Implementing Integrated Marketing Communications

Nike

Table of Contents

Introduction2

Integrated Marketing Communications2

Nike2

Nike- The Marketing Champion2

The Relationship between Brand Strategy and IMC3

Brand Strategy3

Brand Strategy and IMC3

Nike- Brand Strategy and IMC3

IMC Process and Implementation3

The IMC Planning Process Model by Don Schultz (and team)3

Growth of the IMC Process Model4

Implementation Issues4

Nike-Integrated Marketing Communications (“Write the Future” Campaign)4

IMC- A Business Process5

Organizing for IMC5

Tracking the effectiveness of IMC5

Communications Effectiveness5

Brand Building6

Business Impact6

Conclusion6

Implementing Integrated Marketing Communications

Introduction

Integrated Marketing Communications

According to Shimp (2008), Integrated Marketing Communications is a communication process that involves the planning, creation, integration and finally implementation of different communication tools. These tools can include advertisements, sales promotions, public relations etc. The main goal of IMC, as he also points out, is to deliver a consistent message to the brand's target audience using integration or coordination between all the marketing communication (marcom) tools used.

The adoption or start of integrated marketing communications strategies can be traced back to the late 1980's by practitioners. In the early 1990s, the concept grew and also gained academic interest. In the academic arena, it was Professor Don Schultz that led a team at Medill School of Journalism to work on it (Kitchen, 2004). According to Schultz et.al (1996), integrated marketing communications is about looking at different communication mediums as a whole rather than a part.

Nike

Nike is the brain child of Bill Bowerman and athlete Phil Knight. The company that started out as a US based footwear distributor in 1972 has today grown into one of the largest companies that deal with athletic footwear, apparel, and other equipment and accessories. Today the brands that come under Nike include, Cole Haam, Hurley International LLC, Nike Gold and Umbro Ltd. The mission statement that Nike works by is “to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world' (www.nikeinc.com).

Nike- The Marketing Champion

Nike is a brand that has used effective marketing since its inception (Young, 2010). Its 80's and 90's marketing activities were considered the best. Michael Jordan was the face of Nike and “Just do it” Nike's tagline. Advertising Age named the tagline amongst the top five slogans of the twenty first century. As trends evolved, Nike's marketing tactics also changed with time. In 2006 Nike made a 55% drop in traditional media budget as compared to the last ten years. Nike had now started to focus on internet marketing. Moreover, Nike realized that advertising would not be enough for people and so started to focus on creating experiences. An online community for runners was made in regard to this approach when Nike+ sensor was launched. A racing event was also launched panning 25 cities n the US. Later Nike sponsored a show on ESPN when its fourth line of sneakers, which were attached to football player LeBron James were launched. Nike also distributed DVDs of the making of the shoes along with the ad campaign. A neon billboard was also made showing LeBron in action. Here, it is seen that Nike starts to use integrated marketing for promoting its LeBron ...