Module 9: Integrated Marketing

Communication

Learning outcomes
On successful completion of this module you will be able to:

• Understand the critical nature of integrated marketing communications

• Describe the key elements of an effective marketing communication mix

• Understand how to develop an effective integrated communication strategy

• Understand the importance of integration to the effectiveness and success of

marketing campaigns

• Critique marketing campaigns in the food/agribusiness sectors for the

implementation of their communications strategies.

Learning resources

Fill, C. & Jamieson, B. 2006, Marketing communications, Edinburgh Business

School, (pp. 3 - 17), available from here.

Reading
9.1 Introduction
We learnt earlier in the course (Module 1) that the ‘Marketing Mix’ (or the 4 Ps) is the
basis of all successful marketing activities. This is true across all sectors and particularly
so in the area of food and food related business marketing. In this module we learn
about the vital importance of marketing communications, which represents the
‘promotion’ element of the marketing mix. In a very basic sense, marketing is all about
selling and communicating ideas, be they to buy a good or service or to take notice of a
public health appeal (e.g. eat fruit and vegetables). None of this is possible without a
good and effective communication strategy.

As the name of this module suggests, this is the marketing function that lets consumers
know what your product is, why they should buy it, where they can buy it and much
more. This module begins by outlining the role marketing communications plays in food
marketing before describing all the elements of the communication mix. Next, we
discuss the steps involved in developing an effective communication strategy, and
importantly, the need to make sure all elements are consistent, that is, all elements tell
the same story across a range of media. This is known as integrated marketing
communications (IMC) and is a vitally important part of marketing success.

Key aspects of the module

• We first look at the basic elements of marketing communications, elements that
you will know well from your everyday lives as a consumer of goods and services.
However, we will look at these elements from more critical perspective as they
relate to the food and food related industries; from the fishmonger and the local
butcher, to the supermarket and your local fast-food restaurant. Here we will look
at the different communication objectives that marketers use to ‘sell’ their
message to consumers.

• We will then look at how the multitude of communication media is used to

develop a marketing communication mix and explain why the need for a
consistent and strategic approach to this is so important. Crucially, we will discuss
the need for an integrated approach to these communication strategies for the
successful execution of marketing campaigns – for individual companies as well
as industry groups and associations.

• To complement these objectives, we will look at a number of examples of the

integrated marketing communications approach that have been successfully
implemented in the food and agribusiness sectors.

• Along the way, there will be a number of practical exercises for you to complete
and questions to consider. These are to help with your understanding of the
concepts we cover in this module and will highlight the various aspects and
importance of the integrated marketing approach. The exercises and discussion
points will give you the opportunity to think about designing your own
communication strategy, utilising the knowledge you have gained through the
module.
9.2 The role of marketing communications
In its broadest application, marketing communications are about the promotion of both
the organisations and product offerings. The implicit importance of marketing
communications is representative of the ever increasing role that organisations
(including private companies, industry bodies and cooperatives) must play in the
marketing process, and the impact that organisational and environmental factors can
have on the minds of consumers. The structure, composition and sheer number of
offerings in many food and agricultural markets means that, to the average consumer at
least, the differences between products can appear to be negligible. As a result, for the
producer and supply chain/channel partners, it has become increasingly difficult to
differentiate between product offerings. In turn, the number of available and viable
positioning opportunities also diminishes (as we will see shortly).

There are often very significant differences in attributes which are less obvious to the
consumer, such as issues of sustainability, traceability, health aspects and the economic
effects on local industries. In the absence of more tangible or overt distinctions between
product offerings from the same product category, how does the consumer differentiate
between the offerings when they often appear to be virtually identical and often
appearing to differ only on price? For example, cheap bananas imported from the
Philippines versus those grown in Queensland, lower quality tomatoes imported from
Chile or China versus produce from South Australia, and the surprising fact that over half
the barramundi sold in Australia is imported from Asia (see here). It is these realities
that highlight how critical the role of effective marketing communications becomes to
business and industry success. This is a significant issue for the food and agribusiness
sector.

Marketing communications in the food and agribusiness sector

To make sure that food producers, both as individual entities competing for market
share in a particular category (i.e. breakfast cereal or tinned tuna) and as industries
competing for the ‘share’ of the consumer’s shopping basket (i.e. for protein
consumption, pork versus chicken or sweet refreshments, soft-drink versus long-life
juice) there are a number of marketing communication objectives that can be employed
to promote success. Some of the key roles that promotion can play in food marketing
include:

Building product and brand awareness (brand depth)

Product and brand awareness refers to the consumer’s ability to recall and recognise a
brand (Aaker 1991; Percy & Rossiter 1992). That is, when someone asks me to name
brands of chicken that I can buy in the supermarket chilled meat section, which ones can
you name? Inghams, Steggles, Lillydale?

Marketers develop this awareness through constant and consistent exposure to the
brand or product (Keller 1993). This is achieved through good distribution or physical
availability and through advertising/communication efforts (Keller 1993). That means
products have to be both advertised through different media, like television, radio and
magazines AND be physically available to customers in stores – advertising is wasted if
the product can’t be purchased!

