Developing an Integrated Marketing Communication Strategy-The Ritz

This report provides an analysis and development of an integrated marketing communication (IMC) strategy, focusing on The Ritz Hotel in London. It begins by evaluating the hotel's current marketing communication situation, identifying the tools, methods, and channels currently in use, including digital marketing, advertising, and personal selling. The report then designs communication objectives, such as increasing brand awareness, providing information, and persuading customers, justifying the selection and integration of chosen communication channels like social media and digital mediums. Furthermore, it focuses on the design and production of appropriate content tailored to the selected channels and communication objectives, emphasizing the importance of layout, design, and strategic approaches. Finally, the report critically evaluates the integration of the marketing communication plan in the context of communication strategy, creative content, and channel choice, highlighting the benefits of increased brand recognition, enhanced customer connectivity, and data collection.

Development of an
Integrated Marketing
Communication Strategy

Contents
Contents...........................................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................1
P1. Evaluation of current marketing communication situation and channels of the resort,
identification of the tools, methods and channels in use.............................................................1
P2. Design of communication objectives for a given hospitality organisational situation along
with justification for selection and integration of chosen communication channel....................3
P3. Design and production of content appropriate to the channel and communication
objectives.....................................................................................................................................5
P4. Critically evaluation of integration of marketing communication plan in context to
communication strategy, creative content and channel choice....................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Integrated marketing communication can be described as a process that is used for purpose of
unifying different marketing communication elements like public relations, audience analytics,
social media, advertising, and the principle of business development for purpose of brand
identity which can remain consistent across different media channels (Alias and Othman, 2019).
It can be used in different private and public organisations in order to deliver consumer
experience in the context of product and service along with optimisation of the image of the
business and building positive relationships with stakeholders. This project report includes
analysation of The Ritz Hotel, London which is the UK-based 5 start hotel. It is a hotel that is
also known as symbol of society and luxury. It is a most prestigious hotel and also known for its
effective service. It is a hotel which was open in the year 1906 in London. It is a hotel that was
owned by Abdulhadi Mana Al Hajiri. This project report includes an evaluation of the current
marketing communication situation and channels of the resort, identification channels, methods
and tools to use. It also designs communication objectives for given hospitality organisational
situation and provides justification for the selection and integration of communication channel. It
also designs and produces content appropriate to the channel and communication objectives.
Moreover, it also critically evaluates an integrated marketing communication plan in the context
to communication channel choice, communication strategy and creative content.
MAIN BODY
P1. Evaluation of current marketing communication situation and channels of the resort,
identification of the tools, methods and channels in use
Marketing platforms are considered one of the important tools used by the business of Premier
Inn which is used to communicate different products and customers and services to its
customers. In order to attain different objectives of the business, different types of marketing
channels are used by businesses and provide them with various competitive advantages
(Bergkvist and Zhou, 2019). Different types of marketing communication channels used by the
business are mentioned below:
Digital marketing: It can be described as advertising which can be delivered with use of digital
channels like mobile apps, search engines, websites, emails and others. Use of these digital
marketing helps business like Premier Inn to share information related to its products and service
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to customers in less cost and also in less time. It helps firm to increase engagement of customers
with a company which allows them to increase the chances of success of the marketing campaign
of a company. It is a tool used by companies for purpose of increasing the loyalty of customers
and also with retaining customers with the company. Use of this tool in business of Premier INN
provide various advantage and disadvantage for them. Explanation of some of these advantages
and disadvantages for business are mentioned below:
Advantage Disadvantage
It is one of tool used by business in order to
saves cost of the company and also to increase
the effectiveness of products and services.
It is a method that assists firms to reach to
customers who are present in different parts of
the world (Costanzo and Costanzo, 2019).
In order to adopt digital marketing, business
needs to hire skilled and talented people in
business. These employees needs to posses
knowledge about digital marketing tools.
Development of creative content in business
does not provide opportunity to business as it
can results in time consuming process.
