Essay on Integrated Marketing Communication for Coles and Woolworths

This essay provides a comprehensive overview of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC), defining its core principles and significance in modern marketing. It explores how IMC integrates various marketing tools like advertising, public relations, and digital marketing to promote a brand effectively. The essay uses Coles Supermarkets and Woolworths Supermarkets as case studies to illustrate the practical application of IMC strategies. It examines how these Australian organizations leverage IMC to reach their target consumers, discussing their marketing campaigns, digital marketing efforts, and the importance of market research. The essay highlights the role of IMC in overall marketing and business strategy, emphasizing its impact on brand promotion, consumer experience, and market dominance, concluding that IMC enables various marketing tools to work together to promote a brand to effectively reach the maximum target consumers.

Running head: INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS
Integrated Marketing Communications
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1INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION
Integrated Marketing Communications, often abbreviated as IMC, basically is the
integration of all forms of marketing tools and communications, which are linked together
carefully, for promoting a brand. It also ensures that all the tools are working together
maintaining harmony among themselves (Belch et al., 2014).
The essay throws light on the role of Integrated Marketing Communications in the
overall marketing and business strategy. It refers to the integration of all methods of
promotion of a brand or a specific product and service among the target customers. In IMC,
marketing communication of all sorts work together, in order to increase the sales and cost
effectiveness.
The essay discusses about the definition of Integrated Marketing Communication or
IMC, how it has been utilized well by two Australian organizations; Coles Supermarkets and
Woolworths Supermarkets, its significant role in overall marketing and business strategy, its
application and how it has worked for the organizations.
Integrated Marketing Communications or IMC can be defined as the integration of all
marketing methods in order to promote a particular brand and its products or services by
using various marketing communications and messages. The marketing tools are public
relations, sales promotion, direct marketing, advertising, digital marketing which includes
social media, personal selling and others (Yeshin, 2012).
One of the major supermarkets in Australia is the Coles Supermarkets, which was
founded in the year 1914. Presently, it has over 100,000 employees and covers the maximum
percentage of the market in Australia. It has been highly regarded part of Australian life and
much loved by most of the Australian people. Coles has utilized IMC in a huge way for its
marketing purpose (Coles.com.au 2017).

2INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION
The company has over seven hundred and forty one operating stores. It markets its
products by offering discount coupons to its customers, loyalty program points for the regular
ones, holds campaigns like, Apple for Students for promoting Apple laptops and accessories,
Sports for Schools and lot more in order to gain a huge consumer base. The main aim of the
company is to give the Australian people the best shopping experience (Blakeman, 2014).
Coles has started online delivery system to reach the international markets, which is a
success. Customers can view the product and order anytime, anywhere. It has achieved more
than 25 percent growth. Digital marketing is also done to dominate the international market,
with special offers and discounts depending on its target customers (Keith, 2012).
Founded in the year 1924, Woolworths Supermarkets presently has over 111,000
employees and covers the maximum percentage of the market in Australia. Like Coles, it is
also very famous among the Australians and much loved by most of the people. Woolworths
has also used IMC in a huge way for its marketing purpose (Woolworths.com.au. 2017).
Recently, Woolworths has launched its new campaign titled, “Always at Woolworths”
and has invested million dollars in it, which is aired on all the media platforms. It has started
online delivery system to reach the international markets, which is a success. Customers can
view the product and order anytime, anywhere (Keith, 2012). It has achieved a huge
percentage of market growth. Moreover, they have reward programs and special offers for
their target customers. Digital marketing is done through various social media platforms to
dominate the international market, with special offers and discounts depending on its target
customers (Blakeman, 2014).
IMC has various components which are discussed here. Firstly, market research is a
very important factor in this. It requires detailed analysis of both the brand or its product and
the target market for the brand as well. The marketer needs to know the demands,

3INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION
expectations and desires of the target consumers. Moreover, it is important to keep a check on
the competitors’ activities and promotional strategies (Blakeman, 2014). Secondly, a
marketer must have a vision of a product before designing it. For instance, if an
organization’s products are eco friendly, then the marketing should be done in relation to that,
promoting clean and green world. Thirdly, the focus should be on the brand as it represents
the corporate identity of an organization. Moreover, marketer needs to focus on the consumer
experience, that is, what the consumers feel about a particular brand or a product (Percy,
2014). Fourthly, the marketers need to integrate various communication and promotional
tools for marketing. Communication tools include advertising, selling directly, promotions
through social platforms like Facebook, instagram, twitter and more. Promotional tools
include personal selling, trade promotions and more. IMC plays a very important role in
overall marketing and business strategy (Yeshin, 2012).
To conclude, Integrated Marketing Communications has helped many organizations
to reach the International market. With the help of the digital media, marketing has become
very easy and cost effective. It has helped in dominating the International market along with
several campaigns. Coles and Woolworths Supermarkets have significantly used all the
marketing devices to market their brand value to reach the maximum number of consumers.
Hence, IMC enables all sorts of marketing tools to work together maintaining peace and
harmony, to promote a specific brand or product to effectively reach the maximum target
consumers.

4INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION
References
Belch, G. E., Belch, M. A., Kerr, G. F., & Powell, I. (2014). Advertising: An integrated
marketing communication perspective. McGraw-Hill Education.
Blakeman, R. (2014). Integrated marketing communication: creative strategy from idea to
implementation. Rowman & Littlefield.
Coles.com.au (2017). Retrieved 7 August 2017, from https://www.coles.com.au/
Keith, S. (2012). Coles, Woolworths and the local. Locale: The Australasian-Pacific Journal
of Regional Food Studies, 2, 47-81.
Percy, L. (2014). Strategic integrated marketing communications. Routledge.
Woolworths.com.au. (2017). Retrieved 10 August 2017, from
https://www.woolworths.com.au/
Yeshin, T. (2012). Integrated marketing communications. Routledge.