Download IMC - Samuel Bar

2015
MARKETING COMMUNICATION
« IMC is dead ! Long Live IMC »
SAMUEL BAR
ESC Rennes - School of Business
Course : MK513E
Teacher : Dr Anastasios Panopoulos
2015
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
• Introduction……………………………3
• Context and relevance of the IMC…..4
• About the article……………………..5-7
• Analysis, arguments………………8-11
• Conclusion……………….…………..12
• Appendix……………….…………….13
• References..………………………….14
• Credits……………………………….15
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INTRODUCTION
« IMC is an approach to achieving the objectives of a
marketing campaign through a well-coordinated use of
different promotional methods that are intended to reinforce
each other. » - 4A’s (1989)
Since it’s first definition designed by the American Association of Advertising
Agencies in 1989, the perception of IMC both by academics and practitioners (marketing
agencies) has strongly evolved in addition of the fact they don’t see IMC the same way. A
modernization of IMC concept appeared in 1998 by Schultz and Schultz which is : « IMC is a
strategic business process used to plan, develop, execute, and evaluate coordinated,
measurable, persuasive brand communication programs over time with consumers,
customers, prospects, and other relevant external and internal audiences » but is still lacking.
In order to define the role of IMC in today’s landscape, ten essays from the highest
profile practitioners were collected. The aim was to examine the development and evolution
of our understanding ︎of IMC practices. The result deducted are used to derive new
definitions, as Kliatchko (2008) one’s : « ︎ An audience-driven business process of
strategically managing stakeholders, content, channels and results of brand communication
programs. ».
Because of this evolution, and disagreements between academics and practitioners,
throughout this report, we will discuss of the evolution of Integrated Marketing
Communications. This report deals with the different levels of IMC, as promotional tools,
marketing mix, strategy versus tactics, internal marketing etc. We will expose for and against
arguments about the continuance of IMC, give examples of firms that succeed with and
conclude.
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CONTEXT AND
RELEVANCE OF IMC
« Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) is the
application of consistent brand messaging across both
traditional and non-traditional marketing channels and using
different promotional methods to reinforce each other. » (2014)
It is important to understand first, what the IMC is, why it exists and what its
purposes are. This is what we will try to explain and understand in this part.
The IMC, or Integrated Marketing Communications, answer to very important
problematics for every brands all over the world : the multiplication an diversity of
communications channels, the fragmentation of the targets, the development of new
informations and communication technologies, internet revolution and digital generations.
Indeed, people perception of brands have changed, the way to create the contact between
customers and companies have multiplied, new expertise appeared that conduct to an
explosion of communication partners (marketing agencies etc.).
The IMC is a new communication and marketing strategy that integrate in a coherent
and effective way the entire communication channels of a brand. It’s aim is to optimize the
return on investment of marketing and communication spendings, and therefore, increase
efficiency of communication strategies. The IMC is seen as a solution to business services,
which feeds the brand’s links to its public discourse by adopting appropriate to each of them.
It implies that Integrated Marketing Communication assumes a deep organizational change
for all companies interested in this model.
The IMC campaign is interested by the effectiveness of the communication message
provided by the brand, it requires to exactly understand the key segments that the brand
targets, to get an effective control of communication, but without neglecting other segments.
It requires to work minutely to identify the key elements of the market, of the consumers and
of the socio-cultural context. The principle of IMC is to define logic and process where some
experts use intuition and experiences that creates disagreements.
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ABOUT THE
ARTICLE
The aim of this part is to analyze the principles issues
that are addressed in the article.
It is important to differentiate the ways that academics and practitioners see IMC and
its implementation. That’s why we will begin by expose the perception of each group to
understand the different dissensions between them.
We can define the general points that compose IMC by the following points :
•
Use various ways of communication channels in order to deliver a message , target a
certain type of audience or get in touch with customers. It can be implemented by
multiplying contact points with customers (social media), use multiple touch points to
deliver a specific message. For example, Coca-cola offers to personalize with names
bottles and cans by using their website, and possibility to comment on twitter.
•
« Customer centric vision » that means to deeply understand customers, and take him at
the basis of marketing and communication strategy. In order to implement effective
marketing strategies, companies have to analyze and understand customers behavior by
conducting trends research for example or detail customers buying process, and be
culturally sensitive and respectful.
•
Coordinate all the available communication solutions. To make a coherent
communication strategy.
