Integrated Marketing Communication

This article discusses the integrated marketing communication process and strategies for effective brand-consumer relationships. It covers traditional and digital media, social media, public relations, publicity, and promotional items. The article emphasizes the importance of consistency in messaging across all communication channels. Course code and college/university not mentioned.

Integrated Marketing Communication
IMC is an extensive arrangement that evaluates the vital parts an assortment of
disciplines in publicizing could play. These disciplines include media planning content
advertising. To this end, IMC tries to join these orders to give consistency, clearness, and the
potential for most extreme communication effect. IMC is entrusted with the methodology of
developing a pleasant experience for the client, over a scenery of various parts of a promoting
mix (Kitchen and Inga, 2010). Every medium works as one as opposed to detachment for a
definitive objective of strengthening the organization's message and brand image.
The IMC process begins with an integrated marketing communication plan that
incorporates the different types of advertising, marketing, and sales tools that will be executed in
a particular campaign. Traditional marketing channels such as print media and billboards may be
used to inform and persuade consumers, but IMC primarily consists of a media mix such as
search engine optimization (SEO) techniques, blogs, and banner advertisements. Fundamental to
the success of IMC, the marketers must choose an effective combination of digital and traditional
communications for their intended audience with the goal of fostering brand-consumer
relationships (Kitchen and Inga, 2010). However, regardless of the promotional or media mix,
IMC is ineffective if the marketers are not keen to ensure that the messaging remains consistent
across all the communication channels.
While there may be an absence of a perfect strategy for formulating the best-integrated
marketing campaign, there are certain vital steps that a company and marketers can take to
maximize brand-consumer relationships. For starters, one must have a clear understanding of the
product or service's intended demographic. It is crucial for the organization to identify the target
audience through demographic and psychographic analysis of their markets, which will help

them tailor their messages to their consumer's values, needs, and wants. Further, it helps the
marketers to use the most appropriate media channel to meet the customer and maximize
viewership. The IMC strategies that will be used by Exflowerience are discussed below.
a. Traditional Media
This includes marketing instruments, for instance, paid print ads, advertisements, and news
publications. This approach centers on a restricted sales momentum and relies on accomplishing
high numbers of people to guarantee achievement. Advertising is an expensive marketing tool
but conventional media channels remain the most convenient source of data. These methods have
been used for many of years because they work. Marketers have found an even better way to get
product ads out to the public eye and that is through social media such as Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram, etc. Many internet users can use a search engine to search for an event and become
sidetracked because of all of the ads that are placed in the vicinity (Weigold and Arens, 2018).
The event marketers will use YouTube video ad. The ad will be about two minutes long. It will
show some of the activities that will be conducted in the event. By the ad is more than the
traditional thirty seconds they will make the viewer interested in the activities by seeing how
people are having fun and enjoying the event.
Advertisement through publications i.e. newspapers will be ideal and a first choice because
they have enough space for demonstrating the capabilities of the product. Most avid readers are
frequent users of newspapers. Therefore, the advertisement should be able to reach them if it is
placed on newspapers. In addition, newspapers target various cities; this makes them the most
appropriate way of reaching the target audience. Newspapers will, in addition, be used in making
the advertisement, because newspapers contain pictures and they provide visual communication.
Magazines will be used sparingly as compared to newspapers because they provide a less

advertisement space for presenting the kindle. The internet is the second perfect media type after
publications through newspapers that can be used for presenting the kindle to consumers. The
rapidly growing marketing power of the internet borrows substantially from the case of press
advertising, although the most efficient use on the internet as advertising media, adopted through
search engines, is interactivity. It has an unlimited space for displaying the product, as well as
video interactions. Although most internet users might not prefer switching to electronic readers
because they are already accustomed to using online services, the internet is the key platform for
the device.
b. Digital Media
Programming innovation using computers can reach potential customers with dedicated,
quantifiable communication. Specific digital media marketing tools include enhancement of the
design of the site, mobile marketing, instinctive online ads, direct email and digital
advertisements, for example, secondary marketing and sponsorships. A key part of innovative
marketing tools is Web exploration, which gives information on an Internet customer's online
activities, IP address, and inquiry keywords (Weigold and Arens, 2018). To take part in digital
marketing, organizations can employ digital media advertising agencies or use programming as a
service application.
The digital media marketing that the event marketers will use is video and online networking
marketing that will incorporate Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Every year new mechanical
advances make new client inclinations that manage far-reaching developments that either get
embraced or overlooked in organizations (Forbes, 2015). In any case, early adopters can get a
decisive advantage over the opposition in new markets or bond their notorieties for being
industry pioneers, while those falling behind pass up a major opportunity for a key open door for

