According to the American Association of Advertising Agencies, “IMC is a concept of advertising and marketing communication planning that recognizes the added value of a complete plan that evaluates the strategic roles of numerous communique fields”. In the next section, you will know the integrated marketing communication process.
IMC Process/ Integrated Marketing Communication Process
The marketer should follow specific steps for developing the message if they want to acquire the desired outcomes via IMC. The IMC procedure involves the subsequent steps. They are:
1) Identify the Target Audience
The marketer has to discover their target market truly. The audience may be present customers or capable clients. They are those who make and have an impact on the buying selections. It is the first step of integrated marketing communication process.
2) Determine the Communication Objectives
The primary intention of any marketer is to acquire their verbal exchange targets. Marketing communication allows the marketer to take consumers through those ranges and result in them purchasing and re-purchase. For this reason, a marketer should recognize the client’s exact degree and the degree they want to take.
3) Design the Message
After figuring out the communique goal, the subsequent step of marketing communication is to lay out a compelling message for the target audience. This message must design under the AIDA framework, i.e., it should take hold of Attention, hold Interest, stimulate Desire, and gain Action. A marketer can take the purchaser from the awareness stage to the buying stage after a few messages, but AIDA indicates some necessities of an excellent message. Without any message, there is no integrated marketing communication process. While designing the message, the marketer has to determine the content material, structure, and format of the message. These are as follows:
i) Message Content
The marketer should determine a theme or appeal to achieve desired outcomes. Message content is the main step for integrated marketing communication process. The following are the styles of appeal:
a) Rational Appeal: This message appeal communicates with the interests of the target audience and claims to fulfil the benefits derived from the product, e.g., excellent price, performance, economy, etc.
b) Emotional Appeal: These appeals aim to induce either friendly or poor feelings to stimulate the customers to take the buying decision, e.g., fear, pleasure, guilt, love, shame, pleasure, and humour attraction.
c) Moral Appeal: These appeals arouse the moral experience of the target audiences of what is right and wrong.
ii) Message Structure
Structure decides how the message could be added. The three primary worries are as follows:
a) The first concern is determining whether the marketer should draw the belief or it must be left upon the goal marketplace. However, marketers have to inspire the clients to involve and consider the product and let them make their conclusions.
b) The 2nd form of structure is whether to say handiest the product’s positive attributes or disclose the poor factors too. A business enterprise should gift product elements earlier than the state-of-the-art and empowered customers.
c) The ultimate subject is whether or not to provide sturdy arguments first or closing. Though it’s observed that the presentation of robust arguments first grabs strong Attention, it may lead to anti-climax finishing.
4) Selecting the Message Source
The source from where the message is being brought is the message supply. It can be the corporation, the emblem, a celebrity, or a shop clerk. Most companies are signing contracts with celebrities and famous personalities to suggest their merchandise. It is an important step for integrated marketing communication process. For example, Cadbury products are advocated using Amitabh Bachchan, Sachin Tendulkar endorses Luminous, etc.
5) Choosing the Media
In this step, the channels of conversation are decided. The two vast channels of conversation are as below:
i) Personal Communication Channel
Personal conversation channels are considered the most effective way of speaking with the target market. In this channel, the one-to-one verbal exchange takes place among or more people over the cellphone or face-to-face. Other options include fax machines, mail, net, and text messaging.
ii) Non-Personal Communication Channel
There is no personal touch between the marketer and the audience in this channel. The conversation is held thru television, radio, posters, billboard, etc.
6) Collecting Feedback
Once the message has been dispatched, one may want to assess its impact on the target market. For undertaking the studies manner, numerous questions are asked with the aid of the target audience, including:
i) Do they keep in mind the message?
ii) How normally did they see the message?
iii) What do they remember about the message?
iv) What is their opinion about the message?
v) What is their mindset closer to the product and the enterprise earlier than and after receiving the message?
The marketplace communicator can also analyze the target market’s behavior’s in the direction of the message through understanding
i) How many people bought the product?
ii) How many humans visited the shop?