A goal for marketers is to create or gain awareness so the brand becomes more salient
in consumers’ minds (Aaker 1991). Salience relates to how quickly people can remember
a particular brand in a purchase situation. The ease and accessibility of recall influences
consumer decision-making, where brands salient in memory are likely to form the set of
products consumers will make their final choice from – also known as the consideration
set (Macdonald & Sharp 2000).

For example, when a consumer goes to the fishmonger or supermarket deli counter to
buy fish for a family dinner; which range of species will they choose from? Will it be
salmon, barramundi, whiting, bass or snapper? Of those under consideration, which will
they likely prefer and for what reason? Will they choose on basis of price, country of
origin or the meal they intend to make? The more salient (cognitively prominent) the
offering; the more likely they are to purchase it.

An individual’s consideration set consists of brands from memory considered for

purchase/consumption based on characteristics in order to satisfy needs/desires
(Shocker et al. 1991). If I am having a BBQ, what protein do I want to cook? What form
does it take (sausages, steaks, fish or prawns) and where does it come from, local or
imported? Awareness affects brands and products selected from the consideration set,
where consumers choose brands known or those with high-perceived quality. These
characteristics have to be communicated effectively to consumers.

Communicating valued benefits and attributes

In a food or agribusiness marketing setting, adequate information communication is very
important due to the fact that for many products (such as fresh seafood, meat and
poultry as well as prepackaged goods like tinned vegetables, meats and fish), to the
general consumer, have functional properties that do not appear to significantly differ
from each other. These sensory characteristics include look, feel, and taste, particularly
for unpackaged deli or market goods. To illustrate this point, the images below are taken
from the Woolworths website and represent imported Thai Vannamei prawns ($16.99
KG) and Australian grown Tiger prawns ($27.99 KG).

Cooked Vannamei (Thai) Prawns Cooked Australian Tiger Prawns

Source: Woolworths 2014a, 2014b.

Further, as the market for prepackaged goods becomes ever more homogenised due to
the prevalence of supermarket private label and home brands copying traditional private
brand packaging, the need to communicate effectively on the part of industry and
individual producers and brands becomes ever more important.

For example, take these two cans of tuna. They look VERY similar, but as per the
Atuna.com (the world’s leading website on the international tuna industry) article on the
Greenpeace report into canned tuna rankings; they are at polar ends of the scale when it
comes to the 2012 canned tuna rankings for responsible fisheries and source
management.

$4.60 for 160g ($28/kg) $1.29 for 95g ($13/kg)

Fish 4 Ever is world leading in fair and Aldi’s Ocean Rise brand consists of
environmentally sound sourcing of tuna. overfished yellowfin tuna and the range and
Fish4Ever pioneered sustainable pole and relies on destructive fishing (net fishing)
line caught tuna in Australia and continues methods.
to promote fisheries that benefit local • Uses overfished yellowfin tuna
communities.
• 100% pole and line caught skipjack • Relies on destructive fish aggregating
(not overfished) tuna. devices, (FADs) which cause great
ecosystem damage and create
• Promotes sustainable tuna in political, significant bi-catch (like dolphins) using
industry and consumer fora. purse seine nets.

• Considers entire fishery ecosystem • Labelling fails to identify the catch

method.
• Supports local coastal fisheries and
pays a premium price to local fishers. • Aldi’s publicly supported sustainable
measures do not carry through to this
• Clear, honest, comprehensive product’s sourcing policy, like in its
labelling. premium Portview pole and line range.

Source: Towie 2011; Greenpeace 2014.

Therefore, consumers need to be persuaded through effective communication to the

positive attributes that functional foods offer or represent so they can, for example, link
the health effects and superior quality attributes to the product. Although a person might
be able to acknowledge the health or environmental benefits of consuming a food –
unless they can link the food particular health or environmental benefits – they will be
less likely to consume it (Wansink et al., 2005).

The role of educating consumers through effective communication is therefore crucial,

because; unlike taste and other sensory traits, consumers cannot directly perceive the
benefit of the product without adequate extrinsic information. For example, features
such as labelling, packaging, advertising and anything not directly related to the physical
properties of the product will help to generate perceptions of the product. To ensure
reliable information transfer, effective marketing communications are integral.
Suggesting consumption occasion (brand width)
Of particular importance to the food and agribusiness sector is the delivery of messages
promoting consumption occasions to boost sales and product awareness. Linking
particular products with particular events, both big (like BBQs on Australia Day or
turkeys at Christmas) and small like the Sunday roast, often forms a key part of a
successful food marketing strategy.

A classic example of marketing communications being used to promote consumption and

occasion is the Meat and Livestock Association’s ad campaign for eating lamb on
Australia Day (this case is looked at in greater detail later in the module). The very well
executed ad campaigns have run successfully for a number of years, with Aussie identity
Sam Kekovitch promoting the consumption of lamb on and around Australia Day. These
advertisements present a good example of how occasion-based consumption can be
communicated. See an example here.

