What Are the Benefits of Integrated Marketing Communications?
The benefits of integrated marketing communications, or IMC, include brand reinforcement, competitive advantage, reduced marketing and advertising costs and greater reach. Integrated marketing communications is a marketing strategy that standardizes marketing messages and branding imagery across all forms of communications with customers, from television ads to direct mail campaigns.
When the same message is delivered through all marketing channels, the company’s brand becomes more recognizable and consistent. This increases the brand’s competitive advantage because consumers rely on familiar companies and brands when they need to make a purchase.
Integrated marketing communications has become even more relevant with the advent of digital advertising avenues. Companies who use IMC focus on crafting a consistent message across all channels, which reduces the average marketing costs. Since a different campaign does not need to be developed for each channel, the messages and imagery are reused over and over.
Additionally, this type of marketing strategy reaches a greater audience because of its diversity. Consumers who only consume advertising through digital media, for example, are exposed to the same messages as consumers whose only brand exposure comes from print, television or radio advertising.
In some cases, integrated marketing communications also involves the crafting of advertising strategies that appeal to a specific customer based on demographics and other data. For example, the messages aimed at millennials might be different from those directed toward baby boomers.
