Integrated Marketing Communications in the Modern Business - Essay Example

Integrated Marketing Communications Table of Contents 3 Introduction 4 There has been a change in the marketing communication environment. There has been an increase in the media fragmentation. With the improvement in the information technology there has been segmentation. There is requirement of the integrated marketing communication because there are many conflicting messages which comes from different sources or form different approaches which tends to confuse the company or the image of the brand. Moreover web alone cannot build the brand. Therefore, it is better to tie the knot between the traditional branding efforts and the interactivity and services capabilities of the online communication. Relationships can be enhanced through the web efforts (Gurau, 2008). 6 Literature Review 7 Role of e-Communication 8 Case studies on Amazon.com 10 Discussion 11 Conclusion 13 References 14 Bibliography 17 Abstract IMC (Integrated Marketing Communications) is entirely a new way of looking into the business related communication process. The paper aims to discuss the roles that e-communication plays in the integrated marketing communication strategy. The paper begins with the short introduction of the IMC. It describes in detail the importance and the role of IMC in the organisation. E-communication plays a vital role in IMC. It has enabled the companies to promote the brand over the internet itself commonly known as I-branding. It has also allowed an organisation to perform the marketing functions like promoting, distributing, segmenting, targeting and selling the goods to the ultimate consumers. The paper in the next phase looks at the literature review which is the study that has already been conducted by the other researchers. At first it demonstrates about the integrated marketing communication strategy then it ultimately talks about the role of e-communication in IMC. The paper will also discuss about the benefits and role of the e-communication strategies in an organisations daily activities. For the purpose of this short case study will be presented and then a thorough discussion on the case study will be conducted. The paper is beneficial in understanding the features and usability of e-communication strategy implementation in order to assimilate the various marketing efforts into a collaborated strategy. Introduction According to Tom Duncan (2002), integrated marketing communication can be stated as “a process for managing the customer relationships that drive brand value. More specifically, it is a cross-functioned process for creativity and nourishing profitable relationships with customers and other stakeholders by strategically controlling or influencing all messages sent to these groups and encouraging data-driven purposeful dialogue with them” (Kitchen & Et. Al., 2004). Integrated marketing tries to correlate and also coordinate a company’s product based messages in different mediums such as print, electronics. This method also tries to provide a uniform set of messages in all the media’s with the intention that they can be properly communicated to the consumers. It is a marketing plan that uses and captures enormous amount of data from the customers in order to make and set marketing strategy. In marketing communication the term media is used traditionally to indicate the classical mass media. However the term new media is associated with all the forms of new media development and is mostly with electronic media the term cyber marketing is used in order to describe the use of computers as well as telecommunication in marketing which includes internet marketing, mobile marketing as well as interactive television marketing. Internet has been an important medium for marketing communication which helps to reach to the customers directly (Suliman S.Olayan School of Business, 2010). Media has developed over the years and they provide a useful medium for a marketer to communicate their product based messaged through print and also by broadcasting them in the television. The digitalisation as well as networking of the information helps in the transformation of the marketing communication in a different way in order to connect the consumers and the brands. Digital media or the e-communication strategy helps to produce user generated contents, consumer networking and also helps in expanding the media from news and entertainment to any technology having digital interface with the people. The role of the media in the marketing communication has shifted to a more understandable format for the consumers which make it easier for them to fathom the key messages conveyed to them (Mulhern, 2009). Businesses have been implementing I-branding strategies in order to create brand equity. Various I-branding tools have been used for this purpose (Simmons, 2010). Branding via the internet has been quite popular in the recent years. It is to be remembered that the main four pillars of I-branding must be of practical value and intellectual interest for the marketing planners and for the one who is advising them so as to have a more systematic approach of understanding and applying the branding online (Simmons, 2007). The world has reached to the point where on a daily basis lots of information is being generated but the brain doesn’t have the capacity to grab them. Therefore reliance on the computers to do process information has become a recent trend. The key to digital marketing is to create a dialogue with the customers and finally to maintain the dialogue. It seems to be easy but it’s a real challenge in reality. Digital marketing has reached a point where some 17% of the companies say that companies are spending more on online advertising then offline (Clarke, 2010). There has been a change in the marketing communication environment. There has been an increase in the media fragmentation. With the improvement in the information technology there has been segmentation. There is requirement of the integrated marketing communication because there are many conflicting messages which comes from different sources or form different approaches which tends to confuse the company or the image of the brand. Moreover web alone cannot build the brand. Therefore, it is better to tie the knot between the traditional branding efforts and the interactivity and services capabilities of the online communication. Relationships can be enhanced through the web efforts (Gurau, 2008). Literature Review According to Sandra Luxton & Et. Al., (2005) Marketing Communication has been a boon in maintaining good relation among the stakeholders as well as to leverage this relationship in terms brand and channel equity. When the products are advertised heavily they help in generation of traffic and in