An Overview of Integrated

Marketing Communications

Dr. George Belch

San Diego State University
Communication-Based Marketing Model

Other Stakeholders
Corporate Level Message Sources Employees
Administration Manufacturing/ Marketing Finance Human Investors
Legal Financial Community
Operations Resources Government
Cross-Functional Brand Equity (IM) Regulators
Team

Marketing Level Message Sources Distributors

Interactivity Customers Suppliers
Product Price Marketing Distribution Competition
Mix Mix Communication Mix
Consumers
Cross-Functional IMC Team Local Community
Media
Marketing Communication Level Message Sources Interest Groups
Personal Adver- Sales Direct Public Pack- Events
Sales tising Promotion Marketing Relations aging
 Communication Levels
 Corporate Level
 Messages sent by a company’s overall business
practices and philosophies such as its mission, labor
practices, philanthropies, culture and other processes
 Marketing Level
 Messages sent or inferred from various aspects of a
company’s marketing mix such as product quality and
performance, design, appearance, pricing, and
distribution
 Marketing Communication Level
 Strategic and executional consistency among all
forms of marketing communication
 Nike
Corporate Level
(Social Responsibility)

Marketing Level
(Products, Price, Store
Atmosphere)

Marketing
Communications
(Advertising, Publicity/
Public Relations, Web Site)
What is Integrated Marketing
Communications (IMC)?

IMC is a strategic business process used to:

 plan, develop, execute and evaluate coordinated,
measurable, persuasive brand communication
programs
 with consumers, customers, prospects employees
and other relevant external and internal
audiences
 goal is to generate short-term financial returns
and build long-term brand value
The Integrated Marketing Communications
Perspective

 The concept of integration:

 Combining or coordinating separate elements so as to provide a
harmonious integrated whole
 The logic of integration:
 Communications emanating from a single strategic platform will
be more effective than those that are independent and not
coordinated
 The reality of integration:
 Companies must consider how a variety of MARCOM tools can be
used to deliver messages about their company and/or brands
 Effective integration begins with discipline excellence:
 It requires individuals in various disciplines to think about how
they contribute to the overall process and outcome rather than
their own specific goals.
The Marketing Revolution

Shift from traditional media ads to other

forms of promotion/nontraditional media

Internet and social media changing how

companies interact with consumers

Power shift: manufacturers to retailers

Growth of Database marketing

Greater ad agency accountability

Greater Role of IMC in Brand Building

Skyy Spirits Uses a Variety of Touch
Points to Reach Consumers
IMC Communication Tools

Traditional
IMC Communication Tools

Direct Interactive/
Advertising Marketing Internet Marketing

Sales Publicity/Public Personal

Promotion Relations Selling
IMC–Audience Contact Points

Broadcast Print Media Public

Internet/
Media (Newspapers Relations/
Magazines) Publicity Interactive
(TV/Radio)

Out-of-home Direct
Media Marketing
Target
Audience
Personal Sales
Selling Promotion

Point-of- Word-of- Product

Purchase Events and
Mouth Placements
(Displays/
(Buzz) sponsorships (TV and Movies)
Packaging)
Assessing Touch/Contact Points
Companies/brands connect to customers through contacts

 Contact = each and every opportunity the consumer has

to see or hear about the company’s product/brand or
have an experience/encounter with it.

 Contacts are not neutral conveyors of messages as they

add or subtract value
 “Net promoter” value vs. “Detractor”

 Contacts are not all equal - some are more influential

than others, e.g. an in-store demonstration will have
more impact than a TV or print ad
Types of Touch Points

Intrinsic
Company-Created Messages received from
Planned Messages interactions that occur
• Advertising, web sites, during the process of
news releases, packages, purchase or use
brochures, store displays
• Instructions, manuals,
Company X web sites, packages,
retail sales personnel
Products/
Services
Unexpected
Customer-Initiated Unanticipated messages received
Interactions that occur when that are beyond the control of the
a customer or prospect contacts company
a company. • Word-of-mouth/buzz
• Help lines, web sited, e-mail • Messages from suppliers,
responses, CRM efforts government officials, channels,
retailers, analysts
Touch Points: Control vs. Impact

Unexpected

High
Customer Initiated

Relative
Intrinsic
Impact

Planned:
Company-Created

Low High
Ability to control/influence
Touchpoint Planning

 Determining the optimal mix of MARCOM tools or

channels to ensure that we deliver the right message,
the right way to the right customer, at the right time

 Taking a discipline agnostic perspective with no

preconceived roles for one MARCOM discipline over
another

 Zero-based communication planning. Focusing on the

objectives to be achieved, the tasks required to achieve
them, what MARCOM elements should be used and to
what extent
Levels of Integration

 Vertical integration – within a specific campaign to a

specific audience or market segments
 All IMC elements working synergistically
 Horizontal integration – across campaigns to a
specific audience or market segments
 Alignment across communications to a given
audience to maximize their cumulative impact
 Cross-audience integration – across multiple
campaigns and across audiences and market
segments
 Delivering a consistent value proposition, message and
image across all markets segments and globally
The Role of Integrated Marketing
Communications

IMC perspective can help address these

issues and ensure that we:
 determine the right way
 to deliver the right message
 to the right customer
 at the right time
General Mills Used an Integrated Campaign
to Introduce New Wheaties Fuel