Integrated Marketing Communications: Session 4

Session 4: Media Strategies & Decisions

Session aim & objectives:

Aim: reviewing alternative forms of media:

Objectives:Discussing processes and decisions involved in selecting media that communicate with

organisation’s intended audiences;Reviewing social media within the context of IMC;Discussing assignment structure;

Introduction

Channel selection for marketing communications is one of today’s most complex and pressing issues for marketing managers in many countries around the globe (Foley et al., 2005)

Foley, T., Engelberts, P. and Wicken, G. (2005), “Compose: the art of channel planning”, Admap, Vol. 467, December, pp. 3-8.

Media Strategies & Decisions: 4Es & 4Cs

Understanding strategic significance of 4Es:

Enhancing: extent to which communications activity brings about an improvement in organisation’s visibility/credibility/propensity to purchase amongst consumer base;

Economical: extent to which communications activities are managed cost-effectively and optimally;

Efficient: extent to which communications activities are managed competently;

Effective: extent to which communication activities achieve desired outcome;

Media Strategies & Decisions: 4Es & 4Cs

Understanding strategic significance of 4Cs:

Coherence: extent to which communication activities are logically connected;

Consistency: extent to which communication activities are in harmony with one another;

Continuity: extent to which communication activities achieve connection/harmony over time;

Complementary communications: extent to which communication activities balance/sustain one another;

The Primary Communications Mix

IMC Mix model

SponsorshipExhibitionsPackagingPoint-of-sale & merchandisingWord of mouthE-marketingCorporate identity

SponsorshipExhibitionsPackagingPoint-of-sale & merchandisingWord of mouthE-marketingCorporate identity

&

Communications Mix: definitions

Distinguishing between media classes and media vehicles

Media Class: the category of media (eg: TV, radio, posters);

Media Vehicles: actual media within media class (eg. CNN, TimesNOW and BBC in TV, Radio 92.7 and 98.3 for Radios,etc.,);

Communications Mix: Selection Criteria

Identifying the significance of selection criteria:

Control: extent to which intended message is transmitted to and received by target audience; existence of interference or ‘noise’ that distorts message;

Financial resources: linkage between level of control and degree of financial power;

Credibility: extent to which communication is seen as unbiased and worthy of believing; use of ‘experts’ and celebrities to endorse offering;

Dispersion: size and geography: importance of reaching (simultaneously) national and localised audiences;

Communications Mix: Media Planning

Identifying relevant media selection concepts:

Reach and coverage: former is % of target audience exposed to message; latter is size of potential audience that might be exposed to mix;

Frequency: number of times target audience is exposed to media vehicle (not advert); financial trade-off between reach and frequency;

Gross rating point: number of exposures generated within time period; reach multiplied by frequency;

Effective frequency: number of times target audience needs to be exposed to message before it becomes effective;

Communications Mix: Media Planning

Media Budgets & Efficiency

Assessing costs: absolute cost and relative cost;

Relative cost: how much it costs to make contact with each member of target audience;

1. CPT (cost per thousand reached): space costs x 1000/circulation;

Issues: difficulties in measuring wastage; extent to which pass-on readership can be measured;

Communications Mix: Media Planning

Media Budgets & Efficiency

Media Source Effects: incorporating qualitative aspects of communication vehicle’s environment:

1. Vehicle atmosphere: nature of editorial tone; credibility/expertise associated with vehicle;

2. Vehicle technical/reproduction characteristics: extent to which target audience is exposed to and perceives message;

3. Audience/product characteristics: understanding the product’s fit, its nature and the impact of mood;

Communications Mix: Media Planning

Media Planning: a summary

Extent to which communications mix has most effect (effective), least waste (efficient) and least cost (economic);

Key concepts: reach (measure of how many members of target audience are reached), frequency and impact (strength of impression made on target audience);

Communications Mix: conventional and digital media

Comparing conventional and digital media:

Conventional: one-to-many, tendency to monologue, mass marketing, general need, branding, segmentation;

Digital media: one-to-one and many-to-many; scope for dialogue, individualised marketing, personalised marketing; information; communities;

Social Media: theory, trends and practice

Definition: the use of internet-based applications to facilitate conversations and content creation by consumers;

Key social media challenges:

Privacy and trust: social media feels like user-owned space;

Understanding viral effect: brands applying ‘humble’ strategies – joining in on conversation; clustering users into different types;

Recognising value of brand ‘friending’: co-creation in innovation/product development;

Social Media: theory, trends and practice

Social Media Strategy:

Type 1: Top-down (brand owner content) – brand-driven (engaging brand stories);

Perceived as being most traditional – most common approach;

