Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC)

Introduction to Integrated Marketing Communication

It is important for organizations to promote their goods and services well among the end-users not only to beatcontenders but also survive in the long run, because the promotion creates and increases awareness of products and services among the consumers and eventually leadshigh sales growth, revenue and survival of the business.

To understand integrated marketing communication, let us first discussed about the promotion with the help of marketing mix:

Marketing Mix

Marketing mix is a set of tools which is used by the marketer to (for) satisfying the need and wants of the customers’. It mainly includes; Product; Price; Place and Promotion.

• Promotion: Promotion is an activity of marketing through which the marketer try to promote their goods and services among the prospective group of customers. The promotional mix of an organization includes various elements through which the products are promoted among the consumers.
  
  These elements include:
  • Advertisement
  • Sales promotion
  • Personal selling
  • Publicity
  • Public relation
  • Direct marketing

When the marketer collectively uses all the tools or elements of promotional mix to promote the goods and services is termed as integrated marketing communication. Introduction, Concept and Objectives of IMC

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Concept of Integrated Marketing Communication

Marketing communications is a management process through which an organization engages with its various audiences. Through understanding an audience’s communications environment, organizations seek to develop and present messages for their identified stakeholder groups, before evaluating and acting upon the responses.

By conveying messages that are of significant value, they encourage audiences encouraged to offer attitudinal and behavioral responses.

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Definition of Integrated Marketing Communication

What is IMC? In simple term, Integrated marketing communication can be defined as the integration of all the forms of communication and messages so that the marketing organization can create an impactful promotional impact on their target and prospective customer groups.

Targeted interaction with customers and prospects using one or more media, such as direct mail, newspapers and magazines, television, radio, billboards, telemarketing, and the Internet. A marketing communications campaign may use a single approach, but more frequently combines several.

In linking the all forms of communications an organization may go for;

• Horizontal Integration: the integration of the marketing mix with the functions of an organization.
  
  
• Vertical integration: whereby an organization integrates the communication objectives with the marketing objectives to support the corporate mission and objectives of the organization.
  
  
• Internal integration: it involves the internal staff of the organization, whereby they remains informed and motivated about the new development from new promotional efforts.
  
  
• External integrating: It involves the integration with all external promotional stakeholders such as advertising and personal relationship agencies in order to develop an effective promotional campaign for any product or services.

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Need of Communication in Marketing

What is IMC need in marketing? To answer this question first we need to understand the simplest marketing system, through which the answer will be depicted itself.

The above figure demonstrates that an organization or a firm collects necessary information about customer needs and wants as well as demand with the help of marketing research and others means, then they produces all such goods and services to sell them to the customers in the market place. This is the stage where the communication or marketing communication takes place a vital role.

Through which the marketer inform the customers about the available goods and services and try to create an image for their product and services through positive association with customer’s feelings with their products and services.

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Process of Marketing Communication

The process of marketing communication is an extension of the process of communication;

In general communication is a process of sharing idea, thoughts, message and suggestion by one person to another person, which involves following main elements :

• Idea/ Message: the idea or message is called the subject matter in the communication process because without the subject matter the process of communication cannot be initiated.
  
  
• Sender: the person who initiates the process of communication is called a sender. The sender usually send the message to the receiver.
  
  
• Encoding: is the process of converting the message into meaningful symbols is called encoding. Here the sender convert the message into words, picture, symbol or any other form, which could be easily understandable for the receiver. This element of communication is very much important for the both the sender and receiver.
  
  
• Medium: medium refers to the channels or methods through which the sender send or pass the message to the receiver.
  
  
• Decoding: the process of understanding the message from the side of receiver is called decoding.
  
  
• Receiver: the person who receive the message send by the sender is called receiver.
  
  
• Feedback: the response of the receiver on the message of sender is called feedback.

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Marketing Communication Mix

Generally, marketing communication mix is an integrated term that includes personal selling, direct response marketing, sales promotion, media advertisement, and public relations.

These are the tools associated with strategic activities to communicate with the target audience. The following table illustrates the common platforms of Marketing Communication mix:

Sales Promotion	Personal Selling	Advertisement	Public Relations
Programs	Sales meetings	Print media	Speech
Game, Contest, Lotteries, Coupons etc.	Sales Presentations	Electronic media, Motion pictures	Press Release, Seminars
Gifts, Sampling	Incentive programs	Brochures, Booklets, Magazines	Charitable donations, Lobbying
Exhibition, Trade shows, Offers	Exhibition, Trade shows, Offers	Billboards, Displays	Sponsorships
Low interest financing	Brochure, mailing, etc.	Logos, Symbols	Publications, Company magazine, etc.
Rebates	Digital shopping	Audio & Video materials	Community Relations
Entertainment	TV shopping	Point-of purchase display	Events