positions (Forbes, 2015). Along these lines, a video is the most up to date wave to ride. Video
promotions are accepted to be the next ruling source in advertising (Forbes, 2015). Video
promotions for Facebook are as of now a publicizing alternative, which, is an indication that
clients are ending up all the more tolerating of video advertisements online whose trending
continues (Forbes, 2015). Given that the event will be a unique activity with so much fun, it is
likely to trend faster which is why Facebook is our fundamental alternative to use in digital
media marketing. What's more, on the grounds that Facebook enables recordings to auto-play in
the news make it a financially savvy approach to push video out to particular groups of onlookers
and network precisely how often it has been seen, which would enable our group to gauge our
advertising viability.
The event marketers will additionally use Twitter alongside Facebook on the grounds that the
event targets rich people who often use Twitter for communication and news gathering. The
event marketers will also use recommend LinkedIn on the grounds that for the B2B factor
LinkedIn is broadly utilized in making business-to-business connections (Social Media
Examiner, 2016). In this manner, the event management team exhibited these avenues to help in
capturing the attention of the rich targeted clients. These targeted clients additionally put high
consideration on customer service and support. Therefore, the digital media advancements ought
to advance the brand with most astounding quality at the middle with an individual touch to
make social connections that impart simple client-centered help and availability that fits the
branding division's general plan to be a staple quality brand that addresses the issues of their
objective client populaces. Also, with Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter being in the best web-
based digital media marketing sites they are an extraordinary place to begin and build our groups
online presence.

c. Social Media
Social Media marketing is a division of digital advertising. Therefore, the objective of web-
based social networking marketing tools is to develop an intuitive, online association with the
client as opposed to digging secretly for client data. Particular cases of web-based social
networking marketing tools incorporate blogging, tweeting, posting, sharing, organizing,
sticking, bookmarking, media sharing and remarking via web-based networking media sites, for
example, Twitter, Facebook, Orkut, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Reddit, and YouTube.
With social media being a crucial component of basically all advertising—especially retail,
there's a lot of rivalry among brands over every single social medium stages. Through this online
networking showcasing effort, Exflowerience looks to emerge among contenders and advance
substance that will build perceivability and client commitment by using the social media
networking stages with the most elevated convergence of the organization's target group (Barker
et al., 2013). As mentioned earlier, Exflowerience target group is top of the line customers and in
light of the fact that social media business is Exflowerience's quickest developing channel, the
event has likewise begun to oblige Millennials by investing hugely in social media channels. To
engage with groups of people in creative and beneficial ways while following and dealing with
our endeavors; our web-based social networking promoting effort will recognize Twitter,
Facebook, Instagram, and blogging as fundamental devices in realizing Exflowerience's social
media advertising endeavors.
Specific tools will incorporate expanding Exflowerience's remarks and client benefit
exercises on Twitter. It will publicize advancements and prior events of the company on
Facebook. It will further energize and increase client created substance and commitment on
Instagram. Finally, it will utilize the greater part of the previously mentioned online networking

stages to drive clients to the Exflowerience blog where posts will boost the capacity to share
extended substance, content, video, sound, pictures, labels, and links(Barker et al.,2013).The
blog will help the systems and endeavors of this social media marketing effort. Exflowerience
online networking stages will mirror the brand's qualities, center around share-commendable
substance, offer exclusive pricing and arrangements, convey data that our target group values,
begin discussions and take an interest in discussions, and track continuous interests in posts
related to Exflowerience.
d. Public Relations and Publicity
When building up a technique to present a public relations campaign organizations must
distinguish clear objectives and targets for the organization. A well-planned system will decide
the accomplishment of the crusade. Exflowerience needs to set a motivation to construct public
relations. The organization needs to have a reasonable arrangement of what focuses will be
tended to. The data introduced ought to dependably be controlled by the officials of the
organization instead of inquisitive buyers or questioners. Publicity is a term that alludes to the
distribution of news around an association or individual for which time or space was not bought
(Lattimore et al., 2007). The best avenue for Exflowerience is to utilize controlled media sources
with arranged attention, which implies it does not happen by accident.
The organization is a piece of the environmental business and one strategy to produce
publicity is to make a press unit. The press unit incorporates an accumulation of publicity
releases, fact sheets, handouts, photos, or other data pieces encased in a cover or other packaging
device. The fact sheets record the past events organized by the organization. The pamphlets
incorporate formulas and fun actualities about the origins of the flowers. Exflowerience can
make the buyer mindful of the organization's quality while teaching the advantages of preserving