If we look a little further back, we can see other good examples of occasion oriented
consumption communications; such as the famous “Dinner with Tom Cruise” lamb
commercials of the 90s (featuring a very young Naomi Watts!).

Encourage trial and get lighter consumers to purchase more

It may surprise you to learn that the majority of a brand or product’s consumers are
what we call ‘light buyers’. Years of empirically validated research has demonstrated that
40 - 50% of a brand’s sales come from its lightest 80% of customers; meaning that light
and non-buyers of a brand are where the greatest growth potential lies (Sharp, 2010).
This means that encouraging non-buyers to trial a product and nudging the propensity of
light buyers to buy it slightly more often is very important to product and brand growth
(Barnard & Ehrenberg, 1997). This is because most consumers buy from a range or
‘repertoire’ of products that they routinely switch between. For example, do you have a
favourite brand of breakfast cereal that you always buy? Do you have a number of
brands that you switch between when one is on special and the other is not? Also, if you
like to drink Coke, but you are at a fast food restaurant like KFC and you want a cola
with your meal; will you drink Pepsi? Do you often buy Cadbury chocolate but sometimes
buy Lindt just for a change? Most people do – this is known as ‘switching’ or
‘polygamous loyalty’. Of course there are some consumers, called sole loyals, who will
always stick with one brand or product; but these people are in the vast minority in most
categories (Sharp, 2010).

When a marketing executive looks at their customer base and their buying patterns,
they see that most of their customers buy very infrequently. The brand is a small part of
those customers’ lives because they buy it so rarely, so there are a few heavy buyers of
the brand and many, many light (occasional) buyers. So, most buyers buy the brand at
less than the average rate, and even ‘fast-moving consumer goods’ (FMCG) brands are
only seldom bought by most of their customers. For example, if a household that buys
Kellogg’s Special K buys it more than once a year, then they are one of the brand’s
heavier buyers—in fact, well more than half their consumers buy it only once or twice a
year or even less frequently (Barnard & Ehrenberg, 1997).

A media communication strategy focussed on exposing all category buyers to a brand’s

advertising is the most effective. To do this, companies should aim to consistently reach
and appeal to as broad an audience as possible. Research shows that advertising’s
greatest sales effect occurs when an individual moves from no exposure to an ad, to
having one exposure. While subsequent close-by exposures can have a positive effect,
the impact has diminishing returns. This means that a media scheduling strategy should
aim to reach as many categories of buyers (the majority of who are either light or non-
buyers of your brand or product) to gain the most return from the media budget – no
matter how big or small.

Research shows a brand’s sales come from a profile of consumers that ranges from very-
light to very heavy buyers (Ehrenberg, 1996). Myths such as the 80:20 rule (80% of
sales come from 20% of buyers) can create an undue focus on heavy, or loyal, buyers.
Thinking about this logically, it is difficult to see how someone who already buys a large
amount of your brand or product, that is a loyal or heavy-buyer, to significantly increase
their purchase rate or frequency; as they are likely to already be buying as much as they
can consume. Alternatively however, a light buyer who only buys the product once in a
sales period, who then increases to two purchases in a sales period displays a 50%
increase in sales; while a non-buyer who buys your brand or product once represents a
100% increase! Considering that these types of buyers account for 40-50% of total sales
for brands, small individual increases could lead to large increases in aggregate sales.

Reinforce the rewarding consumption experience

There are various motivations for eating both at home and out; economy, efficiency, fun,
taste, and social interaction. Eating as an experience tends to be divided into two
categories, utilitarian (purely functional) and hedonic (experiential) and each represents
certain consumer values. Part of the food marketer’s role is to emphasise the enjoyable
hedonic aspect of food consumption, promotion (for example, luxury dining experiences)
and preparation (with the proliferation of shows such as MasterChef and My Kitchen
Rules).

Marketers need to communicate and reinforce the notion that the restaurant is a place
where we experience excitement, pleasure and a sense of personal wellbeing
(Finkelstein, 1989). People eat out because of the intrinsic benefit they derive from food
and restaurants. Consumer values of eating out can be defined as the value consumers
derive from food, service, and restaurants when eating out. Consumers pursue these
values to satisfy their hunger, and their need for convenience, pleasure, entertainment,
social interaction, and mood transformation. Visiting a restaurant for its functional
values, such as satisfying one’s hunger, enjoying convenient food, or economical eating;
can be a pleasure seeking but goal directed behavior, or a recreational and hedonic
experience.

Personal pleasure and reward derived from the value of eating out can be defined as a
value related to functional and economical aspects of consumption; while the purely
hedonic value represents consumer fun, entertainment, absorption, and novelty.

Food marketers rely on both these types of communication approaches to appeal to the
different functional needs and wants of the consumer, which still reinforce the reward of
the consumption experience – be it hedonic or utilitarian.

Take the two following ads for example:

McDonalds & the 5 star, Michelin rated Roux Restaurant at the Hilton in
Baltimore, USA.