•
Involve all the department in the communication process, all the business process. It
can be implemented by using company own tools and frameworks that include customer
understanding or business scenario. Marketing and communications must be implemented
at all levels of organization (budget allocation).
Fill, in 2009, define the different points that take part to Integrated Marketing
Communications, as key influencers :
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About the article
•
Promotional tools
•
Marketing Mix
•
Strategy
•
Creative Integration
•
Brand
•
External/Internal staff
•
Relationships
We can notice that every parts/departments of a company are gathered to take part of
the IMC, that require and high level of synergy in the company. In addition, academics
Duncan and Moriarity defined 3 main levels of communication based model :
•
Communication mix ( Sales, events, rising…). It englobe the multiple
communications channels to deliver marketing messages
•
Marketing mix (Product, Place, Price, Promotion…). Put the customers at
the center of concerns to implement marketing strategies.
•
Corporate level (HRM, finance, Administration…). Use internal tools to
analyze consumer behavior, as supermarkets.
These 3 levels let determine which stakeholders are implied, and their involvement in
each. (See the graph 2 in appendix p.13). It reveals the importance of integration in marketing
communication.
We can resume by saying that academics highlight the importance of coordination and
synergy between all the departments of a company (strategic), and the importance to think
« customer centric » with a high level of interactivity among the company and the customers.
The article is very interesting in the way the study was led to practitioners, which are
independent communications agency that work for big companies. As the communications
agencies are an important part of the IMC process, their opinions about the IMC issues are
substantial. The study led by Kitchen in 2004 to UK reveals that 80 % of the communications
agencies had worked on IMC campaign. It means that in spite of dissensions about IMC, it is
already a reality nowadays.
To synthesize the divergences that oppose practitioners to academics on certain
points, the following lists traduce the main opinions of each group.
Practitioner’s look on IMC implementation within companies :
•
Tactical coordination
•
Define the scope of communications
•
Develop effective internal tools
•
Strategic and financial integration
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About the article
While academics see it more as :
•
IMC is strategic rather than tactical because of the coordination need of all business
process.
•
IMC is consumer/customer centric
•
IMC is implemented by strategical use and invests. (Relevant contact points etc.).
•
IMC involve effective measuring tools to track effective programs that contribute to
business success.
The fact is that already 50 % of respondents agencies spend at less the half of their
time working on IMC strategies for their clients. The study reveals that IMC perceived by
practitioners is more tactical than strategic, which means that companies have to integrate
themselves and then give tasks to external communications agency. But, in fact, this
perception of IMC from 2004 by practitioners has already changed, indeed, today
practitioners perceive integration a bit more as an essential tool to build a strong brand image,
and only the half of the respondents agencies consider IMC as strategic tool when academics
fully define it a the most important point in IMC process.
The following points describes the main issues that IMC deals with, it will help us to
argue for and against the continuance of IMC in the next part.
•
Why IMC is such important nowadays ?
•
Which are the problems that IMC imply ?
•
What are the advantages and conveniences implied by an IMC approach ?
•
Is IMC strategy allows local market strategies or only global ?
•
Why IMC is desirable today ?
•
How IMC perception has evolved ?
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ANALYSIS,
ARGUMENTS
In this part we will discuss about the issue that we found in
the previous part, and draw conclusions.
We saw before that IMC creates number of questions that it is important to answer. In
order to argue for or against the continuance of Integrated Marketing Communication, we
will begin by expose the advantages and conveniences that IMC brings.
ADVANTAGES
IMC answers to growing concern problematics, as the increase number of media
channels. The need to get a fully integrated communication branding is increasingly
necessary, as media synergy. For example, it was proved that people watch less and less
television in developed countries and that customers are now rather turned to internet and
specially social medias (twitter, Facebook…). The problem is that internet communication
channels require experience and caution (to avoid scandals, ex: Coca-cola ) that are different
from conventional media channels. One of the most important concept that IMC brings is the
customer centric vision, it encourages company to accept the customer control. Social media
now allow customers to directly communicate with companies about the products, services
and brand, and this communication channels require a global coherent information,
advertising, and communication campaigns from companies.
As we saw in the « context and relevance » part, IMC establishment require deep
organizational changes within companies. Indeed, in the article we saw that IMC was
considered as the expertise domain of external communication agencies and functional
managers, but, because of global approach that IMC requires, it appears that functional
managers have not even the authority to take these global decisions. That’s why implement
an IMC strategy is not the job of CA ( Communications Agencies) or middle managers
anymore, but the job of the board of directors and senior managers.
