Chapter 7
THE INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS PLAN
SUMMARY
- Defining communications objectives
- Methods for deciding on the communication mix
- Advertising
- Digital communications
- Sales promotion
- Public relations
- Sponsorship
- Exercises to turn the theory into practice
INTRODUCTION
Now that we have explored the important area of marketing objectives and strategies, let us turn our attention to the question of how we communicate with customers, both current and potential. The number of ways of communicating with customers is increasing all the time, though it is still possible to distinguish the following two main categories:
1. Impersonal communications, e.g. advertising, point-of-sale displays, sales promotions, search engine marketing and public relations.
2. Personal communications, e.g. sales meetings, personal e-mails and company moderated online forums.
Another important distinction is between broadcast media, such as traditional television, radio and press advertising, and interactive media, such as websites, social networks and call centres.
Companies have at their disposal an armoury of communication techniques, which may be used either singly or in a combination (the ‘communication mix’) as the particular situation demands, to achieve maximum effect within given budget constraints.
Companies with acknowledged professionalism in the area of communicating with customers are continually experimenting with the mix of communication techniques they employ in an attempt to ...
