Integrated Marketing Communications Failure Analysis Report

This report delves into the persistent failures of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC), offering a novel explanation rooted in managerial cognition. Conducted as a two-year ethnographic study with a Swedish retailer, the research explores the divergent mental models of IMC practitioners. The findings identify four fundamental mental models, leading to four key dysfunctions: miscommunication, compartmentalization, loss of trust, and decontextualization. The study emphasizes that, while practitioners may agree on the importance of IMC, their differing 'mental framings' hinder effective implementation. The report highlights how these discrepancies, stemming from divergent units of analysis, incommensurability, self-serving biases, and abstractness, contribute to the breakdown of IMC processes. Ultimately, the research provides practical recommendations for managers to overcome these implementation barriers, offering insights into the cognitive aspects of IMC failure and strategies for improved integration.