The needs to companies orientate to fully integrated strategies can be motivate by the
competitive advantage that it can brings. It appears that IMC strategies are seen as valuable
marketing strategies for communication agencies and for clients perception.
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Analysis, Arguments
A very interesting study of Einwiller and Boenigk (2011) tried to link IMC strategies
to business performance in order to avoid skepticism and deals with the real effectiveness of
implementing IMC strategies.
Another valuable point that we can attribute to a fully integrated marketing
communication, is the management of public relationships, that includes :
•
Corporate identity : including relations with society (logo, brand…)
•
CSR activities : by effectively communicating and informing about the
efforts that the company makes to be ethic.
•
Sponsorship : by associating the brand image to famous events or
sports team.
•
Crisis communication : by resolving efficiently potential crisis, and
limiting negatives fallouts on the brand image.
IMC allows to manage these points in coherent way, and therefor help to build a strong brand
image. A very important point that companies should not forget to prosper.
To resume the advantages, IMC model is desirable because old conventional
intruding advertising method are today obsolete and are a waste of time and money, mainly
because world-of-mouth is uncontrollable : customers have todays the opportunity to easily
criticize companies messages that they judge irrelevant, boring or they just don’t like and find
easily many other customers who feel the same way. IMC appears as a way to survive in this
kind of world.
CONVENIENCES
The most important disagreement about IMC controversies is that IMC encourages a
« customer first » rather a « tool first » vision of marketing communication. Because of this
radically different approach of marketing, a natural resistance appeared among managers. The
reason is that this vision make obsolete many established marketing concepts. In addition,
Another point of disagreement is that IMC advocates for a complete corporate strategy and
highlight the importance of coordination among the different department in a company, that
decrease the power of decision of middle managers in general. It means that not only
marketing objectives must be considered, but entire business objectives, and therefor
requires to manage the different stakeholders, which are not only customers but also internal
staff.
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Analysis, Arguments
It appears that IMC synergy model doesn’t bring only answers to current communication
issues that companies face to, but also problematics, specially about global / local
communication strategies. A global company that is used to call local communication
agencies or consultants in order to adapt to each local consumer market will maybe have
difficulties to put in place a fully integrated communication model. The solution should be to
have an IMC synergy on each local market, but can we still call it IMC ? For example,
thanks many studies in Asian countries, it appears that Tv advertising is still dominant
(mainly because of lack of internet access) , the opposite of most of developed countries
where social media are dominant, so how to adapt a global communication strategy when
customers are completely different depending the market ?
Other barriers that IMC provokes, resistance to changes (as we saw with the decrease
of middle managers power of decision on strategies), or inadequate financial allocations,
measurement tools, or lack of motivation. Similarly, digital world adaptation is regularly
rejected by traditional businesses that prefer to use communication channels that they already
know as televisions. In addition, the lack of employees trained to IMC concepts, and the
superiority numbers of employees (even marketers) used to traditional channels make that
transition is slow.
Conclusion of the part
As we’ve seen, IMC strategy doesn’t bring only advantages but also disadvantages.
Taking into account this points, it is very interesting to look at companies that already use
IMC :
•
GoPro. The brand use a fully integrated marketing communication and make only
one type of product which is board camera resistant to extreme conditions. Its
famous slogan « Be a hero » is knowing all over the world and target perfectly its
audience. In addition, GoPro’s coherent public relations management provided by
social media channels, sponsorship of extreme sports, allows it to build a very
strong brand image and be regularly present on the top ten of companies most
appreciated.
•
RedBull. Who don’t know its famous slogan « give you wings » ? As GoPro, an
effective management of public relations by web, social networks, TV, and
sponsorship. The most famous one was Baumgartner jump from the stratosphere,
which was maybe the most powerful marketing operation to date. We can also
commend the way Red bull managed the numerous scandals that hit it. RedBull
succeeded to transform its product as a media part.
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Analysis, Arguments
•
Apple. Last example of successful of IMC strategy implementation is Apple. its
integrated communications touch every parts of the business process, from the
CEO interviews to television ads, everything is carefully thought out. The apple
store and the ads are the same all over the world, no local adaptation, but local
consumers adapt to Apple, that is a wonderful success for any brands.