Advertisement: It is another method of communication which is adopted by business in order to
promote products and services through different mediums like television, radio, billboard and
others. It is important for business in order to attract numbers of customers and also to increase
awareness of products and service offered by the firm. Advantages and disadvantage of using
these communication mediums are mentioned below:
Advantage Disadvantage
 It assists business for purpose of
increasing reach to customers in less
time.
 It is a method which helps firm for
purpose of improving image of firm in
minds of others.
 It is a method that does not allow firm
to get feedback from others.
It is a less persuasive method in compare to
personal selling (Dahiya and Gayatri, 2018).
Personal selling: It is one of the process in which sales personnel interact with customers in
order to provide them information to customers in content to price, benefits, features and other
things. Premier Inn uses this method in order to solve queries of customers and also to improve
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loyalty of customers towards the business. Advantage and disadvantage of using this method of
marketing is mentioned below:
Advantage Disadvantage
It is a business which assist firm in order to get
feedback from customers and allow them to
interact with them.
This method also helps businesses in order to
understand the needs and attitudes of business
(Dwivedi and McDonald, 2018).
Using this method allow business to reach to
limited number of customers.
Cost of using this mode of marketing is high
which increase the total cost of the company.
P2. Design of communication objectives for a given hospitality organisational situation along
with justification for selection and integration of chosen communication channel
A firm operation its business in market for different purpose and in order to attain these
objectives, business needs to communication about their products and service service to its
customers. In order to communicate products and service, Premier Inn has its own objectives
which are mentioned below:
Increasing brand awareness: It is one of the common marketing communication objectives for a
hospitality organisation to communicate with customers. It assists managers of Premier Inn to
increase awareness of their products and service to new as well as existing customers. With helps
of this, firm can attract new customers and also remind existing customers abouts its offering.
Premier Inn is planning to increase its awareness with 15% in the next 3 months.
Providing information: It is another objective of marketing objectives in which the focus of the
business in provide different information related to products and services to its customers in
order to assist the customer to make a purchasing decision (Ekici and Toksoz, 2021). On basis of
these, the business of Premier Inn is processing information related to their products and service
which assist customers to make effective purchasing decision in order to select the best options.
Business also collect information from customers in order to understand their needs and
preferences in business.
Persuading customers: It is another strategy in business in which the focus of business is on
persuading customers to buy products and services of the organisation. Main objective of this is
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to motivate customers to buy products and service of Premier Inn. It helps firm to increase sales
of products which marketing managers of company wants to attain in next 5 months.
Selection of integration communication channels:
There are different types of channels which a firm wants to integrate marketing communication
objectives. These channels are used by the firm according to the requirements of the business, its
structure as well as objectives of the firm. Premier Inn is analysing and evaluating different
channels in order to select the best option for their organisation which helps them to reach to its
customers and also to increase the revenue of the firm (Enke and Borchers, 2021). For this
purpose, businesses should use social media and digital mediums of communication channels
which help them to attain their organisation goals. Integration of this communication channel
along with marketing objectives of the firm provide different benefits to Premier Inn which are
mentioned below:
Increasing brand recognition: Use of digital medium of communication and social media helps
firm for purpose of increasing marketing share of business. Implementation of communication
channel also helps business for purpose of increasing new products and service, offers and
discounts to customers. It also provides an opportunity for business to interact with their
customers on daily basis by sharing new post in social media platforms. It is important for
increase recognition of products and also to increase awareness of the brand.
Enhance connectivity of customers with the brand: use of digital tools and social media tools
in business provide them the opportunity in order to improve the connectivity of customers with
the business. It helps them to persuade customers to purchase products and services and increase
sales of the company. On basis of it, businesses can take feedback from customers in order to
develop a positive image of the company in the context to develop good customer relations
(Kaur and Sohal, 2022). Social media campaign develop by Premier Inn organisation helps them
to develop innovative products and services based on problems faced by customers. There are
different options available on social media platforms which assists business in order to increase
connectivity in organisations.
