I was listening to the Chris Brogan/Radian6 Twebinar today and someone used the reference of blog scrappers. The definition was actually about bots that scrap blogs and re-post. I felt like that was what I had started to do here on this blog. To set the record straight, the reason I have been re-posting other blog entires is I have been re-thinking Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) and what it truly means and why it has not reached a critical mass in the communication industry. Re-posting others articles was a way to immerse myself back into thinking on IMC. So this is my first post where I want to lay out the vision of what I hope to be the future of IMC.
To start, I need to go back a few weeks to a conversation I was having with friend and Integrated Marketing Emerson professor Doug Quintal. I spent half of my Emerson grad program under the tutelage of Doug so it was easy to jump right back into a debate about IMC. As we spoke about the profession and the future of industry we started to explore the problem with integrated marketing is it tends to fall under the “all things to all people” category. If you want to tell your client that you can produce PR, Advertising, Social Media, Branding, Marketing and Graphic Design all under one roof, it’s easy to throw the IMC label on your service offering.
In thinking about this issue my thoughts were you need to be a specialist in at least one discipline to put a point of view on your offering. Example: Schneider Associates my current employer are public relations specialists, but we have the creative and strategic talent pool to assist our clients in all aspects of integrated marketing. My group assists the agency in rounding out our services in graphic design, branding, advertising, marketing, interactive and social media. I was mulling over this idea for a few days before I met with Doug. So when Doug laid out the idea that integrated marketing should be based in the speciality of brand management it really struck a cord. Doug suggested that integrated marketing communications should turn into integrated brand marketing. I pondered this idea for the last few weeks while on vacation in Maine, running with my wife and staring at my computer screen waiting to write my next Twitter post.
Today, I officially changed all my online profiles to reflect the idea of integrated brand marketing as the future of IMC. I truly believe that all communication and marketing professionals deal with brand at the heart of everything we do. Weather it’s human resources, sales, marketing or management the integrated efforts of all companies revolve around the company and product brands.
Do you believe that brand should be the base of integrated marketing communications?
Patrick,
Great post! I agree–focus on branding is where everyone is going and it’s at the basis of IMC. I would say, however, that while it is our job to try to influence the brand, the integrated brand marketing is more like the ends than the means.
The best and most actionable definition of ‘brand’ that I rely upon is “collectively what people say, feel, and think about your product, service, or company on a ‘gut’ basis.” Meanwhile, I think IMC comes down to examining every single point of contact a product, service, or company has with its public(s). In other words, the pieces that you mention (and more) that make up IMC are the tools we use to carry out integrated brand marketing.
Effective brand strategy through IMC is no doubt the future of marketing–it is the epitome of all of the buzz words we hear now. Inherently, brands engage, brands listen, brands expand/contract. It’s no coincidence that Digital Natives are intensely brand loyal… they will be our primary target as they surpass Baby Boomers in prevalence and they demand a marketing model that’s as dynamic as they are.
Ben Grossman
http://www.ben-grossman.com
http://www.ThePlenaryGroup.com
Ben,
I agree that “brand” is sort of like the word “viral”. It is an end result. My point is that all who work on IMC planning impact the brand and therefore that makes all involved in IMC planning brand marketers no matter their communication specialty.
The true question at the heart of this debate for IMC specialists to sell their services to the industry, is how do they define their craft. Since brand is the basis for which all communications flows, I believe it’s the best word to start to position the industry.
Thanks for the comments. Keep em’ coming.
Patrick Richardson
Yes, I truly believe that at the heart of all marketing initiatives lies the brand . cos if you dont get brand communication right , you dont communicate the right idea to the right T.G. which will eventually mean that all your marketing efforts will yield nothing .
Integrated Marketing Communication will definitely transition to Integrated Brand Marketing /communications.