Activity • Compare and contrast the different value propositions each ad

promotes in relation to the rewarding consumption experience.
Remind people to eat specific foods
Through the advances in understanding the relationship between nutrition and health,
the concept of functional foods, (that is, a food containing health-giving or promoting
properties) has developed, which means a practical and new approach to achieve
optimal health status by promoting the state of wellbeing and possibly reducing the risk
of disease.

For example, the recent Australian “Go for 2 & 5” campaign about regularly eating fruit
and vegetables. One of the campaign’s advertisements is available here.

Consumers should be persuaded by positive and effective communication that functional

foods can be linked to the positive health effects of a particular product. Although a
person might be able to acknowledge the health benefits of consuming a food – unless
they can link the food to particular health benefits – they will be less likely to consume
it. The role of educating consumers is therefore crucial because, unlike taste and other
sensory traits, consumers cannot directly perceive the benefit of the product (Loose et
al., 2013)

Think about how the product selected for your major assignment is
currently promoted:
• What is included in the message strategy?
Activity • Which customer benefits and valued attributes are the focus?
• What message appeals are used?
• Could the message strategy be improved? How?
The Tassal Pure Beauty Food Campaign

Tassal is a publicly-listed, vertically integrated business

covering all facets of salmon production, processing, sales
and marketing; with sustainability being at the core of its
business and is integral to continued success.

Despite being a leader in the salmon category, Tassal

suffered from low consumer brand awareness, due to the
product primarily being sold through wholesale or being
unbranded in grocery stores. The team developed a
strategy to not only drive awareness for Tassal Salmon,
but to encourage overall consumption of salmon versus
other proteins, thereby increasing its overall share in the
fresh food market.

Tassal has had limited above the line (ATL)

communications (communications tools and channels
which broadcast the brand message to a mass audience;
e.g. the press, magazines, radio, cinema, TV and search
engines) to consumers. Below the line (BTL)
communications tend to be targeted at market niches and
use personal selling approaches. For example in 2010,
Tassal ran a BTL print campaign ‘Pure Beauty Food’
directed only at females, which was executed in leading
women’s fashion titles such Marie Clare, Vogue, InStyle and Madison over a 7 month
period. The campaign resulted in increased brand awareness; however an overall
tracking study was not undertaken at the time. Then in 2012, Tassal implemented an
ATL communications campaign to target consumers in September-November 2012 and
February-March 2013, through TV, print and online. There is a need to understand the
impact of this campaign to improve marketing activities in the future. Examples of these
campaigns for Tassal will follow at the end of Section 9.4.

The aim of the research was to determine the impact of the ATL campaign for Tassal to
be run over the time period from September 2012 to May 2013. The campaign had the
following objectives:

• Create top of mind awareness/make salmon a salient option

• Increase consumers’ salmon recipe repertoires
• Increase the perceived versatility of salmon
• Encourage more people to substitute salmon for other proteins

The research also had longer-term objectives. As specified in the brief:

• To identify the competitive set for Tassal
• To measure the effectiveness of advertising creative and performance in different
communication channels
• To capture changes in consumer perceptions & behaviours
• To measure Tassal performance within the wider protein market

Campaign elements
• Print
• Public Relations
• Online
• Promotional contest

Source: Romaniuk 2013.

9.3 The steps in developing effective
communications
Before proceeding, to gain a deeper understanding of the concepts that follow, you
should now read the sections highlighted above which will cover how, why and what is
involved in developing effective communication strategies and executions. Look for the
types of media used for different products, the pros and cons of each media, and
consider how consumers (and which consumers) are likely to react to each format.

Having done the preliminary reading, let’s consider the steps a marketer follows when
developing their marketing communications mix. A good marketer always has the
customer at the front and centre of their decision-making. So, when it comes to
communication, we must consider who we are talking to.

Therefore understanding effective communication relies on:

• Knowing your target audience

Then we want to consider how to:

• Identify the target audience. Communication – start with a clear idea of the
target audience. Who are we talking to?

• Are the audience potential buyers – people who may buy your product in the
future

• Or are they people buying your product now? Is this your audience?

• If so, are they light or heavy buyers?

• Who influences the purchase decision?

• How are potential users or current users making the buying decision or
influencing it?

• Are the audience individuals (home consumers) or groups (restaurants) or are

they members of business buying units (supermarkets and wholesalers?)

• Determining your target audience will help you to decide what you want to say,
where you want to say it, when you want to say it, how you want to say it, who
will say it and how you will position your brand or product

To achieve this you have to:

• Focus on important and valued benefits

• Deliver the right message with the most effective execution strategy

• Select the most effective media formats and scheduling arrangements

• Select media and using message strategies to reach and appeal to as many
potential customers as possible – remember light and non-buyers are the key to
brand and product sale growth!
The common appeals used in food marketing include:

• Rational appeals such as health, variety, convenience and versatility

• Emotional appeals like taste, pleasure, satisfaction, enjoyment, and the

experience

• Moral appeals like ‘it’s the right thing to do’. E.g. I should buy local produce that
supports the local economy, although it may be more expensive than the
imported alternative

In terms of sources of information that influence consumers, a CRC study (Birch and
Lawley 2010) found in terms of sources of information on commercial sources (such as
doctors and government bodies), these bodies were much more likely to influence
consumers to consume more of a product than industry or commercial sources.