Collect data of customers: Premier Inn is one of organisation that collect different data and
information in context to business which will fulfil the preferences, needs and requirement of
customers. All this information is required by business for purpose of fulfilling the expectations
of customers. On basis of these data, the firm can produce products according to the requirement
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of customers and also allow customers to connect with offering of the firm. It will increase the
likeliness of products and service of firm among customers.
P3. Design and production of content appropriate to the channel and communication objectives
In marketing content design is considered as one of important task as success of marketing plan
depend on production of quality of content in business. There are different steps to be taken by
business in order to design content according to channel and marketing objectives of firm.
Explanation of these steps are mentioned below:
Right layout and content: In a marketing campaign, graphic designer play important role as
success of the business depended on it. The effectiveness of the design of campaign make the
campaign more effective. In this, symbols and colours of the campaign play an essential role.
Marketing managers of Premier Inn needs to work with designers in order to ensure impactful
designs and also to get instant results (Labanauskaitė, Fiore and Stašys, 2020).
There should be increasing use of pictures and illustrations in order to make the marketing
campaign more visual and attractive for customers. Colours play important role in order to gain
the attention of the target market. In this, the logo of the company also needs to stand out in the
marketing campaign and also content of ad also be useful for the viewers. Premier Inn does this
by making page layout simple and users can navigate their site effectively. This organisation also
uses different pictures on their social media platform in order to increase the purchase of their
products.
Marketing strategy: Marketing strategy followed by company is depended on their experience
regarding the products and service. In order to ensure effective product promotion, firm needs to
use electronic media which increase the success of different advertisement strategies. In the
beginning of any marketing campaign, firm like Premier Inn is focusing on conservative
marketing strategy which helps them to increase sales volume and also increase the advertising
frequency (Lahtinen, Dietrich and Rundle-Thiele, 2020). In this, creative design team play
important role for business communication as they crate attractive and creative graphics in order
to capture more marketing share in business.
Strategic approaches: It is another step in which companies use consumer and product-oriented
strategies. In a consumer-oriented strategy, the focus of business is on organisation of activities,
services, products and also on needs and needs and wants of consumer. In a product-oriented
strategy, the focus of business is on the features, processes and benefits of the products. In order
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to repositioned a product, the business of Premier Inn can adopt think-feel-do model which helps
marketing managers of the company to adapt to changes in the marketing landscape.
Regulations and marketing communications: There are certain regulation over marketing
communication and Premier Inn consider all these advertisement regulation in their business as
this business never claims false things (Liu, Perry and Gadzinski, 2019). In order to ensure
effective marketing communication strategy, business needs to decide to enter in market in
which market they needs to enter and at what prices. Premier Inn focuses on increasing its
geographical reach in business in order to increase its marketing share.
Integrated marketing communication strategy: In this, production managers of the company
add some beneficial ingredients in order to help the immune system and also to provide
assistance to the mental strength of consumers. It is a universal trust that all people care about
their own health as well as their children’s health. In order to increase the effectiveness of a
marketing strategy, a business needs to gain trust in a large market. So, it is essential for a
business to select appropriate content for the channel along with communication.
In order to ensure right content for business communication channel and objectives, marketing
managers of Premier Inn needs to consider three things which are mentioned below:
 In order to produce the right content for businesses, it is essential for them to consider the
types of messages sent by firms. In this, the firm needs to link its message according to
the target market which helps customers to link with the products.
 In the next stage, business needs to reflect their workplace values among message and
delivery methods. It is important in order to develop the position of the firm in minds of
its customers (Ndofirepi, Farinloye and Mogaji, 2020).
 It is the last stage in which a business needs to select the right communication channel
which assist business in order to reach to audience. It is also important for the firm as it
assists them for purpose using right methods in order to reach to audience.
