In marketing "the paradigm change is coming from an offspring called Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC). and, nowhere is that more evident than in the non-English-speaking countries where the primary focus on mass advertising and mass communication is giving way to more integrated forms of communication, including such areas as sales, promotion, direct marketing, public relations, events, and the like" (Kim, Han and Schultz, p
As such, the American Marketing Association defines the Integrated Marketing Communication as being "a planning process designed to assure that all brand contacts received by a customer or prospect for a product, service, or organization are relevant to that person and consistent over time" (American Marketing Association, 2008). Laura Lake, a marketing specialist at Marketing About has defined the IMC as: "a management concept that is designed to make all aspects of marketing communication such as advertising, sales promotion, public relations, and direct marketing work together as a unified force, rather than permitting each to work in isolation" (Lake, 2008)
.] Nike's "Whatever" campaign not only was consistent, it was groundbreaking - so groundbreaking that major TV networks almost refused to run it" (Mara, 2000)
Instead of dividing communications into several overlapping departments, organizations use one strategy for everything, making every communication consistent with one message and one strategy. For example, once a company decides how it is uniquely able to meet a particular consumer need, every message is based on those conclusions" (Paquet)
] this is how we communicate with our customers. To promote yourself effectively, you need to understand your customers and their perspectives" (Vargas, 2005)
The Integrated Marketing Communication system takes these P's and turns them into C's - similar aspects, but looked at from the stand point of the consumer. In this order of ideas, Product turns into Customer; Price turns into Cost; Place turns into Convenience and Promotion turns into Communication (Wirth, 2001)
This will be the first time in Asia for a company to offer mass footwear via the internet. This strategy will earn a competitive advantage for Snickers (Kurtz, 2012)
Snickers' brand will carry a line of casual footwear and accessories for men, children, and women. They will also sell headgear under the brand name of Snickers through Snickers Team distributors and manufacturers of skate blades, protective gear, accessories, hockey jerseys, and hockey sticks (Mooij, 2010)
Snickers is a brand that will command a high premium. Their pricing approach will be based on vertical integration strategy whereby they will own all levels of operations thus influencing product cost and pricing (O'Guinn, Allen & Semenik, 2009)
This will also enable targeted media advertisements and create strategic alliances. Snickers has a wide range of popular athletes serving as brand ambassadors such as Ronaldo, Tiger Woods of Golf, and Lance Armstrong in the cycling sector (Smith & Zook, 2011)
The Second IMC Element. With a 12-year history of FedEx Office locations in China, the company's network now covers most primary business areas in Beijing as well as throughout the rest of the country providing its customers with one-stop outlet for document solutions and business services (Ding, 2007)
The defining of an effective Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) platform and series of strategies has a direct impact on the expectations set with prospects and customers both. The ability to measure expectations and their relationship to customer satisfactions can provide insights into how best to communicate marketing messages with clarity and conviction (Anantachart, 2004)
Many companies today rely primarily on IMC-based strategies as the foundation of their go-to-market strategies in new and existing markets (Anantachart, 2004). Given the highly coordinated nature of IMC strategies they are also used extensively for new product introductions and launches (Chen, 2011)
All of these factors contribute to the expectations created with prospects and customers, with IMC being the foundation that unifies potentially diverse marketing strategies (Robinson, 1997). Inevitably there are differences between customer expectations and experiences, even in the most well-executed marketing campaigns (Holm, 2006)
Inevitably there are differences between customer expectations and experiences, even in the most well-executed marketing campaigns (Holm, 2006). Closing these gaps through more effective personalized service and support programs incouding service recovery is an era of best practices gaining momentum in industrial and services industries (Jenkinson, Matthews, 2007)
As IMC-based strategies also have promotional strategies, that area is also briefly disused. All of these factors contribute to the expectations created with prospects and customers, with IMC being the foundation that unifies potentially diverse marketing strategies (Robinson, 1997)
Things have changed dramatically and that has been primarily due to the exponential growth of "new electronic media" which has forever alerted the way marketing was done. (Bezjian-Avery et al
This new definition stated: The process of managing all sources of information about products/services to which a customer or prospect is exposed which behaviorally moves the customer toward a sale and maintains customer loyalty. (Duncan & Caywood, 1996, p
A firm has resources which are its productive factors while capability is the power to "deploy these resources…to affect the desire end." (Dutta, Narasimhan and Rajiv 1999, 550) Thus if a firm wants to enjoy consistent advantage over others, it must have strong capabilities to fully use its resources in its favor
18) Gronstedt proposed a definition from the public relations viewpoint, with emphases on stockholders and different types of communications tools: Integrated communications uses an appropriate combination of sending, receiving, and interactive tools drawn from a wide range of communication disciplines to create and maintain mutually beneficial relations between the organization and its key stockholders, including the customers. (Gronstedt, 1996, p