TheBusiness Dictonairyprovides a pretty good summary definition of Integrated Marketing as“Strategy aimed at unifying different marketing methods such as mass marketing, one-to-one marketing, and direct marketing. Its objective is to complement and reinforce the market impact of each method, and to employ the market data generated by these efforts in product development, pricing, distribution, customer service, etc”
Although fairly comprehensive in scope, that definition lacks one key component of Integrated Marketing that really brings home the ROI. Not only should it employ the market data generated by efforts for the benefit of sales, pricing, etc – the data should funnel back into the overall campaign elements to better inform targeting efforts overall – creating a continuous cycle of campaign improvement and a very long run-on sentence.
Integrated Marketing is about better leveraging your Marketing budget investment for improved results across the communication channels and beyond. It’s a single message broadcast in many channels – online and offline – in the social, sales, marketing and PR spaces. It requires customizing that message to suit the medium – and it requires intelligent design to incorporate measurement throughout. It’s often complicated – and it’s always worth the effort.
Gerson Lehman Group just published their Councils Report on Closing the CMO / Agency Gap: How Agencies Can Win Business and Build Stronger Client Relationships. The answer in a sentence: agencies should invest more in winning business – more time – more resources – more capital. The challenge of course for agencies is to do so in the most brutal marketing services environment in 100 years. Every CMO has the right to expect an agency to understand their business model, industry and related challenges before stepping into the ring to battle for their marketing budget. Every agency has the right to expect a fair, transparent and timely contest and opportunity to be judged on the value of their thinking, experience and execution. And then there is the real world where decisions are made based on relationships, based on political structures and based on the lowest bid. In the new business economy of 2010 – so many things are changing, they almost look the same – !
As Rivalry Week comes to an end on ESPN, bitter advertising rivalries are just beginning to heat up. We’ve all seen Verizon’s “Maps” campaign, where it compares its 3G coverage to the “#2 wireless company“, and now fast-food pizza is joining in the comparative advertising fun.
Dominos has recently launched a campaign that directly attacks Papa Johns’ “Better ingredients. Better pizza” ads, and boasts its victory in a taste test nationwide. Dominos calls Papa Johns’ slogan “puffery“, and invites consumers to “Taste the Truthery” that it offers. While many may believe this is too bold of a move, the campaign should definitely gather some publicity for Dominos.
Comparative advertising techniques have been used for years, but these companies have taken more aggressive approaches than what consumers may be accustomed to. Verizon’s ads began by comparing its maps to At&t’s, but newer ads no longer reference its rival by name. They now compare maps vs. the United States’ “#2 wireless company”. Since consumers already know who Verizon’s #1 competitor is, they automatically associate “#2 wireless company” with At&t. I believe this is a very clever tactic by Verizon to associate #2 with At&t, leaving the #1 spot for itself. This association will likely have an enormous negative impact on At&t’s positioning with consumers, and greatly help Verizon establish itself as the premiere wireless company. I also believe another response using a hefty Luke Wilson will do little to help At&t’s cause.
While Verizon’s campaign has been planned and executed to perfection, Dominos has yet to take shape. However, their launch shortly following the Super Bowl could work to their advantage. Following their taste test victory over Pizza Hut and Papa Johns, Dominos has launched its own line of “Pizza Champions” clothing. Their branded t-shirts and hats naming Dominos Pizza Champions closely resembles the Super Bowl Champion gear sold following the Big Game. As Americans are caught up in the hype of “Super Bowl Champions”, they could be more inclined to notice other champions being named.
While the company that begins the “ad war” often achieves a first-mover advantage, of sorts, I can’t help but wonder what the best response to such ads are? If you’re the industry leader, it’s probably best to ignore attacks from an advertising perspective, but what if you arent’? What if most consumers don’t actually know who is better? I believe At&t’s response to Verizon’s ads has been weak, at best. The ads fail to defend the initial point of conflict, maps and have obviously been rushed out to respond, but what could have been done to respond better? What should you do if you are Pizza Hut, or Papa Johns?
Please feel free to leave your comments and questions, as I believe this trend may increase moving forward.
The Business Dictonairy provides a pretty good summary definition of Integrated Marketing as “Strategy aimed at unifying different marketing methods such as mass marketing, one-to-one marketing, and direct marketing. Its objective is to complement and reinforce the market impact of each method, and to employ the market data generated by these efforts in product development, pricing, distribution, customer service, etc”
