Standard 1
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IMC = Integrated Marketing Communications
o Companies that focus on IMC
 Less emphasis on advertising via the mass media
 Heavier reliance on targeted messages and on reaching smaller segments
 Increased use of consumer data
 Changed expectations for marketing communications suppliers
o IMC is
 ensuring all elements of the marketing mix converge on a single idea
 that advertising can and should achieve both action and awareness objectives
simultaneously
 ensuring the various marketing mix elements such as advertising directresponse, sales promotions, etc. work together
o Complete definition:
 IMC refers both to a concept and process
 IMC draws on management skill at strategic planning
 IMC places greater emphasis on audiences, channels, and results
 IMC represents a broadened view of brand promotion
o IMC is the concept and process of strategically managing audience-focused, channelcentered, and results-driven brand communication programs over time.
o 4 distinct levels of integration that companies use: (ranging from narrowly focused to
broad)
 Unified image (3M) ; one look, one voice, strong brand image focus
 Consistent voice (Coca-Cola) ; consistent tone and look; coordinated messages
to various audiences (customers, trade, suppliers, etc.)
 Good listener (Dove) ; solicits two-way communication, enabling feedback
through toll-free numbers, surveys, trade shows, etc, focuses on long-term
relationships
 World-class citizen (Google) ; social, environmental consciousness; strong
company culture; focus on wider community
o All communications (news reports, word of mouth, experts’ opinions, blogs, CEO’s
personality) create an integrated product in the consumer’s mind.
 Customers automatically integrate all the brand-related messages that they
encounter.
 The way they integrate the messages determines their perception of the
company.
 IMC gives companies a better opportunity to manage or influence those
perceptions and create a superior relationship with those stakeholders.
o Basic premise of IMC: everything we do (and don’t do) sends a message.
o 4 Sources of brand messages
 Planned messages
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Advertising
Sales promotion
Personal selling
Merchandising (methods, practices, and operations used to promote)
materials
 Publicity releases
 Event sponsorships
 These have the least impact because there is not concern for the needs or
interests of others.
 Product messages
 Messages from the product, price, or distribution (place)
o Consumers receive a different message from a $2,500 Rolex
watch and a $30 Timex.
 Messages also include packaging (color, type, imagery, design, layout,
materials)
 These have a great impact because when a product performs well, it reinforces
the purchase decision; however a gap between the product’s performance and
advertised promises creates violated expectations.
 Service messages
 Employee interactions
 Service messages they send have greater marketing impact than the
planned messages
 Unplanned messages
 Employee gossip, unsought news stories, comments by the trade or
competitors, word-of-mouth rumors, major disasters
 May affect customers’ attitudes dramatically
 Sometimes they can be anticipated and influenced by managers
experienced in public relations
To maximize synergy (where different entities cooperate for a final outcome) benefits:
 Ensure consistent positioning (the process of trying to create an image in the
minds of their target market)
 Facilitate purposeful interactivity between the company and its customers
 Actively incorporate a socially responsible mission in its relationships with its
stakeholders
IMC offers accountability by maximizing resources and linking communications activities
directly to organizational goals and the resulting bottom line.
In the IMC approach, marketers learn about what media customers use, the relevance
of their message to the customers, and when customers and prospects are most
receptive to the message.
 They begin with the customer and work back to the brand.
Where to get data?
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Supermarket scanner data (for packaged goods marketers)
 Identify specific users of products and services
 Measure their actual purchase behavior and relate it to specific brand
and product categories
 Measure the impact of various advertising and marketing
communications activities and determine their value in influencing the
actual purchase
 Capture and evaluate this information over time
6 step IMC planning model
 Segmentation classification
 Segments the customers and prospects in the database (by brand
loyalty or some other measurable purchase behavior)
 Brand connection
 Analyzes information on customers to understand their attitudes, their
history, and how they discover and interact with the brand or product
 Marketing objectives
 Planner sets marketing objectives based on this analysis.
 Brand behavior objectives
 Marketer identifies what brand contacts and what changes in attitude
are required to support the consumer’s continuance or change of
purchase behavior.