• Doctor or dietician 58%

• Friend family member or colleague 55%

• Government health department 49%

• Fishing industry 39%

• Staff at fishmongers 38%

• Staff at supermarket deli 26%

Looking specifically at fish, a CRC survey (Lawley and Birch 2010) found the following
levels of influence of different media on the likelihood of purchasing fish:

• I saw a recipe for fish in a magazine: 59%

• I saw fish on special in a store catalogue: 55%

• I saw a recipe for fish on the Internet: 48%

• I saw fish prepared or served on a cooking or lifestyle show, e.g. MasterChef 47%

Think of some foods using each of the above appeals. Which do you think
are most effective and why?

Activity
9.4 The elements of the communication mix
This module so far has discussed the different communication and media formats and
looks at how marketers strategically use a range of techniques to communicate to
consumers. Consider what you think is the best ‘mix’ of communication formats and
devices for a range of products from the food industry and why.

According to Keller (2009), there are six major modes of communication that make up
the elements of the marketing communications mix. While advertising is the most visible
of these, it is not the only or necessarily the most important of these – particularly in the
food marketing arena.

The six elements Keller identifies are:

Advertising – can reach masses and a high percentage of target market. Advertising
yields a low cost per exposure. If we take the Super Bowl in the US as an example;
though it is quite expensive to place an advertisement within it, more than 150 million
people watch it! The Doritos brand and ads are synonymous with the Super Bowl (click
here to see why!)

Public Relations – can be more believable than paid advertisements. Can reach many
people, and can reach buyers as news. Public relations can also be very effective for
handling disasters. For example, consider the example we used earlier about the canned
tuna industry. Some companies do remarkably well in promoting their sustainability
attributes, which are very attractive to consumers, while others are hounded in the
media for having poor standards of sustainability and general fishing practices.

Direct marketing – can be customised or personalised, and allows dialogue with the
consumer. Direct marketing is more measurable than most other forms of marketing;
you can send out a DM piece and see what the response is. This is harder to do for any
form of mass media. Direct marketing is also immediate – messages can be prepared
quickly and altered depending on response.

Sales promotions – coupons, money off sales, buy it now, competitions – these
provide incentives that offer additional value for the customer. Think about the Coles and
Woolworths vouchers and catalogue sales that fill your letterbox every week, right along
with the vouchers for Dominos and Pizza Hut.

Personal selling – can be expensive. It allows the sales force to listen, and is tailored
to the consumer. Having a conversation with one person allows communication to be
effective. Sales force requires training, a longer term commitment, and a larger budget
due to expense. In the food industry, we often see personal selling in supermarkets and
shopping malls, where company employees offer free samples of cheese and small goods
with a spiel about the product to entice you to buy then and there. How often do you
take the sample but actually buy the product on the spot?

Events and Experiences – include company-sponsored activities and programs

designed to create brand related interactions. They use celebrity, infamy or cause
related events to leverage value out of a brand or product – often the sponsors or
activities can have little to do with the actual product and can even be counter intuitive,
i.e. Coke and the London Olympics. Radio stations will often have brand related
promotions where their ‘on-the-road’ teams (e.g. the Nova crew) will hand out all
manner of goods that companies want to promote, pies, iced coffees, chocolate bars and
soft drinks. One of Red Bull’s main marketing strategies is event promotion (like air
races and extreme sports events) where products are freely available to all.
Media and advertising campaigns

While all media types have their own intrinsic advantages and disadvantages, there is no
rule to say that media plans have to focus on one single medium. It is widely believed
that a combination of media types can be more successful than those that only use a
single medium. Still, different media have various features that may complement one
another. However, there is little in the way of solid research findings that support this
belief, and even less that can give guidance on how to assemble a good multimedia
campaign.

Budgeting for marketing communications

What strategies and techniques do organisations use to set marketing budgets?

• Affordable – “this is all we have got to spend”. Setting it at what management

think you can afford.

• Percentage of sales – around industry average, say 5 percent of sales. Some

retailers do this.

• Competitive parity – spend about as much as competitors. Banks’ marketing

budget spending rises and falls in accordance to competitors. In the beverage
sector, an equivalent scenario would be the marketing wars between Coke and
Pepsi. Both would spend about the same amount of money.

• Objective and task – this is the most logical way. The specific objective is
defined, the tasks required to reach these objects are outlined, and it allows the
company to work out the reach, frequency, impact and cost.

Many marketing managers’ budgeting experience has been to start with objective and
task, look at competitors, go to management, and then refine on an ad hoc basis. A
combination of approaches is the most common approach in practice.

Then they must consider the timing of communications versus their budget constraints,
and the optimal strategy for effectively reaching and affecting consumers.

