Communication is always one of the most important and vital strategic areas for the success of an organization. You may have the best or most innovative products or services, but if your internal and external communications are weak, then the demand for your products or services generates a personal flag of concern. When communicating the value of your products or services, you need to focus on how they will benefit your customers.
When planning your integrated marketing communication strategy or IMC, you want to have a dialogue with your customers inviting interaction through the coordinated efforts of content, time and delivery of your products or services. By ensuring the direction, clarity, consistency, timeliness and appearance of your messages, conveyed to your target audience, these factors will help avoid any confusion about the benefits of your brand, through the connection of instant product recognition.
When looking at your marketing mix, you’re looking at pricing, distribution, advertising, and promotion, along with customer service. Integrated marketing communication is part of that marketing mix included in your marketing plan. IMC strategies define your target audience, establish objectives and budgets, analyze any social, competitive, cultural or technological issues, and conduct research to evaluate the effectiveness of your promotional strategies.
If companies plan, communicate and follow industry guidelines in an ethical manner, they will most likely earn the trust of their customers and target audience. There are five basic integrated marketing communication tools:
1. Advertising:
This tool can deliver your messages to large audiences efficiently through channels such as radio, television, magazines, newspapers (ROP), the Internet, billboards and other mobile technology communication devices. This method can effectively reach a large number of consumers, although the costs can be somewhat high.
2. Sales promotion:
This tool is used through coupons, contests, samples, prizes, demonstrations, exhibitions or incentives. It is used to accelerate short-term sales, creating brand awareness and encouraging repeat purchases.
3. Public relations:
This integrated marketing communications tool is initiated through public appearances, press releases or news or event sponsorships, to build trust and goodwill by presenting the product, company or person in a positive light.
4. Direct marketing:
This tool will use email, postal mail, catalogs, encourage direct responses to radio and television, in order to reach specific audiences to increase sales and test new products and alternative marketing tactics.
5. Personal sale:
Establish appointments and sales meetings, house parties, make presentations and any type of one-to-one communication, to reach your customers and strengthen your relationship with your customers, start this IMC tool.
Decisions that link overall goals and strategies during the marketing planning phases help evaluate and fine-tune the specific activities of integrated marketing communication. Before selecting an IMC tool, marketing, product, and brand managers should consider social, competitive, legal, regulatory, ethical, cultural, and technological considerations. One thing to avoid when activating integrated marketing communication tools is reaching inappropriate audiences and generating controversy. That could be detrimental when trying to build brand awareness and encourage consumer spending on your business. When marketing managers examine the beliefs, emotions, and behavior of their target audience towards their brand, they can influence their beliefs to achieve product awareness, drawing attention to their promotional campaigns.