 Communication objectives and strategies
 Sets communication objectives and strategies for making contact with
the consumer and influencing his or her attitudes, beliefs, and purchase
behavior
 Market communication/contact tools
 Planner determines what communications tactics to use-advertising,
direct marketing, publicity, sales promotion, special events- to make
further contact and influence the consumer’s behavior
Why is IMC important?
 Because many customers see all sponsored communications as advertising,
advertising people must be able and willing to integrate all types of marketing
communications.
Elements of Marketing Communications
 Advertising
 Structured paid for communication about products by identified
sponsors through various media
 Personal Selling
 Interpersonal communication process where a seller discovers and then
satisfies the needs of a buyer
 Packaging
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Point-of Purchase Materials
 Display materials designed to build traffic, exhibit and advertise the
product, and promote impulse buying
Brand equity
 The totality of what consumers, distributors, dealers, competitors feel and think
about the brand over an extended period of time
 High brand equity gives customer loyalty, price inelasticity (changes in
price have a relatively small effect on the quantity of the good
demanded), long-term profits, increases market share
 Building brand equity requires time and money
 Brand loyalty is usually won by the advertisers who spend the most
Standard 2
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Positioning
o the process by which marketers try to create an image or identity in the minds of their
target market for its product, brand, or organization
Re-positioning
o changing the identity of a product, relative to the identity of competing products, in the
collective minds of the target market.
De-positioning
o involves attempting to change the identity of competing products, relative to the
identity of your own product, in the collective minds of the target market.
Target marketing
o marketing to a group of customers that the business has decided to aim its marketing
efforts and ultimately its merchandise.
Demographics
o A way to define population groups by their statistical characteristics: sex, age, ethnicity,
education, occupation, income
o Changes in age structure of the population and ethnic population growth
 People shift west and south (California and Texas are the most populous states)
 People under 20 make up 27.6% of the U.S. population; people age 65 and over
make up 12.6%
 Population has more than tripled during the 20th century
 Population growth is fastest among minorities (45% of children under 5 belong
to minority groups)
Geographics
o Targeting people from a certain region of the country (or the world)
Psychographics
o Grouping people by their values, attitudes, personality, and lifestyle
Geodemographics
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Demographics combined with geographic segmentation to select target markets for
advertising
VALS 2 system
o Assigns consumers to one of eight groups based on primary motivation and resources
 Individuals are primarily motivated to buy one of three things: ideals (basic
principles), achievement (tangible markers of success or accomplishment), or
self-expression (a desire for experiences or to take risks)
 People possess varying levels of resources, which include money, education, or
self-confidence
 Those with the fewest resources are placed near the bottom of the VALS types
and those with the most are at the top.
o Purpose is to help marketers identify whom to target, uncover what the target group
buys and does, locate where concentrations of the target group live, identify how best
to communicate with them, and gain insight into why the target group behaves the way
it does
Marketing communications
o Aka MarCom Aka IMC
Communications process
o Begins with one party, called the source, formulates an idea, encodes it as a message,
and sends it via some channel to another party, called the receiver. The receiver must
decode the message in order to understand it. To respond, the receiver formulates a
new idea, encodes it, and then sends the new message back through some channel. A
message that acknowledges or responds to the original message constitutes feedback,
which also affects the encoding of a new message. And this all takes place in an
environment characterized by noise –the distracting component of many other
messages being sent at the same time by other sources.
o Semiotics
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The study of signs (words, images, sounds, gestures and objects)
Example: the way you dress often conveys a message
 Example: awful: full of awe or very bad
 Example: raining cats and dogs
 Semantics: the relationship of signs to what they stand for
 Syntactic: the formal or structural relations between signs
 Pragmatics: the relation of signs to interpreters
o Simile
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A figure of speech comparing two unlinke things
 For example: She kicks like a mule. He runs like a girl.
Metaphor
 An analogy between two objects or ideas
 For example: Choices are crossroads. Time is a thief.
