketing, internet marketing, personal selling, sales promotion, and publicity integrate to offer maximum output to the target audience for the case of Coca-Cola. Integrated Marketing Communications for Coca-Cola In the case of Coca-Cola, integrated marketing communications program should focus on incorporation of all elements such as advertisement, direct marketing, and other aspects. Advertising Coca-Cola should focus on integration of traditional media elements in the course of advertising products and brands within the market and industry of operation. This is through incorporation of diverse media outlets such as TV, newspapers, magazines, billboards, and bus stops. In addition, there is need to incorporate new techniques as websites and blogs while seeking to achieve competitive advantage in the market and industry of operation. The company can focus on utilization of the platforms to increase information about the organization and its products. Advertisement is vital in enhancing the awareness of the consumers on the existing products and services in accordance with the demands and expectations of the stakeholders and shareholders. Public Relation Coca-Cola has its own website, which is vital in enhancing the achievement of the quality image and reputation within the industry of operation. Consumers have the ability and potentiality to utilize the website page to view press releases, executive speeches, and statements, which addresses lawsuits, stories, and rumors. In addition, the organization can utilize website to inform consumers on diverse issues and campaigns or recent activities and coming events. For instance, consumers can use the website to have access to some critical information with reference to the branded image of ‘Coke Polar Bear’ with substantial concern for the environment. Recently, the organization has focused on integration of the campaign to ‘share coke’ among the consumers (Collier, 2014). Website would be the most appropriate platform for understanding substantial information in relation to the product and promotion. Similarly, the organization uses the approach to provide information about CSR programs with reference to protection and conservation of the environment. Public relations enable business entities to generate or develop good relations with the public through obtaining favorable publicity. In addition, the approach will be vital in enabling the organization to build good corporate image while handling or heading off unfavorable rumors, events, and stories. Coca-Cola can focus on handling public relations through diverse means or approaches such as utilization of the press center in pursuit of quality image and reputation. The platform will be ideal in ensuring that consumers have substantial information through press releases, executive speeches, and statements by the company concerning the current conditions or situations in relation to the market and industry of the organization (Young, 2014). The organization might decide to devote a section of the website to the shareholders or investors. In this context, investors have the perfect opportunity to access financial statements, as well as up-to-the-minute stock information in the current and future contexts. Sales Promotion Coca-Cola should focus on investing in sales promotions around the world to facilitate the achievement of competitive advantage in the market and industry of operation. This is vital in maintaining its position in relation to industry leadership against rival Pepsi. Sales promotions at the store should concentrate on driving revenues during slow period while addressing the demands and expectations of the consumers in diverse contexts. The approach will focus on incorporation of diverse promotions such as the essence of ‘My Coke Reward’. This program was vital in integrating numerous coupons, rewards, gifts, and free vacations. For instance, execution of ‘share a coke’ has been ideal in driving sales and revenues at the end of the financial period. Sales promotion at Coca-Cola should also focus on incorporation of roadshows and community development programs. During these encounters, the organization should focus on providing drinks of the Coca-Cola brand to the target audiences with the intention of enhancing market coverage. This approach will provoke interest and attention in relation to the products and services of the organization while addressing the demands and expectations of the target audience. The target audience will increase purchase incidents or cases, which is vital in increasing revenues and profitability at the end of the financial period. Consumers tend to engage in consumption of the product while sharing the experience of finding their names on the bottles and cans, thus the perfect platform for generation of the motive among customers to make increased purchases. Similarly, the organization should focus on integration of diverse campaigns and supporting programs, which might be essential in the achievement of the goals and targets at the end of the financial period. These attributes are ideal in enhancing the market coverage and penetration of Coca-Cola in the midst of stuff competition from Pepsi. From this perspective, the programs will enable consumers to make numerous or increased purchases, thus facilitating realization of competitive advantage in the market and industry of operation (Ang, 2014). The organization will concentrate on exploitation of the sales promotion techniques in enhancing the image and reputation of the brand while reducing costs of transactions. Personal Selling Coca-Cola should focus on utilization and exploitation of the highly trained sales team in the course of increasing revenues or volume of sales within the market and industry of operation. This is vital in enhancing the image and reputation. In addition, the organization should focus on the usage of personal selling in relation to the achievement of goals and targets while executing business-to-business sales. The organization should also continue to sell its products to the retail stores under the usage of intermediaries, thus the essence of interpersonal communication or direct face-to-face communication. Similarly, the organization should concentrate on selling the products to diverse restaurants, which is ideal in the course of achieving goals and targets at the end of the fiscal period. The salespeople tend to promote their product in relation to the demands of the different customers within their diverse regions. Once they sustain a customer, salespeople sell their products to them while offering weekly or daily services in accordance with the demands and