flowers and the different techniques that the people can use to preserve the flowers. A procedure
must be created to acquaint the item with the target group. The traditions and tastes of the target
group must be the main consideration in the advancement of this technique. The organization
will create questionnaires that will uncover the preferences of the target group. The organization
will make certain to leave interviewees with extraordinary examples and positive data about the
items and association. It will ensure the client trusts that he or she is okay with the event. Audit
of the acquired data will be conducted and follow-ups too that will help in making a positive
relationship with the potential client.
Exflowerience will support a few youth sports groups. Supporting a local youth group of
any game will give Exflowerience a fair say at occasions, in projects, and uniform donations.
Exflowerience has a chance to set up a stall or table at team games or group days to raise funds
for the adolescent projects. Exflowerience should figure out which communication outlets can be
their most important in contacting their targeted group of people. Printing promotions in local
daily papers will allow Exflowerience to communicate their event to new and existing clients.
Utilizing the organization's website can be another tool to contact their clients. Broadcasting with
neighborhood radio stations can be another tool for Exflowerience. These diverse
communication outlets can help the organization to figure out what sort of characterized group
they are drawing in. The list of companies sponsoring events grows with each passing year, and
the events include a wide variety of activities. Of these various activities, sports attract the most
sponsorship dollars. Sponsorship can help in building brand familiarity; it can stimulate brand
loyalty by linking a brand with influential emotional experiences, and in most cases it allows a
marketer to reach a precise target group. Events can also enable face-to-face interactions with
key customers and present prospects to carry out customer surveys.

An open house is a fundamental public relations instrument for Exflowerience. The
organization is entering a new area where the clients are ignorant of the item or administration
that are advertised. The open house will welcome clients and the group to admire the beauty of
preserving flowers. Once the target group comprehends the advantages and beauty of flowers,
they are likely to attend the event. Product placements have surged in popularity over the past
decade and there are many reasons to believe that advertisers will continue to commit more
resources to this activity. According to Larson (2014), like any other advertising tactic, product
placements offer the most value when they are connected to other elements of the advertising
plan. One common use of the placement is to help create excitement for the launch of a new
product. Implicit celebrity endorsements and authenticity are the key issues to consider when
judging placement opportunities. High-quality placements are most likely to result from great
collaboration among marketers, agents, producers, and writers. As always, the best team wins.
e. Promotional Items
Promotional items, for example, pamphlets, business cards, press kits, sites, educational
recordings and stock, are substantial advertising tools. A portion of these things incorporates a
lot of detailed data and feature characteristics of the item or services (Larson, 2014). Business
cards and public exhibition giveaways may show only an organization logo and give contact
data. In addition to expanding sales, special things add to building brand mindfulness, but the
cost is a factor while choosing these things. Promotional items will incorporate bring home
items, for example, fabric bags, flower vases and flower seedlings. Promotional products affect a
brands image as they help in increasing the brands recognition. They act as a brands source of
awareness. Promotional products designed for after purchase giveaways also help increase brand
sales. After purchase, promotional gifts help persuade potential customers into purchasing a

product so as to receive the free promotional giveaway. Customer loyalty can also be gained
through promotional products as customers always keep the gift and value it where it helps
persuade the buyer into sticking to buying more of the specific brand which rewarded him/ her
for a purchase made. The choice of promotional products will be driven by some factors like the
season for umbrellas, the period of the year for products like calendars, the use to the recipient,
relevance to the brand being marketed and if the promotional product communicates well brands
the promotional message.

References
Barker, M., Barker, D., Bormann, N., and Neher, K. (2013). Social Media Marketing: A
Strategic Approach. Mason, Oh. Cengage Custom Publishing.
Forbes (2015). The top 7 online marketing trends that will dominate 2016. Retrieved from
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2015/09/29/the-top-7-online-marketing-
trends-that-will-dominate-2016/#732d52b24c04.
Kitchen, Philip J., and Inga Burgmann. (2010). Integrated marketing communication. John
Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Larson, R. (2014). The power of promotional products for brand recognition. Brandwatch.
Retrieved from https://www.brandwatch.com/blog/promotional-products-brand-
recognition/
Lattimore, Dan. Baskin, Otis. Heiman, Suzette T., Toth, Elizabeth L. (2007). Public Relations.
The Profession and the Practice, Second Edition. Chapter 9. c.
Social Media Examiner. (2016). How B2B marketers use social media: New research. Retrieved
from http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/b2b-social-media-marketing-research/
Weigold, M. F. & Arens, W. F. (2018). M: Advertising (3rd ed).