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Allegory
 Extending a metaphor through an entire speech
Consumer Processing Model (CPM)/Consumer information processing (CIP)
 Exposure to information
 Selective attention
 Comprehension of attended information
 Agreement with comprehended information
 Retention in memory of accepted information
 Retrieval of information from memory
 Decision making from alternatives
 Action taken on the basis of the decision
Hedonic, Experiential Model (HEM)
 Consumer behavior is driven by emotions in pursuit of fun, fantasies, and
feelings
 Needs that make one feel good and bring pleasure
o Appeal to appetite
o Sex appeal
Elaboration likelihood model
 a model of how attitudes are formed and changed
 attitudes need to be capitalized on or changed
 Example: In Japan dishwashers are not common because there is very
little space and homemakers feel guilty about using them. As a result,
dishwasher manufacturers have designed smaller, space-saving
machines and then promoted them using good hygiene themes rather
than convenience appeals.
Persuasion
 Two different routes
 Central; when the consumer’s level of involvement with the product is
high
o Motivated to pay attention to central, product-related
information (product attributes, benefits)
 Peripheral; when the consumer’s level of involvement with the product
is low
o May pay attention to peripheral aspects (pictures, colors,
actors) for entertainment value
o At a later date, if a purchase occasion does arise and the
consumer needs to make some brand evolution, these adrelated meanings could be activated to form some brand
attitude or purchase intention
 Know Your Audience
 Keep Yourself Updated
Standard 3
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Diffusion of Innovation
o Theory that helps marketers understand the rate at which consumers are likely to adopt
a new product or service.
 Innovators
 Buyers who want to be the first on the block to have the new product or
service
 Early Adopters
 Don’t like to take as much risk as innovators and instead wait and
purchase the product after careful review
 Early Majority
 Don’t like to take as much risk and wait until the bugs are worked out of
a particular product or service
 Late Majority
 The last group of buyers to enter a new product market
 Laggards
 Like to avoid change and rely on traditional products until they are no
longer available
Word of Mouth (Buzz)
A brand name can:
o Achieve separation from your competitors
o Demonstrate to the world that are you are different
o Reinforce a unique positioning platform
o Create positive engagement with your audience
o Be unforgettable
Tips for Selecting a Brand Name
o Don’t describe- be distinctive
o CEO involvement is key
o Avoid alphabet soup (names that are composed of initials are meaningless)
o Don’t allow popularity to determine the name. The most popular name is not
necessarily the strongest name for the long-term.
o If it’s comfortable—forget it. Everyone else will.
o Keep it brief.
Logo
o Special designs of the advertiser’s company or product name.
o They appear in all company ads and give the product individuality and provide quick
recognition at the point of purchase.
VIEW model
o Visibility: The ability to attract attention at the point of purchase.
o Information: Product usage instructions, claimed benefits, slogans, and
supplementary information printed on the package.
o Emotional Appeal: The ability of a package to evoke a desired feeling or
mood.
o Workability: How the package functions rather than how it communicates
(e.g., protects product, environmentally friendly, fits on shelf, etc.)
Standard 6
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Deceptive advertising
o Anything that detracts from the satisfaction of the transaction produces a
loss of activity that ultimately hurts both parties.
 If a product does not live up to its ads.
o Puffery
 Exaggerated, subjective claims that can’t be proven true or false
 “the best”, “premier”, “the only way to…”
 Not illegal because regulators maintain that reasonable people
don’t believe it.
o Under current advertising law the only product claims considered
deceptive are those that are factually false or convey a false impression.
 False Promises
 Incomplete Description
 False and Misleading Comparisons
 Bait-and Switch Offers
 Visual Distortions and False Demonstrations
 False Testimonials
 Partial Disclosure
 Small-Print Qualifications
Standard 4
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Share of market/Share of voice: an attempt to link advertising dollars with sales
objectives
o A company’s best chance of maintaining its share of a market is to keep a share of
advertising (voice) somewhat ahead of its market share.
o Ex. A company with a 30% share of the market should spend 35% of the
industry’s advertising dollars.