expectations of the consumers within the markets of interest. These individuals tend to have substantial or close relationships with the consumers with the intention of maintain sales and services to satisfy the needs and expectations of such customers in diverse regions or markets across the world. Personal selling provides the perfect platform for Coca-Cola to increase transactions in relation to its brands seeking to handle the demands and expectations of the consumers within the market and industry of operation. Internet Marketing Technology tends to affect and influence activities in the modern society with reference to transactions and engagement within the community. Business entities tend to focus on the exploitation of technology to expand the market coverage, as well as revenues at the end of the fiscal period. Coca-Cola should focus on exploitation of internet technology or digital platforms to achieve the goals and targets with reference to competitive advantage within the industry and market of transaction. Currently, the organization concentrates on the usage of internet platforms to market or promote the products. In the first instance, it is ideal to note that the organization owns a website, which is critical in allowing customers to become interactive through activities such as shopping and games. In addition, there is substantial information on how the organization can help the community through CSR programs in pursuit of improved image and quality reputation. Marketing products at Coca-Cola focuses on incorporating AIDA concept, which relates to attention, interest, desire, and action. For instance, the organization uses internet platforms to advertise aggressively with the intention of gaining substantial attention among the target audience. Secondly, the organization uses internet platforms to offer information inclusive of ingredients and materials with the intention of provoking interests such as diet coke for low calories’ consumers. The organization also uses internet platforms to ensure that consumers understand how the products and services can satisfy their needs, thus the opportunity to provoke desire. These attributes are critical in ensuring that consumers take action to buy the products at diverse stores, thus the perfect opportunity towards increasing sales and revenues at the end of the financial or strategic period. Internet technology enables Coca-Cola to exploit blogs, Facebook, YouTube, and twitter outlets or platform to interact effectively and efficiently with the consumers or target audiences within the market and industry of operation. It is critical for the business entities for the organization to exploit internet technology to reduce the costs of operation while improving quality of the products and services in pursuit of competitive advantage in the market and industry of operation. Moreover, such entities should consider utilization of internet platforms to facilitate the achievement of the goals. This is through incorporation of the feedback from the consumers or target audiences. On the other hand, it is essential for the organization to limit accessibility of the sensitive information on the internet platforms. This is because of the vulnerability of such information to hackers or outside intrusion, which might affect the image and reputation of the organization in the national or global contexts. Direct Marketing Direct marketing is one of the traditional techniques, which is appropriate in the modern context for the achievement of increased sales and revenues at the end of the fiscal or strategic period. Coca-Cola should incorporate diverse aspects of direct marketing to facilitate the achievement of competitive advantage in the market and industry of operation. In the first instance, it is ideal for the company to work closely with diverse restaurants, as well as movie theaters to carry its products. From this perspective, consumers will have the opportunity to experience the products from Coca-Cola brand whenever they order for a drink. Coke forces out other competition while keeping restaurants and other business entities to purchase their products in numerous contexts with the intention of satisfying the needs and expectations of the consumers within the market and industry of transactions. Coca-Cola focuses on the usage of its name for diverse sporting events or activities. These events and activities tend to offer substantial fun time for the families and friends while only serving Coca-Cola products. The approach is vital in enabling salespeople to invite diverse retailers to one of the numerous Coca-Cola boxes for fun, food, and business talk. The approaches are ideal in the achievement of the goals and targets of the organization while pursuing competitive advantage against major competitors such as Pepsi. Direct marketing increases the awareness of the consumers or customers on the products and services at their disposal within the market and the industry. Implications of the elements of Integrated Marketing Communication on the Target Audience Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) is an approach to brand communications where the different modes tend to work together with the intention of creating a seamless experience for customer, as well as presentation of the elements with a similar tone and style reinforcing the brand’s core message. Some of the most common goals of IMC campaigns inclusive of increasing brand awareness while generating sales, as well as reinforcing repeat purchases or procurement of the products with the intention of satisfying the needs of the organization. Changes in the marketplace, new competitive forces, and promotional opportunities should cause companies or business entities to alter strategies, as well as reassessment of the IMC goals and targets. Integration refers to the essence of a concept being composed and coordinated to form a whole (Shimp& Andrews, 2013). This is vital in understanding the implications and influences of the IMC elements in the course of achieving the goals and targets at the end of the fiscal period. IMC comes out a comprehensive plan with the potentiality and ability to evaluate the strategic roles of a variety of communication disciplines and combines these disciplines or elements with reference to maximization or optimization of the output. The brand’s core image and messaging experience reinforcement since each marketing communication channel or element works together as parts of the unified completely rather than in isolation in pursuit of goals and targets at the end of the financial period. IMC elements focus on setting goals, which are ideal in