For example, should an ad be on continuously, such as ads for McDonald’s, Coke or

Subway, for a period of time? Or should we play unevenly for a period of time such as
only advertising BBQ cookers in the summer months?

Evidence has suggested that continuity is preferable and has distinct advantages (people
still buy BBQs in winter!) Is it better to be on air a little bit all of the time? Generally
people are in the market for your product all year round and you want to remind them
that you are there (Merzereau & Battais, 2000).

Perhaps pulsing is appropriate for a product launch when you want people to learn about
your brand and encourage a trial? All such techniques come at a cost and managers
need to consider how long to do a heavy burst of advertising; as you may have no
money left in six months’ time. Contrastingly, managers also need to know how
infrequently to advertise, knowing that their message will miss many possible
consumers. All these variables must be considered in the execution of the
communications mix.

Once a decision about a media scheduling strategy has been made, consideration has to
be given to the vehicle a manager will use within that media.
Marketing communication formats
TV – so, do you buy space in MasterChef or A Current Affair?

You can pay a premium for specific spots like just before the news, or first in a ‘pod’. Or
you can buy a media run from a station – e.g. buying 20 ads to appear in one week and
they appear when they appear, granting less control. It is more expensive to pay for
particular spots, but they may have a larger reach or more impact.

Part of the decision is defensive; some companies buy up all the spots in a program to
keep the competition out of it.

Sometimes companies will buy ad space on all stations at same time, so flicking through
you will see the same ad.

Magazine – can be targeted at specific demographics. For example, BRW targets

business people, Women’s Weekly or New Idea for women, Dolly for younger audiences.
Some titles have high reach, while others are quite fragmented. Woman’s Weekly is
known for its recipe sections and promotion of different products such as chocolate (e.g.
a chocolate cookbook promotion), while magazines like Better Homes and Gardens have
dedicated food sections.

Newspapers – have traditionally had high levels of advertising reach through broad
circulation and the ability of multiple people to read the same paper. However, they
generally have poor image reproduction; meaning that some brands choose not to
advertise there as they don’t adequately communicate their perceived brand value (the
pictures of their goods aren’t very good!). However, supermarkets will often include
catalogues in newspapers or advertise low cost specials that don’t require such high-
resolution reproduction.

Radio – can be low cost and be very effective in promoting frequent brand exposure,
but is often passively ingested, rather than directly observed and cognitively processed
like TV or magazine ads. You will notice, if you pay attention, that brands like Coke,
McDonald’s and Subway all advertise heavily on radio.

Cinema – creates a captive audience as people can’t really move or zap through ads
once you are there. The classic food advertisement for a captive audience is for the
cinema candy and refreshment bar, where consumers can select from range of some of
the worlds most well known brands, like Coke and Pepsi, Starburst and Maltesers.

Outdoor – billboards at prime spots can be very effective, particularly when they are
near points of sale for their advertised products. You need only walk down the main road
of any major town or city to see how many food outlets and beverage companies
advertise on billboards and bus shelters. Next time you are walking down the street, see
how many you can see in comparison to the advertisement of other non-food related
products!

Online – surprisingly, this medium can be regarded as low reach, because there are
some segments of the population who are not online all the time. This fact is also
emphasised as the media is heavily fragmented; due to the existence of millions of
websites, and it is impossible to advertise on them all! Yet again, all the major food
brands are there, from Facebook to your favorite online news sites, banner ads for
Whoppers, Coles’ specials and refreshing Coke advertisements will no doubt be in your
field of vision.
Figure 1 – The media mix grid

Media Communication attributes Reach and Frequency

Newspaper Not high-quality colour Massive reach

Television Movement and sound, drama Massive reach

Radio Sound only, background medium Not as high reach

Magazine High quality colour, specific interest Some top mags are high
targeting reach, otherwise fragmented

Outdoor/ Repeat exposure for outdoor; captive Prime spots reasonable reach
cinema audience for cinema

Online High selectivity Low reach

Practical examples of these techniques are demonstrated in the following section –

Marketing communication in action.
Marketing communications in action – Tassal Pure Beauty
Campaign

Please watch this accompanying video which adds another key element to the campaign.
Industry versus company promotion
In many food industries, individual companies (especially small businesses) do not have
either the resources or the skills to undertake major promotion campaigns like the one
that Tassal was able to execute. This is particularly evident when we consider how much
is spent on advertising each year in Australia.

Advertising spending in Australia (2011/12) in $million AUD

When broken down by industry, it is possible to gain some insight into spending on food
marketing. As shown in Table 9.1, there are two food retailers and six FMCG marketers
in the top media spenders in Australia.