Type 2: Bottom-up (consumer content) – brand-driven (engaging brand stories);

Encourages consumer to contribute to/write brand story;

Type 3: Bottom-up (consumer content) – cause-driven (worthy social outcomes)

Type 4: Top-down (brand owner content) – cause-driven (worthy social outcomes)

Type 4 being replaced by Type 3 campaigns that self-generate content;

Social Media: theory, trends and practice

Social Media Strategy: balancing user-generated content with brand-generated content;

Bottom-up strategies associated with greater application of user-generated content;

Bottom-up and top-down largely avoid rational (information-led) approach;

Bottom-up associated with emotional approaches; top-down associated with story-telling;

Social Media: theory, trends and practice

Social Media Strategy: drivers of effectiveness

1. Campaign business objectives:

Defining ‘uplift’: increase in number of business effects (impact) recorded by campaigns;

Short-term effects: Build Brand Equity: -15%Long-term effects: Build Brand Equity: 144%

Short-term effects: Generate Buzz, WOM: 43%Long-term effects: Generate Buzz, WOM: 57%

Short-term effects: Increase Brand Loyalty: 92%Long-term effects: Increase Brand Loyalty: -29%

Social Media: theory, trends and practice

Social Media Strategy: drivers of effectiveness

2. Creative strategy:

Impact on creative strategies on business:

Emotion: 30%Storytelling: 34%User-generated content, participative: 1%Informative: -16%;

Social Media: theory, trends and practice

Social Media Strategy: extent of channel integration;

Recognition of multi-channel significance rather than social media working discretely;

Optimum channel number of 8: too many channels leads to resource dissipation; too few weakens multiplier effect;

Short-term effects associated with online display/mobile and WOM;

Long-term effects associated with brand-building: PR, TV, dedicated microsites;

Social Media: theory, trends and practice

Case study: Compare the Meerkat – creating a cult brand;

Concept: Aleksandr Orlov – a branded social media superstar; UK price-comparison insurance website;

Impact: 5 million comparisons; 500,000 Facebook fans, innovative use of digital/social media platforms;

Rationale: over-crowded, undifferentiated market; low-interest category;

Application: integrated – above the line (TV/radio), digital (website) and social (twitter and Facebook);

Communication roles: TV provides reach and awareness of ‘lovable’ Meerkat, digital (price comparison), social media (conversations with fans);

Social Media: CompareTheMeerkat

Social Media: CompareTheMeerkat

Assignment

4000 words

Three parts:Critique creative brief – briefed for optimum creative resultsConsider response to creative brief: creative ideas, translation into IMC campaign;Recommend how IMC campaign should be evaluated;

Assignment: Brent Cross

Organisational context: large, well-established shopping centre in prominent site in North London;

Issues:Role of shopping centres: retail and leisure; ‘dwell-time’; multiplicity of uses – a

‘quarter’;

Differentiation of shopping centres: a retail ‘experience’; functional and experiential destination;;

Breadth of catchment area: geographic, demographic and psychographic segments;

Organisational communication: recognition of diversity of B2B and B2C stakeholders;

Range of communication tools: omni-channel retailing;

Assignment: Brent Cross

1. Background

Opened mid 1970s, affluent catchment area, wide range of retailer brands, mix of retail and leisure;

Brent Cross being refurbished – how will these changes be communicated in years to come?

2. Creative Challenge

Create distinctive launch campaign – redefining BC as shopping centre and ‘quarter’; creating perceptions that it is a ‘destination’

3. Target Audience

Wide cross section of customers both B2B and B2B

Assignment: Brent Cross

4. Creative Considerations

Decisions on what channels should be selected and how they should be integrated: engaging audiences;

Determining how visual identity of BC should develop;

Deciding how IMC campaign will be rolled out (and sustained) over period of time;

5. Principles

BC to be new ‘quarter’;24-hour venue: retail, leisure and community facilities;Diverse mix of tenants;Great customer service;Omni-channel;

Assignment

Section 1: Analysis of creative brief/recommendation for briefing;

Appropriate background information;Identifies correct business problem/opportunity;Objectives of campaign? Response campaign is seeking? Does this meet business opportunity?Target audience well-defined

Session 2: slides

Slides 3 – 6: Creative Brief;Slide 8: Mar Comm FrameworkSlides 9 – 15: Segmentation;Slides 21 – 25: Objectives

Assignment

Section 3: Recommend response to creative brief;

Creative strategy;Implementation of creative strategy;Integration of campaign across communication channels;

Session 3 & 4: slides

Session 3:Slides 10 – 26: Decision Framework

Session 4:

Slides 3 – 13: Media Strategies & Decisions