the achievement of competitive advantage in the market and industry of operation (Schultz, Macdonald, & Baines, 2012). The different modes tend to work together in the creation of a seamless experience for the consumers seeking to satisfy their needs and preferences while reducing the costs of procurement. Customers experience similar tone, as well as style with the potentiality of reinforcing the brand core’s message. The ultimate goal is to ensure that all aspects of marketing communication: advertising, sales promotion, public relations, direct marketing, personal selling, internet marketing, and social media, work together as a unified force. This synergy between the diverse marketing elements provides the opportunity for maximization of the cost effectiveness. It is essential to note that the cost effectiveness of mass media due to fragmentation has forced integrated marketing communications to the forefront in relation to understanding modern marketing concept (Chen, 2012). Consumers tend to spend more time on the internet platforms, as well as on mobile devices. From this perspective, marketing teams should focus on setting goals for all exposures of the brand to tie together to achieve effectiveness and efficiency in the achievement of the goals and targets at the end of the fiscal period. Increasingly, it is becoming impossible for the business practitioners to understand the strategies of brands by looking at the elements of marketing communications in isolation (Schultz, Patti, & Kitchen, 2013). Nevertheless, it is ideal for the business entities to work together. In addition, it is critical to personalize the aspects of the IMC for each customer or consumer, thus provision of the perfect opportunity to real time reaction. The aspects of the IMC are vital in the achievement of the goals and targets of an organization through integration of the common objectives in marketing. The aspects of IMC focuson increasing awareness of the consumers on the vital products and services at their disposal. This is vital in enhancing or improving revenues and sales at the end of the fiscal period. Similarly, the aspects contribute towards enhancing or developing the brand awareness, thus the perfect platform for the improvement of the image and reputation within the market and industry of operation. Moreover, the aspects of IMC concentrate on increasing consumer or business demand for the product category (Belch et al, 2014). For instance, Coca-Cola has been able to exploit IMC in the course of increasing the number of consumers or customers of diverse drink categories. This provides the opportunity for substantial increase in the volume of revenues and sales at the end of the financial period. The aspects of IMC contribute towards enhanced purchase actions. Organizations focus on creating attention and provoking interests for the consumers to purchase products and services, thus reflection of an action from the target audience. The aspects of IMC work collectively in the course of changing or influencing customer beliefs, as well as attitudes in the course of enhancing profitability and revenues at the end of the fiscal period. Similarly, the approaches concentrate on the building of customer traffic to physical stores, websites, and other marketing channels. The approach is ideal in improving the image and reputation of the organization such as Coca-Cola within the market and industry of operation. It is critical for the organization to enhance the image or brand reputation, thus enhanced public relations techniques in pursuit of competitive advantage in the market and industry of operation. Aspects or facets of the IMC are also vital in working towards substantial increase in the market share or coverage, thus substantial increase in the revenues and sales at the end of the fiscal or strategic period. This is through implementation of collective approach to reinforce purchase decisions with the intention of exploiting opportunities while minimizing threats, thus the perfect platform for improvement of the conditions of the organization seeking to address the demands and preferences of the consumers or target audiences. Conclusion Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) refers to an effective and efficient approach essential in the achievement of objectives of a marketing campaign under the influence of diverse promotional techniques, which reinforce each other. This is through incorporation of elements such as advertising, public relations, sales promotion, and personal selling. These attributes are ideal in combing to offer clarity, consistency, and maximum communication impact. IMC comes out a comprehensive plan with the potentiality and ability to evaluate the strategic roles of a variety of communication disciplines and combines these disciplines or elements with reference to maximization or optimization of the output. Customers experience similar tone, as well as style with the potentiality of reinforcing the brand core’s message. The ultimate goal is to ensure that all aspects of marketing communication: advertising, sales promotion, public relations, direct marketing, personal selling, internet marketing, and social media, work together as a unified force. The synergy between the diverse marketing elements provides the opportunity for maximization of the cost effectiveness. From this perspective, Coca-Cola should focus on exploitation of the IMC plan or program to develop appropriate strategies in pursuing increased revenues and profitability at the end of the fiscal period. References Shimp, T., & Andrews, J. C. (2013).Advertising promotion and other aspects of integrated marketing communications.Cengage Learning. Belch, G. E., Belch, M. A., Kerr, G. F., & Powell, I. (2014). Advertising: an integrated marketing communication perspective.McGraw-Hill Education. Schultz, D., Patti, C. H., & Kitchen, P. J. (Eds.). (2013). The evolution of integrated marketing communications: The customer-driven marketplace. Routledge. Chen, P. T. (2012). A Research on Critical Success Factors and Integrated Marketing Mode of the Evergreen No. 1 Brand of Carbonated Beverage-an Example of Coca-Cola Brand. Schultz, D., Macdonald, E. K., & Baines, P. R. (2012).Best Practice: Integrated Marketing Communications. Ang, L. (2014). Principles of integrated marketing communications.Cambridge University Press. Collier, K. A. (2014). A Case Study on Corporate Peace: The Coca-Cola Company: Coke Studio Pakistan.Business, Peace and Sustainable Development, 2014(2), 75-94. Young, A. (2014). Brand media strategy: Integrated communications planning in the digital era. Palgrave Macmillan. Read More