Advertising Agency/Client Relationship
o Prerelationship stage: an agency and client may know each other by reputation, by
previous ads, or through social contact but they haven’t officially done business
yet
o Development stage: the agency and the client are optimistic and eager to develop
a mutually profitable relationship
o Maintenance stage: day-to-day working relationship
o Termination stage: irreconcilable difference may occur and the relationship ends
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MECCAS (means-end conceptualization of the components of advertising strategy)
model:
o message elements: specific product attributes that the advertising communicates
verbally or visually;
o consumer benefit: major positive functional consequences of consumption;
o leverage point: the manner in which the advertising activates the focal value by
tapping into psycho-social consequences;
o driving force: the value orientation of the communication strategy;
o connections between these four levels are called bridges:
 product bridge: connects attributes to functional consequences;
 personal relevance bridge: connects functional consequences to psychosocial consequences;
 value bridge: connects psycho-social consequences to values;
Q ratings
o A measurement of the familiarity and appeal of a brand, company, celebrity, or
television show
Print Media
a) Newspapers
Strengths
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daily delivery - frequency opportunity
geographic selectivity
some special interest selectivity
intensive coverage of specific geographic
market
reach well-educated audience
wide range of editorial material aimed at
a broad audience
great flexibility in ad size
complex information can be
communicated
second shortest lead time
pass-along audience in household
credibility of print in general
can read at leisure
portable
can provide ' keepers"
Limitations
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short life
low quality color reproduction
not demographically selective
cannot deliver sound and motion
messages compete with one another
b) Magazines
Strengths
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audience selectivity/specific audience
Limitations
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long lead time required
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targeting
durability - long life
excellent editorial climate - loyal readers transfer of credibility
artistic variety - bleeds, gatefolds, inserts,
pop-ups, spreads
good secondary readership (pass along
audience) inside and outside home
high quality color reproduction
complex information can be
communicated
credibility of print in general
generally attracts affluent and influential
readers
read at leisure
portable
can be read inside and outside the home
can provide "keepers"
urban and rural
interested readers
influential readers
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cannot deliver sound and motion
low frequency and low penetration levels
messages compete with one another
comparatively expensive
Broadcast Media
a) Television
Strengths
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allows for active demonstration of
product
large national audience reach (network)
large local audience reach
messages stand alone
some audience targeting
prime source of news
high impact
spectacular medium - sound, animation,
motion, color etc.
obtrusive medium
Limitations
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messages have short life plus time shifting
long lead time
cannot provide details
not portable
high production costs
most stations urban
b) Radio
Strengths
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low CPM
good supplementary medium
Limitations
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short life
no visuals
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selective audiences
great flexibility
universal coverage
short lead time
production can be free
inside and outside home
loyalty/credibility
urban and rural
reaches motorists
messages are personal
messages stand alone - obtrusive medium
portable
prime source of local information
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cannot provide details
no motion
Out-of-Home Media
a) Outdoor Advertising
Strengths
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excellent reach (mass audience)
high frequency
geographic flexibility
high impact message
quality reproduction
works well with other media
good for product awareness/recognition
fairly cost effective - low CPM
message has a fairly long life
reaches audience 24 hours a day
small merchandising aids are available
can be used for co-op advertising
Limitations
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creative limitations - instant visual impact
must be made
lack of target market selectivity
production costs are high
lack of prestige
no editorial support
environmental clutter (many displays in
one place)
weather can restrict communication of
the message
urban markets only
cannot deliver sound and motion
cannot provide details
b) Transit Advertising
Strengths
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continuous exposure
high reach and frequency with geographic
selectivity
fairly flexible for message changes
covers all sectors of an urban/suburban
community
relatively cost effective - low CPM
Limitations
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lack of target market selectivity
lack status
cluttered environment
some weather problems
creative limitations - copy area limited
no editorial support
urban markets only
cannot provide sound and motion
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good color reproduction
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cannot provide details
Direct Media
a) Direct Mail
Strengths
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audience selectivity - can reach precisely
defined targets
high reach
geographic flexibility
creative flexibility
advertiser control over circulation and
quality of message
consistent quality of reproduction
no competition with other ads or editorial
content
good response rate
fast evaluation
can provide details
durable
Limitations
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high CPM
absence of environmental support
(editorial content)
not a prestigious advertising medium
("junk mail")
short life
potential delivery delays
b) Direct E-mail
Strengths
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can be demographically selective
inexpensive
wide range of editorial material aimed at
a broad audience
complex information can be
communicated
pass-along audience
can read at leisure
Limitations
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short life
credibility in question due to abuse of
medium
not geographic selective
Online Advertising
a) Sponsored Search & Content Listings (Pay-Per-Click)
Search listing using sponsored results on major search engines.