the increment of sales volume. The measurement and management of the marketing efforts takes place at the brand level which are responsible for helping the firm to take short term competitive moves. After looking into the impact of the aggressive marketing environment on the brand equity and the increased expectation of the management with regards to the marketing performance and accountability, an organisation is now concerned at improving the management and to integrate the efforts of communication using the integrated marketing communication. Implementation of the IMC is very difficult as it requires passing through several levels as well as dimensions to integrate which also has certain difficulties. The whole organisation as well as the agents, who are from the chief executive onwards, is held responsible for the implementation of the IMC. IMC can be visualised at two different levels, one is strategic and the other is tactical. Strategic component of the IMC takes into consideration the various requirements of positioning the brands like cultural as well as the learning requirement (Luxton & Et. Al., 2005). Role of e-Communication According to KnowledgeWay (2000), Electronic communication has been a powerful new channel to communicate, which not only helps to change the way the various options are used but also tries to create an entirely new way of interacting. It helps to integrate various media-text, graphic sound, video into a solitary message. It is an interactive process which involves audience in a two way communication process. It enables a new way of thinking about the advertising and the handling of public relation. e-Communication helps to create a new form of many-to-many communication which permit geographically dispersed people to keep in touch through text, sound and videos. Effective communication stems from the understanding of the process that consumers use in order to process large amount of data each day. Therefore in order to cope, only those data are selected which the marketers perceive to be important and the rest of the data is ignored. In order to select and process the marketing message it must have sensory as well as life experiences which is easily identifiable and which can be transformed into a single entity (KnoweledgeWay, 2000). The share of internet communication is growing in a rapid pace in comparison to the total budget that is spent on it. The two types of marketing like Mobile marketing and iTV marketing has an important role to play in integrated marketing communication. Marketer’s can make the use of internet to serve various purposes, like research and planning, distribution, customer service, as well as for marketing and corporate communication. The internet has been useful for the marketers in order to obtain information about the suppliers, prospects and clients. Internet has been helpful in conducting primary research through internet surveys and it has also been beneficial to generate the customer’s feedback and response. Through internet or e-communication direct sales and distribution channels are also made possible. Websites have made it possible to take orders, update the offering of the products frequently as and when needed and also the customers can be stimulated to buy and pay online. The role played by the e-communication has been very impressive. It has allowed digital products such as videos; music as well as magazines to be distributed online and the tangible products can be ordered online by the customers and can be delivered at the address of the customers. This helps to reduce the print and the mailing cost as well as distribution cost. It is just because of the e-commerce that the disintermediation has been reduced and ultimately it has led to the deduction of the overall cost. At many occasions it is found that the response rates for the banner ads are relatively low than expected. Hence it is advisable to place the banner in those sites that will target potentially interested visitors, and must influence the customers to click at the ads. Sweepstakes, e-coupons contests and e-samples are some online sales promotion techniques which help in the generation of the enthusiasm among the consumers, build brand awareness and finally reward the loyal customers. Online games help to drive traffic towards the brand sites and help to build brand image. E-mail marketing has been used for inbound and outbound strategies. E-mail marketing helps in the generation of more response than the traditional direct mail or online advertising. A special form of email marketing has been viral marketing that sends messages to the selected target group of consumers who are interested in the messages. The ads are attached to the email and the recipient is asked to forward it to their friends. Mobile marketing as well as wireless advertising has also been quite popular that uses mobile devices in order to communicate with the customers in order to promote the products via SMS and MMS. It has been quite clear that the e-communication is useful in working as a supplementary media to the traditional marketing communication. Hence it would be beneficial to integrate this new media into the IMC mix in order to make them operate effectively (Kitchen & Et. Al., 2004). Case studies on Amazon.com It was in the year 1994 that Mr. Jeff Bezos was deceptive with the rapid growth of the internet technology. Thinking on capitalising on the hot new marketing tools, he made list of some 20 books that would work well over the net. After thorough analysis he realised that books could be the best product that can be marketed online and named his book as Amazon. Com. Mr. Bezos at the inception of the business had no idea in selling books, but gradually he realised that books were an ideal shipping profile for online sales. When orders could be accepted online through websites, Mr. Bezos recognised that the transaction cost could be reduced in the sales of product to the customers. Although Mr. Bezos’s vision was to have an online bookstore having the world’s best selection, it also entered into the other product lines where there was scope to reduce the transaction cost. It started selling music CDs and video tapes online. It realised the power of e-communication in reaching all the segments of the market. The company aims to provide the world’s biggest selection of merchandise and maintains its organisation from customer’s point of view. By means of paying attention to all aspects of the marketing such as buying, promoting, shipping and selling, and by working to improve the process continually Amazon has been able to demonstrate its success stories in e-commerce or e-communication (The University Of West Indies, 2010). Discussion The above case study demonstrates the application of ecommerce or e-communication