Utilization of IMC for Cadbury Dairy Milk and Coca Cola Company

Question: Discuss about the Utilization of IMC for Cadbury and Coca Cola. Answer: Introduction Integrated Marketing Communications is the creation of a promotion that maximizes the influence on consumers with less cost by combining all the tools and sources of marketing communication from within an organization (Percy, 2014). The marketing mix consists of the following components: advertising, public relations, direct marketing, sales promotion and personal selling. There are seven levels of integration which include horizontal integration, vertical objectives integration, marketing mix integration, communication mix integration, creative design integration, internal/external integration and lastly, financial integration. This paper will discuss the utilization of IMC in two Australian based organizations: Cadbury Dairy Milk Company and Coca Cola Company. It will also discuss the significant role played by IMC in the overall marketing and business strategy. Analysis of Coca-Cola Amatil IMC Coca Cola Amatil is one of the five major Coca-Cola bottlers globally. It is located in six countries namely Australia, Indonesia, New Zealand, Fiji, Papua Guinea and Samoa. The headquarters of Coca-Cola Amatil is found in Coca-Cola place North Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Coca-Cola Amatil deals in the following diversified range of products: carbonated soft drinks, fruit juices, spring water, energy drinks and sports drinks, flavored milk, iced tea, tea, coffee and SPC Ardmona and Goulburn Valley packaged ready-to-eat products. Coca-Cola Amatil uses mass media methodology as its integrated component which involves television advertising, banner advertisements and print media. This method used a marketing mix of advertising web based interactive, direct marketing, sales promotion and social media marketing. Coca-Cola Amatil advertising has been one of the most productive advertising in history. The different advertisement campaigns used by the company have had great impact on the society and culture (Wilkin, 2009). The companys bottle designs and logo are instantly recognizable globally and are essential to its brand image and recognition in the market. Their aggressive advertising campaigns have resulted to their ranking as the leading soft drink globally. Coca-Cola Amatil has multiple direct marketing efforts. The operated devices include partnerships with vendor companies for uniqueness. For instance, movie theatres and restaurants selling Coke product s only, doing away with any direct competition. The company also sponsors sporting events such as baseball events, once more selling only their products to attendant consumers. Text messages are also sent by mobile marketing vendors in an effort to customize promotions. Viral marketing endeavors are greatly dependant on communication by word of mouth from the brand loyalist (Wilkin, 2009). The industry benchmarks comprise social media and web based marketing campaigns. The companys fan number is more than 86 million across social media channels that the brand engages in. Direct engagement and crowd-sourced content are trademarks of Coca-Cola Amatil social media marketing (Shively, 2014). Web based interactive marketing is centered on design and functionality, depending on posters, video and public relations. The companys sales promotion focuses on two strategies: retail and food service. Retail efforts are aimed toward company partnerships, point-of-sale and direct store delivery. Coke products are emphasized by food service activities through menu optimization, specialty beverages and food pairings. Analysis of Meat Livestock Australia IMC Meat Live stock Australia (MLA) is a producer-owned organization which promotes research and development for the Australian red meat and livestock industry. It also promotes beef, goat and lamb in both Australia and global markets. The marketing approach of Meat Live stock Australia focuses on two different areas: domestic and international. Domestically, the companys marketing activities are centered on the consumer. Meat Livestock Australia invests in areas where the demand is high, where it may be impossible for individual companies to carry out the initiative. This may be due to inadequate resources (Domestic marketing, 2016). The company has invested in numerous promotional activities aimed at the consumer to stress the qualities of red meat. For example, the usefulness, value of money and nutritional benefits of red meat. It has also set up a consumer specific website that gives information on Australian red meat which includes nutritional tips, production methods and recipes. The company uses many marketing campaigns to promote its various types of meat which include We love our Lamb, Nothing beats beef and Proper Dinner. International markets are of great significance to the meat and live stock industry. Australia exports meat and live stock to over 100 countries. MLA tries to increase demand for Australian meat in these export markets (International markets, 2017). The company has created several marketing programs to maintain and enhance demand and brand recognition. These marketing programs and activities include customized marketing, personalized activities and programs to each major export market and distribution channels, marketing access activities through MLA regional offices and attendance international shows. In addition, MLA is in charge of the Collaborative Marketing Program which aims at helping brand owners to develop customer loyalty and maintain brand growth through investment that brings value for both the brand and the industry (Collaborative Marketing Program. (2017). Significance of Integrated Marketing Communications Integrated Marketing Communications offers a wide range of benefits to all organizational levels (Percy, 2014). First focuses communication around customers and assists them in moving through the different buying stages. Also, it leads to high profits by enhancing effectiveness. An integrated message at its most basic level has more influence than multiple incoherent messages. Additionally, IMC increases the consistency of messages and is hence more reliable. This minimizes any risks in the buyers mind which as a result helps in dictating the results of comparing brands. Lastly, IMC reduces duplication in areas such as graphics thus saving finances since they can be shared between different areas. Conclusion The application IMC in Coca-Cola Amatil and Meat Livestock Australia has greatly helped the two companies to maximize influence on customers at a minimal cost. Coca-Cola Amatil uses mass media methodology as its integrated component which involves television advertising, banner advertisements and print media. On the other hand, Meat Live stock Australia uses a marketing approach that focuses on two different areas: domestic and international. IMC plays a significant role in the overall marketing and business strategy by focusing communication around customers and leading to increase in profits. References Percy, L. (2014). Strategic integrated marketing communications. Routledge. Collaborative Marketing Program. (2017). Mla.com.au. Retrieved 6 August 2017, from https://www.mla.com.au/Marketing-beef-and-lamb/International-markets/Collaborative-Marketing-Program Domestic marketing. (2016). Mla.com.au. Retrieved 6 August 2017, from https://www.mla.com.au/marketing-beef-and-lamb/Dots/527217/leading-fast-food-restaurants-in-the-united-kingdom-uk/ Hartlaub, P. (2015). Sweet! America's top 10 brands of soda. msnbc.com. Retrieved 6 August 2017, from https://www.nbcnews.com/id/42255151/ns/business-us_business/t/sweet-americas-top-brands-soda/ International markets. (2017). Mla.com.au. Retrieved 6 August 2017, from https://www.mla.com.au/marketing-beef-and-lamb/international-markets Shively, K. (2014). How Coca-Cola Crushes Social Media | Simply Measured. Simply Measured. Retrieved 6 August 2017, from https://simplymeasured.com/blog/lessons-from-coca-colas-social-media-strategy-cohesive-campaigns-and-creative-content/ Wilkin, R. N. (2009). Marketing Communication Mix. Cocacolasoriginalcoke.blogspot.co.ke. Retrieved 6 August 2017, from https://cocacolasoriginalcoke.blogspot.co.ke/2009/04/marketing-communication-mix.html?m=1