Table 9.1 – The top 25 spenders in 2009 (spending in $m)

8. Unilever - $70-75 Government - $55-60

1. Wesfarmers - $205- 9. New South Wales 18. McDonald's - $55-60
210 Government - $70-75 19. Westpac - $55-60
2. Woolworths - $140- 10. Suncorp - $70-75 20. Procter & Gamble
145 11. SingTel - $70-75 $55-60
3. Harvey Norman - 12. Commonwealth Bank 21. Qantas - $50-55
$135-140 - $65-70 22. Vodafone Hutchison
4. Federal Government - 13. Toyota - $65-70 - $50-55
$125-130 14. Myer - $60-65 23. ANZ Banking Group
5. Nestle/L'Oreal - $120 15. Reckitt Benckiser - - $45-50
- 125 $60-65 24. Lion Nathan National
6. Telstra - $100-105 16. Village Roadshow - Foods - $45-50
7. Victorian Government $55-60 25. Sony - $45-50
- $90-95 17. Queensland

Source: Nielsen
Pooling industry funds

In these cases, industry bodies often have to undertake these roles. The activities are
funded through industry levies that all producers contribute to through various means.
Table 9.2 below summarises some of the industry bodies and how they are funded. Most
primary industries have levies representing 1 - 2% of GVP, with marketing generally the
largest component.

Table 9.2 – Industry Levies

Source: David Thomason from various ABARE sources.

These funds allow the industry bodies to undertake a range of marketing activities
through a variety of media; targeting a range of stakeholders including consumers, chefs
and retailers. See the web links below for examples from the Australian Meat and
Livestock Association, which is a very well-funded industry group with a strong
marketing presence both locally and internationally.
Marketing communications in action (Industry/cooperative)

The Meat and Livestock Association (MLA)

The MLA heavily market Australian meat and livestock both domestically and
internationally. Domestically, they support consumer campaigns as well as trade
marketing to retailers and food service operators. The MLA also regularly undertakes
research, which they communicate back through their supply chain.

For an overview of their campaign and promotional examples, click here.

Recent media campaign for easy roast lamb – click here.

Sam Kekovich ‘Lambassador’ Australia Day campaign – click here.

Another interesting initiative related to the meat and livestock industry is the
development of the Australian Butchers’ Guild, which works to share knowledge of best
practice at retail level. Their stated raison d'etre is:

“The independent butcher channel is evolving with the rise of newer formats at
both ends of the market. Our aim is to build a fraternity for butchers where ideas
can be shared and where butchers go back to being seen as true artisans and the
fulcrum of the community” (Australian Butchers’ Guild, n.d).

However, not all food industries have such industry promotion funds. Take for example,
the seafood industry. The industry is made up of over thirty different associations
including some sectors with multiple organisations like the prawn industry; with prawn
farmers (APFA) and prawn fishers (ACPF). Other sectors are organised on a state basis
and do not have a national body. This fragmentation makes it almost impossible for any
one industry to undertake major promotional activities like the ones the MLA can
produce. In addition, no organisations have a compulsory levy to generate funds to
support promotion – although this may change with recent legislation changes to allow
the FRDC to undertake the collection and use of levies for marketing purposes.
Case study - The Turkey Farmers Association: Complexities of communication
and the media
The Australian Turkey Farmers Association has decided to pool the advertising spend of
each member farm and develop a national ‘eat turkey’ marketing campaign. The aim of
the campaign is to get Australians to eat turkey more often by reminding people that
turkey is not just a meal for Christmas Day, but is a healthy alternative to red meat or
chicken that is inexpensive and versatile. After voting for the idea of a joint campaign,
and deciding on the financial contribution per farm (the ad budget), the board gave each
of the farmers a month to discuss the idea with their marketing departments and to
come up with suggestions for the campaign plan and media schedule. Most of the
smaller producers had no marketing team and were happy to go along with the status
quo, but the four biggest producers came back with proposals from their marketing
managers.

Company 1: There is so much advertising these days, if we really want people to put
turkey on the table they need to see/hear our ads several times so that the message
sinks in.

Company 2: Most people do shopping on Thursdays or Saturdays so we should use the

budget to run radio ads just on those two days so people hear it on the way to the
supermarket.

Company 3: The goal should be to try get as many people as possible to see our ad at
least once. We should compare the CPM across television, radio, newspapers and
magazines, pick the option that gives us the biggest bang for our buck and then
schedule ads evenly across all days of the week.

Company 4: A combination of direct marketing, in-store samples and a Facebook group

would help us develop an ongoing dialogue with our customers. Also, using those media
would make it easier for us to track the success of the campaign.

Source: Sharp 2013, pp. 427 – 428.

Extra information: ABC Behind the News video, available here, and
http://turkeyfed.com.au/.

Thinking about the case study, how well do the different company
approaches adhere to the principles of effective communication in section
9.3: ‘The steps in developing effective communications?’

Activity
In particular, consider:

• What is the focus on important and valued benefits?

• Who has the right message appeal AND the most effective
execution strategy?

• What are the most effective media formats and scheduling

arrangements?

• Which approaches adopt media and using message strategies to

reach and appeal to as many potential customers as possible?
Remember, light and non-buyers are the key to brand and product
sales growth!
9.5 The importance of integration in the marketing
communications

The following video highlights the importance of IMC and how consistent
messages enable a company’s marketing communications to become more
effective.
Video

Integrated marketing communications (IMC): Advertising placed across media in a

complementary and harmonious manner. Please read the above readings to gain a
deeper understanding of why this is such an important concept.