In spite of disadvantages that we observe before, IMC has undeniable advantages that
swept all the potential conveniences that it can bring. The different examples of successful
IMC implementation companies, which are the best in their area in term of communication,
blaze the trail for any other companies that want to become effective in their communication
strategies. Even in theses examples, we saw that theses 3 companies (GoPro, RedBull and
Apple) are using IMC at a strategic level that imply all the department of the firm. It reflect
that IMC is quite more strategic as think academics than tactical. The vision about « strategic
or tactical » has already evolved from 2004 (Kitchen et al) when majority of advertising
practitioners considered IMC as tactical, today only half still think it. We observe therefor
that dissensions between academics and practitioners reduce, but still work is required to
reach a unanimous point of view about the issue, that will better help companies interested by
IMC.
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CONCLUSION
To conclude, dissensions between practitioners and academics are mainly a problem
of comprehension and vocabulary. We saw that already 80 % of communication agencies has
already worked on IMC strategies for their clients. Certainly, the vision of IMC has changed
since 2004, the fact that only the half of communication agencies doesn’t recognize the role
of IMC at a strategic level doesn’t help the development of IMC in companies. However,
multiples examples of companies that succeeded by implementing fully integrated marketing
communications are a good hope to see attitudes change in the coming years. The willingness
to implement IMC strategies must come from clients (not CAs), boards of directors have to
understand the full business process dimension of IMC and stop only thinking it is the job of
marketing department, senior managers have also to take their responsibilities to raise the
level of discussion about IMC at a much higher level in organization of companies. Kliatchko
(2008) even recommend to experiment IMC first in asian countries because of the low cost of
failure in these countries, a precious advice for neophyte companies.
Finally, we can conclude by saying that IMC is the future of marketing and
communications effectives campaigns, provided to really understand what is it, to avoid
pitfalls (cf Coca-Cola) and succeed. This is also the job of communications agencies to help
their clients in this way, and the job of academics to blaze the trail.
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APPENDIX
1. Analysis of IMC essays
2. Communication based model from Duncan and Moriarity
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REFERENCES
︎
•
︎Kliatchko, J.(2008). Revisiting the IMC construct : a revised definition and four pillars.
International journal of adverstising.
•
Twenty Years of IMC | Jerry Kliatchko - Academia.edu. 2015. Twenty Years of IMC |
Jerry Kliatchko - Academia.edu. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.academia.edu/
7295960/Twenty_Years_of_IMC. [Accessed 18 March 2015].
•
Moriarity, S.E.(1994). PR and IMC : The Benefits of Integration. Public Relations
Quarterly, Fall, 1994, 38-44.
•
Duncan, T. & Moriarity, S. E. (1998). A Communication-Based Marketing Model for
Managing Relationships. Journal of Marketing, 62 (2), 1 - 13
•
Fill C. (2009) Marketing Communications: Interactivity, Communities and Content. 5"‘
Edition, Financial Times/Prentice Hall.
•
Holm, O. (2006). Integrated marketing communication: from tactics to strategy.
Corporate
•
Communications.‘ An International Journal. 1 1 (1) 23 — 33.
•
Kitchen, P. J. & Schultz, D. E. (2000). A response to ‘Theoretical concept or management
•
Fashion’. Journal ofAdvertising Research, 40 (5), 17 - 21
•
Kitchen, P. J ., Kim, I. & Schultz, D. E. (2008). Integrated Marketing Communications:
Practice Leads
•
Theory. Journal of Advertising Research, 48(4), 531 — 546.
•
Kitchen, P. J ., Schultz, D. E., Kim, 1., Han, D, & Li. T. (2004). Will agencies ever
“get” (or understand)
•
IMC? European Journal of Marketing, 38(11/12), 1417 — 1436.
•
Kliatchko, J. (2008). Revisiting the IMC construct: a revised definition and four pillars.
International Journal of Advertising, 27 (1), 113 — 160.
•
Schultz, D. E. & Kitchen, P. J. (1997) Integrated Marketing communications in US
Advertising Agencies: an exploratory study. Journal of Advertising research, 37(5), 7 - 17.
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CREDITS
Work realized by Samuel BAR at ESC - School of business in Rennes in Marketing of
Communication (3rd year) course taught by Dr Anastasios Panopoulos.
Subject : « IMC is dead, ! Long live IMC », based on these comments, critically argue for or
against the continuance of IMC.
Word limit : 4000 words.
Samuel Bar - I wish to thanks our teacher Dr Panopoulos for his courses.
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