Integrated Marketing Communications Individual

Integrated Marketing Communications Individual



Integrated Marketing Communications

Table of Content

Table of Content1

Introduction2

Discussion2

The origins of communications6

New drivers of integration7

Power of the consumer8

Explosion of media10

Design products with talking points and consumers' desired self images in mind14

Dialogues with audiences16

Conclusion18

References20

Integrated Marketing Communications

Introduction

Over the years, the traditional face of marketing has changed. Whilst organizations recognize that they can no longer take their customers' loyalty for granted, and need to adopt ongoing marketing strategies to stay ahead of their competitors, the design and content of there strategies continue to evolve.Research shows that 20 years ago, 75 percent of marketing budgets in the USA were injected into mass advertising campaigns. Today, 50 percent goes into trade promotions, 25 percent into consumer promotions and less than 25 percent into advertising (Kitchen, 2003).

Discussion

Clearly, not all writings on integrated communications approach the field with such totalizing formulations. Taking our point of departure in now classical definitions, however, it is obvious that the field's primary concern is wholeness and unity in communications. The ideal of integrated communication, thus, implies urging organizations to manage the many sources of information about a product or service to which a customer or prospect is exposed (Schultz et al., 1994), to work toward a strategic coordination of all corporate messages relevant for the maintenance of the brand (Keegan et al., 1992) and to control all messages that are relevant in establishing profitable and long-term relationships with customers and other stakeholders. Integrated communications, in other words, proceeds from the imperative “Know thy organization and produce a general overview of all its communications!”

Such advice makes a lot of sense from a managerial perspective. As we are told, integrated communications helps organizations break through the clutter in a world saturated with commercial symbols and messages. Moreover, it allows them to bolster their branding efforts and build a reputation of distinction and trustworthiness. Simultaneously, integration makes it is easier to brief the communication agency, to make sure that media budgets are spent more efficiently, to obtain a higher degree of precision in campaigns, and, consequently, to assure that economic resources are employed optimally.

Conversely, it is argued, non-integrated or disintegrated communications send disjointed messages that weaken impact and confuse, frustrate or irritate the organization's audiences. At the same time, the question of how integrated communications is to be realized in practice remains one of the most salient and pressing issues of contemporary communication management.

The impact of new technology

A key factor in the changing marketing landscape is the emergence of IT. As IT continues to develop, consumer demands and priorities change. The emergence of the Internet, and a wide variety of on-line tools, has vastly increased the extensive portfolio of marketing and communication tools available for organizations to reach their target audiences. A key change that new IT and the growth of the Internet has brought is that many companies have moved away from quality, features and services as key competitive differentiators, and are now driven by price. The impact that new technology has had on marketing is ...