INTRODUCTION Over the last decade, product marketing and ways through which communication takes place between manufacturers and consumers has changed tremendously (Belch & Belch 2004). Due to the technological revolutions and the rise of innovations such as the mobile phones and the internet, control over information has shifted apparently from the manufacturer's hands to the hands of consumers (Belch & Belch 2004). The market environment has also changed due to globalization of marketing strategies, loss of confidence in media advertising, increased reliance on targeted communication methods, and media fragmentation and so on (Belch & Belch 2004). Given the changing market environment, the need for more efficient and cost effective marketing strategies has induced changes to the way marketers conduct their marketing activities and led to the adoption of more integrated approaches (Dewhirst & Davis, 2005). The consequence has been the adoption of a more holistic customer oriented approach to conducting marketing communication activities, a process often known as Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) (Dewhirst & Davis, 2005). IMC CONCEPT A vast number of studies have made attempts to define the term Integrated Marketing Communications. One of the most succinct and widely accepted definitions of the IMC concept is that defined by the American Association of Advertising agencies. That is, "a concept of marketing communications planning that recognizes the added value of a comprehensive plan that evaluates the strategic roles of variety of communications disciplines (for example, general advertising, direct response, sales promotion, and public relations) and combines these disciplines to provide clarity, consistency a... ... middle of paper ... ...of brand equity in an organizational-buying context. Journal of Product & Brand Management, Vol. 6(6), pp. 428-437. Kitchen, P. J., & D.E. Schultz, 1998. IMC – a UK ad’ agency perspective. Journal of Marketing Management, Vol. 14, pp. 465-485. Low & S. George, 2000. Correlates of Integrated Marketing Communications. Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 40, pp. 27-39. Peltier, et al., 1992. Direct Response Versus Image Advertising. Journal of Direct Marketing, Vol. 6 (1), pp.49-66. Reilly & C. James, 1991. The Role of Integrated Marketing Communications in Brand Management, The Advertiser, Vol.1 (Fall), pp.32-35. Schultz, D. E., 1996. The inevitability of integrated communications. Journal of Business Research, Vol. 37, pp. 139-146. Schultz, D.E., et al., 1994. The new marketing paradigm: integrated marketing communications. NTC Business Books, pp. 105-156.
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Several facts are changing in today’s marketing communications. Owing to the growing numbers of alternative communication media and promotion, marketing communication does not just primarily focus on advertising and promotion. Organizations and entrepreneurs begin moving toward the process of integrated marketing communication (IMC), which has emerged as a new concept and the major communication development in marketing in the 21th century. More and more companies adopt IMC to convey a consistent message about their brand and products to derive competitive advantage and brand value. In addition, IMC has developed into a beneficial strategy for companies to reach more customers as well as build good customer relationships. Smith et al. (1999) and Holm (2006) point out that IMC is one of a successful strategy that coordinates and integrates multiple marketing communication tools to efficiently and economically influence between a company and its existing and potential customers. Thus, IMC is perceived as a useful concept. It offers companies a competitive edge in attracting customers a...
Raising awareness about the product a company has at hand is where business begins and it is a great teller of how successful the product will be in the competitive market. The art of communication has become a vital aspect and this is attributed to the fact that there are a wide variety of channels of communication that a company can employ. It is therefore advisable that as a company you be able to come up with a marketing strategy that will make your products stand out from the rest of the crowd. The company should be able to create a message that will be used in giving the product a position in the market. In the current world internet has changed the way business is being conducted and issues of targeting and segmentation are being handled differently (Milkman, 2008).
Many new marketing communication options are today available to marketers due to rapid growth and new development of new technologies. In 1993 a new concept called integrated marketing communication was introduced by Schultz, Tannenbaum and Lauterborn. As Keller (2001) said that there is no area in marketing industry has seen more changes affected than marketing communication in the pass years.
The aim of the paper is to analyse the ways that changing technology impacts in integrated marketing communication in the current business market. Moreover, it intent to analyse the concept of IMC in regards of the marketing nature in current marketing environment. In addition, it determined evaluate the marketing functions within organisation in regards of IMC that affect the marketing pattern of organisations. Last of all, it evaluates the role of marketing mix in organisations that attract consumers towards the products and services of the company.
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