Strengths
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Deploy adverting program quickly
Specifically target customers searching for
Limitations
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Competition among advertisers can be
fierce for certain keywords
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your products
Target region and demographics easily
Work easily within any budget
Drive customers directly to targeted
landing pages on corporate website
Ability to easily measure which campaigns
are effective and which ones are not
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Click fraud by competitors or ad farm
websites
Ease of entry means that competitors can
mimic advertising programs easily
Quality of some content sites included in
content network can be poor
Generally text only
b) Banner Ads
Graphic or text based ads placed on specific websites.
Strengths
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Target specific demographics of internet
users
Able to use graphical ads rather than just
text
Click fraud is less prominent as with
Search & Content Listings
Ability to easily measure which campaigns
are effective and which ones are not
Limitations
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Generally more expensive that advertising
on search engines
Getting listings online takes longer due to
limited space available
Generally require longer term
commitment
Data mining
o is the process of finding patterns from data
Opt-in e-mail advertising, or permission marketing
o is a method of advertising via e-mail whereby the recipient of the advertisement
has consented to receive it.
Reach
o is the number of different people who are exposed an advertising message at least
once.
Frequency
o is the number of times they are exposed to the message.
GRP (Gross Rating Point)
o measure the total volume of delivery of your message to your target audience
Target Rating Point
o a measure of the purchased television rating points representing an estimate of the
component of the target audience within the gross audience
Continuous advertising schedule
o an equal number of ad dollars are invested throughout the campaign
Pulsing advertising schedule
o some advertising is used during every period of the campaign, but the amount of
advertising varies from period to period.
Flighting advertising schedule
o the advertiser varies expenditures throughout the campaign and allocates zero
expenditures in some months.
Standard 5
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Sales promotion
o A direct incentive that offers extra motivation to enhance the product’s movement
from producer to consumer
Trade promotion
o Sales promotions aimed at members of the distribution channel
 Slotting allowance
 Fees for the privilege of obtaining shelf or floor space for a new
product
 Trade deals
 Short-term discounts
 Display allowance
 Fees to make room for and set up displays
 Buyback allowance
 Manufacturers offer retailers the ability to buy back an old product
to replace with a new product
 Advertising allowance
 Funds to be paid to a merchant for advertising that product/service
EDLP
o Everyday low prices
Efficient Consumer Response (ECR)
o Industry working towards making the grocery sector more responsive to consumer
demand and promote the removal of unnecessary costs from the supply chain
Cooperative Advertising
o Wholesalers/Manufacturers provide local advertisers with ready-made advertising
materials and share the costs
 Build the manufacturer’s brand image
 Help distributors, dealers, retailers make more sales
Trade Show
o Exhibitions where manufacturers, dealers, and buyers get together for
demonstrations and discussion
Sampling
o Most costly of all sales promotions
o One of the most effective for new products
o Offers consumers a free trial in hopes of converting them to habitual use
Coupon
o A certificate with a stated value presented to the retail store for a price reduction
on a specified item
Premium
o Promotional products
o Recipients must buy a product, send in a coupon, witness a demonstration, or
perform some other action for the advertiser
o For example you buy a can of shaving cream and get a free razor in the same package.
o differ from samples and free product in that these often do not consist of the actual
product, though there is often some connection.
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Rebates
o Larger cash refunds on items from cars to household appliances
o Many people purchase a product because of an advertised rebate but never collect
the rebate because of the inconvenience
o More than $500 million worth of rebates goes unclaimed every year
MPR: Marketing Public Relations
o Raise awareness
o Inform and educate
o Improve understanding
o Build trust
o Make friends
o Give people reasons/permission to buy
o Create a climate of consumer acceptance
o Not paid for
Event sponsorship
o Cash paid to a property in return for access to the commercial potential associated
with that property
 Olympics
 Sports arenas
 Cultural events
Cause marketing
o Type of marketing involving the cooperative efforts of a “for profit” business and
a non-profit organization for mutual benefit