strategies by the Amazon. Amazon is the company that has employed ecommerce phenomenon, it has also been offering various other products online like CD’s, toys, games, tools in the application of e-communication. E-Communication strategy has benefited Amazon to a great extent. It has allowed the company to store enormous volume of books in the website which is not otherwise possible in traditional book store or in the tangible book store. It has enabled the customers to get the books that are available online within a few seconds. The company saves shipping cost and other intermediary fees which would have not been possible in physical book store. A large group of customers can be targeted within a few seconds and their needs and wants can be identified. e-communication always provides businesses an opportunity to develop a very deep relation with the customers by accepting what the customer actually prefers and then constantly observing the purchase behavior of the customers over a period of time with the intention that an individualised information is available about the customers and this knowledge can be used in order to accelerate their discovery process. Online transaction saves customers precious time as well as money. Through personalisation it can accelerate the process of discovery. With the introduction of the e-communication strategies Amazon.com offers programs which enable sellers to sell their products on Amazon’s websites in order to fulfill their order through Amazon. With these Amazon earns fixed fees, revenue share fees. The application of e-communication will not only help the company to expand its operation in domestic areas but will also help the company to market and promote its product in international markets. e-Communication is used as a medium through which customer service and support can be enhanced. More detailed knowledge about the product can be made available to the customers via the internet. It helps to link the customers, workers, supplier’s competitors and the distributors together through an integrated or extended supply chain management solution. The main pros of e-communication stems from the fact that people across the globe can share large number of data such as televised pictures, graphics, circuits as well as large number of books like that of Amazon.com. The process of learning is made simple and efficient as the book or any information that the customers require can be archived and retrieved according to the requirement. It is relatively easier to locate the suppliers as well in online business. Conclusion The planning and implementation of integrated marketing communication is quite complex and various management task needs to be involved. Therefore choosing the right marketing communication agency, creative execution and media planning, the campaign development and implementation, planning of the campaigns needs to be included (Caemmerer, 2009). E-Communication has been quite popular in the recent days. It is because of the various advantages that it provides to the companies. It has made the work easier and simpler. The internet has been a system that connects various networks that spans throughout the globe and which allows users with the proper hardware and software in order to communicate and to share the information with each other. In the recent years the penetration and reach of the e-communication has exploded. Use of wireless telecommunication and use of emails have allowed marketers to market their products enabling them to cut the transaction cost involved. There are various disadvantages of the electronic communication like security. The information can be hacked and it can be affected by viruses. As most of the people are not able to access the internet because of lack of knowledge, the marketers will not be able to target that group of consumers. Moreover the consumers don’t rely on online buying as they feel that there is less privacy over the internet. Despite these seeming difficulties advantages of electronic communication is multifold. Marketers at present are starting to heavily rely on e-communication as a successful integrated marketing communication medium. References Caemmerer, B. (2009) "The Planning And Implementation of Integrated Marketing Communications", Marketing Intelligence & Planning, Vol. 27, Iss. 4, pp.524 – 538 Clarke, A. C., 2010. What Hasn’t Happened Yet: The Shape Of Digital To Come? Agenda Papers. [Online] Available at: http://www.cim.co.uk/filestore/resources/agendapapers/stadigital.pdf [Accessed October 25, 2010]. Gurau, C., 2008. Integrated Online Marketing Communication: Implementation And Management. Journal of Communication Management. [Online] Available at: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?articleid=1723335&show=html [Accessed October 25, 2010]. Kitchen, P. J. & Et. Al., 2004. Integrated Marketing Communications: A Primer. Routledge. KnowledgeWay, 2000. Why Use Electronic Communications? Living. [Online] Available at: http://knowledgeway.org/living/communications/homepage.html [Accessed October 25, 2010]. Mulhern, F (2009)"Integrated Marketing Communications: From Media Channels To Digital Connectivity" Journal of Marketing communications, Vol.15, Iss.2-3, pp 139-155. Suliman S. Olayan School of Business, 2010. Integrated Marketing Communication Strategy. The Need for Integrated Marketing Communication. [Online] Available at: http://sb.aub.edu.lb/courses/mktg210/kotler15_exs.PPT [Accessed October 25, 2010]. Luxton, S. & Et. Al., 2005. The Relationship between Integrated Marketing Communication, Market Orientation, and Brand Orientation. Journal of Advertising. [Online] Available at: http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article-1G1-141294803/relationship-between-integrated-marketing.html [Accessed October 25, 2010]. Simmons, G.J et al (2010). “Managing I-Branding to Create Brand Equity", European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 44 Iss: 9/10, pp.1260 – 1285 Simmons, G.J (2007). “I-Branding”: Developing the Internet as a Branding Tool", Marketing Intelligence & Planning, Vol. 25, Iss: 6, pp.544 – 562 The University Of West Indies, 2010. Assignment 1 – Case Study: Amazon.com. COMP 6005 An Introduction to E-Commerce – Assignment 1. [Online] Available at: http://www.cavehill.uwi.edu/staff/eportfolios/paulwalcott/msc/notes/COMP6125/assignments/COMP6125%20An%20Introduction%20to%20Electronic%20Commerce%20-%20Assignment%201.pdf [Accessed October 25, 2010]. Bibliography Baker, M. J. & Hart, S., 2007. The Marketing Book. Butterworth-Heinemann. Fill, C., 2009. Marketing Communications: Interactivity, Communities and Content. Financial Times Prentice Hall. Rowley, J. (2009) "Understanding Digital Content Marketing", Journal of marketing Communications, Vol.15, Iss.2-3, pp 139-155 Read More