The top brands worldwide, including Apple, Nike, and Microsoft, succeeded mainly through integrated marketing. The impressions they make via email, social media, or even television ads all work to spread a particular message and increase the understanding of their brand.
Consumers can know more about brands than ever, and marketers have a more comprehensive array of advertising and promotion options than they did in the past, with both traditional and digital alternatives. Although integrated marketing is only sometimes required.
6 Most Important Steps Used in Integrated Marketing Strategy
1. Identify and Analyze the Customer
Are you aware of who your ideal group is? Do you know what kind of activities they like and dislike? Buyer personas are a fantastic method to determine the type of person your customers are or should be!
2. Pick and prioritize your channels
Once you have a clear idea of the people you want to reach and what they are looking for, you must contact them wherever they reside in the digital world – i.e.; you should be active within the digital space they inhabit. Deciding which platforms to use for social media and the best way to make the most of your site are essential in establishing the IMC strategy. Be aware of your area and the people who reside there. According to 2023 Sprout Social’s Social Media Demographics for Marketers, social media demographics can be broken down as follows:
- Monthly active users are 2. billion (self-reported). Other reports mention 1.35 billion
- Most populous age group: 18-24 (30.8 percent)
- 48.2% female, 51.8 percent male (no information on any other genders)
- Time spent per day: 30.1 minutes
- Active monthly users: 2.963 billion
- Most populous age group: 25-34 (29.9 percent)
- Male: 44% female Male, 56% female (no information on any other genders)
- Time spent per day: 30 minutes
TikTok
- Active users per month: 834.3 million, other reports indicate 1 billion.
- The largest age group is 18-24 (21 percent)
- 54% percent female and 46% male (no information on the other genders)
- Time spent per day: 45.8 minutes
- Active users per day: 237.8 million
- Most populous age group: 18-29 (42 percent)
- 34.1% female, 61.29% percent male (no data for other genders)
- Time spent per day: 34.8 minutes
- The number of members is 930 million
- The largest age group is 30-39 (31 percent)
- 43 Male, 57% female (no information on the other genders)
- 63 percent of LinkedIn users log on to the network regularly
- Active users per month: More than 450 million
- Most popular age group: 25-34 (28.5 percent)
- 76.2% female, 17 percent male, 6.6% unspecified
- Time spent per day: 14.2 minutes
Snapchat
- Monthly active users: The number of monthly active users is 750 million.
- The largest age group is 18-24 (34 percent)
- 51% female 48% Male (no information on the other genders)
- Time spent per day: 30.4 minutes
YouTube
- Monthly active users: 2.1 billion worldwide
- Largest age group: 15-35 (highest reach)
- 51.4% female, 48.6% male (no information on the other genders)
- Time spent per day: 45.6 minutes
3. Establish Your Unified Brand Identity
Naturally, when you want to deliver a unifying message, you must ensure that your messages are consistent. A unified Integrated Marketing communications strategy is built around a consistent message for the brand – the marketing strategy that reveals the same brand image.
To achieve this, it is necessary to collect your previous Integrated Marketing plans, strategies, schedules, and projects and put them all under one banner. It’s not required to do it in a single day – it will take some energy and time to put all of these together, mainly when your business has been operating for years without an IMC. It’s crucial to do the right thing, be patient, and make sure you have a solid Integrated Marketing strategy that provides a solid foundation for your business to be able to rely on for many years.
4. Set your Targets and Objectives
Begin by focusing on your strengths and weak points. The most effective method for doing this is to conduct an internal SWOT analysis, which can provide you with a situational perspective and help you pinpoint areas where you can improve. Once you have a good understanding of the layout of the terrain, it’s crucial to define goals and targets. What are you hoping to accomplish through the Integrated Marketing plan? Are you only looking to increase the impact and reach of your external communications? Are you seeking to improve internal communications?
Make sure to add some target numbers to your goals – “What is measured is completed” at the end of the day. They could be percentage increases or digits that are solid in the case of metrics such as followers or website traffic. Setting goals and KPIs like this will help determine how your IMC strategy has the desired effect.
5. Make sure you are using your internal Resources (People and Tools)
Another issue to be aware of when setting up an IMC is the tools and resources available to your business. It could be software like CRMs, marketing administration tools, or Social Media scheduling software. However, you must also be aware of the human resources in your organization. Integrated Marketing may require a different team structure or more team members. You may discover that you need additional software or equipment to effectively reach your target public. Have you got the equipment and team to accomplish this? If not, it is essential to be aware so that you can take the appropriate steps.
6. Review and set budgets
In general, IMC strategies improve the effectiveness of outreach. This means they can positively impact the cost of social and search ads. Integrated Marketing will significantly influence your spending habits; therefore, it is essential to be aware of both your current and future budgets. By keeping a close watch on the budget, you’ll also be able to track any adjustments – either upwards or downwards – that are triggered by the Integrated Marketing installed.
Final Thoughts
A well-integrated marketing communications strategy is a significant business element that allows your company to stand out. A more vital brand message that increases customer engagement and reach can ultimately improve the return on investment and your bottom line. Integrated Marketing can be difficult, especially in the current times, as the target audience is becoming more challenging to pinpoint and recognize. It is now necessary to connect with them on a variety of channels and platforms while making sure we provide information that they will find relevant and valuable. Making an IMC can keep things simple and move forward positively.
The first step to take isn’t easy, particularly if you’re not sure of what to do first. Have you heard that we provide free audits of social media? This is one of the best methods to get in the direction of developing an Integrated Marketing.