P4. Critically evaluation of integration of marketing communication plan in context to
communication strategy, creative content and channel choice
Objectives: There are some objectives for purpose of the development of communication plan
which helps business. These objectives provide direction to business in which they needs to put
their efforts. Some of the objectives of marketing plan of The Ritz Hotel, London are mentioned
below:
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 To increase market share of business with 10% in next 3 months.
 To increase the profitability of firm with 15% in next 6 months.
 To increase sales of company with 12% in next 5 months.
 To increase awareness of new services of firm in next 4 months.
Background research: In order to develop a marketing communication plan, business needs to
carry out background research which helps them for purpose of identifying the needs and
requirements of customers. It is essential for businesses in order to order to understand the needs
and demands of customers and also to understand different customer trends. It helps businesses
for purpose of increasing the chances of success of a communication plan (Pandey, Nayal and
Rathore, 2020). It is also important for businesses in order to understand which communication
medium will more likely to create more influence over customers.
On the basis of marketing research, it has been identified by managers of The Ritz Hotel, London
that there are increasing trends of digital tool in marketing in the hospitality industry. These tools
are cheaper in comparison to traditional methods of marketing and also create more influences
on customers. There is increasing use of digital technologies among customers which provides
them the opportunity to increase engagement of customers with the operation of the firm.
Budget: Budget is considered one of the important activities in business as it decides in advance
about income as well as expenses. It identifies available capital, estimates spending and also
helps business in order to predict revenue. In order to implement a marketing communication
plan, a business needs funds in order to spend the amount of different marketing activities
(Raynauld and Lees-Marshment, 2019). It is also important for businesses as in order to provide
guidance to them and also to control their expenses to a limit. This budget for marketing is used
for different purposes like software, advertisements, content creation and also for freelancers and
personnel.
Timings Tactics: Communication timing is another important component that is to be
considered by a person in order to increase success of marketing communication channel.
Schedule consist continuous advertisement and communication for specific period of time that
consist higher intensity. Companies can also select flighting schedules or approaches where
communications can be presented during peak times. There are different types of marketing
experts who believe to spend money on marketing n order to keep the brand name in front of
customers in continuous manner helps them to schedule items like durable goods.
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In order to implement the plan in front of customers, managers of The Ritz Hotel, London
making efforts on a continuous basis. It is also important for them in order to increase possibility
of purchase of customers to specific products and service.
Implementation and monitoring: It is another stage of development of the marketing
communication plan in which business needs to implement effective strategies. It is also essential
for business as it helps them for purpose of implement the plan and also to monitor it in order to
get right results for business (Russell, 2019).
Measurement: It is another stage of marketing communication plan in which different activities
are measured and monitored. In order to measure the success of company, business needs to
consider profitability. Profitability and sales of company can be used by The Ritz Hotel, London
to measure the success of plan. It helps them for purpose of analysation of success of marketing
plan in business.
Review: It is another stage in which business needs to review of different types of activities hat
is essential for business.
CONCLUSION
From above mentioned project report, it can be concluded that integrated marketing is one of
important component for an organisation which helps them to increase awareness of products
and service among customers. These awareness is in context to new products, its features,
benefits to its target customers. There are different types of tools and methods are used by firm
for this purpose including social media marketing, advertising, digital marketing, sales
promotion and others. All such types of methods has its own advantage and disadvantage in
business which suits to requirement of the business. There are also different objectives due to
which business is adopting these marketing channels like for increasing profit, marketing share,
sales, introduction of new products and other things. In order to prepare for a communication
plan, business also needs to follow different steps in their organisation which also assist them for
purpose of attainment of goals and objectives of the business.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
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Dahiya, R. and Gayatri, 2018. A research paper on digital marketing communication and
consumer buying decision process: An empirical study in the Indian passenger car
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Dwivedi, A. and McDonald, R., 2018. Building brand authenticity in fast-moving consumer
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Pandey, N., Nayal, P. and Rathore, A.S., 2020. Digital marketing for B2B organizations:
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