For practitioners, integrated marketing communication (IMC) has become widely

accepted, pervaded various levels within the firm, and has become an integral part of
brand strategy; which requires extensive brand development activities within the firm
before beginning any external brand communication efforts. Regarding academics, Vargo
and Lusch (2004) argued in a recent paper that marketing is evolving toward a dynamic
and evolutionary process—one that is based on a service-centered view. In keeping with
this evolution, Vargo and Lusch (2004) suggest that IMC should replace diverse, limited-
focus promotional tools, and brand management should be used for initiating and
maintaining a continuing dialogue with the customers and for enhancing relationships.
Strategy must be communicated in such a way that the messages are consistent through
time, and are targeted accurately at appropriate stakeholder audiences. Each
organisation must constantly guard against the transmission of confusing messages,
whether this be through the way in which the telephone is answered, the navigability of
a website, the impact of sales literature, or the way salespersons approach prospective
clients.

Many organisations recognise the usefulness and importance of good public relations.
This is because of the high credibility attached to the messages received and the
relatively low operational costs. As a result, the use of corporate advertising has grown.

Finally, marketing communications recognise the development of channel or trade

marketing. Many organisations have moved away from the traditional control of a brand
manager to a system that focusses upon the needs of distributors and intermediaries in
the channel. The organisations in the channel work together to satisfy their individual
and collective objectives. The degree of conflict and cooperation in the channel network
depends upon a number of factors, but some of the most important are the form and
quality of the communications between member organisations. This means that
marketing communications must address the specific communication needs of members
of the distribution network and of those other stakeholders who impact on or who
influence the performance of the network.

Elements of an integrated strategy

Selecting the most effective media strategy is important. There are a wide range of
media vehicles available, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. The most
effective campaigns use an integrated approach.
The media world is complex and fragmented, making returns from media budgets harder
to maximise. Media synergy creates value over and above that delivered by each
individual media platform. So how can different media be pieced together to create the
most effective strategy?
The media sector around the world has profoundly changed. New ways for consumers to
interact are offered via social media and tablets. These changes offer exciting
possibilities for advertisers. However, more options make decision making complex and
increases the risk of wasting media dollars. Spreading budgets over more media does
not necessarily lead to great effectiveness, so smart planning and synergy matter!
Despite all of these advances, however, television still reigns supreme.

Despite the explosion of new media, studies continue to endorse television’s importance
for advertisers, and campaigns that include television in the multi-platform media mix
outperform those that omit television. Where possible, television should be the
foundation (not the limit) for any multi-platform campaign.

According to Sharp (2013) There are four keys to an effective IMC strategy.

Build cumulative reach more effectively

Advertising can only impact the people it reaches. Cumulative reach, where you reach as
many people as possible at least once, is an important campaign consideration.
Consumers need to be reached!
Evidence to date shows that advertising’s greatest sales effect occurs when an individual
moves from zero to one exposure (Wind & Sharp, 2009). Additional close-by exposures
also increase the chance of a consumer purchasing the brand, but the effect of each
following exposure is each not as much as the preceding exposure.
So an effective multi-platform media mix needs to reach more people without wasting
advertising dollars by hitting the same consumers multiple times with the same stimuli
within a short window.
The aim of multi-platform media planning is to pull fragmented audiences together to
achieve a reach reflective of the brand’s audience. When this has been achieved, then
there is the potential for other multi-platform media synergies to emerge.

Broaden the timing and context that you communicate with consumers
Think about where and when you use media:
• In the morning (newspapers)
• On the bus (radio and mobile)
• At work (computers and social media)
• At home (television and tablets).

By placing advertising in a multi-platform mix, you can insert the advertising into
people’s lives, enhancing receptivity around varied purchase consideration points.

Enhancing IMC repetition by varying its context and exposure interval

Enhance the impact of repetition rather than achieving the lower impact of ordinary
frequency. Excess frequency is close repetition of similar stimuli in the same media. Two
ways to help turn frequency into enhanced repetition are to vary the context and to
space out the exposures. Varying the context stimulates forward encoding: where an ad
in one medium improves the performance of the ad in a second medium because:

“The second exposure gains more attention and the brain is tricked into thinking
the stimuli is more novel than familiar”.

The varied contexts are seen as two separate (rather than repetitive) exposures and are
processed as such.
Allowing time in between exposures means the stimuli is processed more deeply; that is,
longer intervals between exposures result in better learning and up to 20% improvement
in memory than shorter intervals. Heavy bursts of stimuli close together are not always
an efficient way to gain reach. Use multiple media to space out advertising.

Build a highly salient campaign environment

Also known as a ‘neuro-rich’ campaign, this format heightens the long-term processing
of the campaign in memory – the promotion of a brand or product’s cognitive
prominence in the consumer’s mind. The art of the media mix is drawing on the
strengths of each medium and choosing media that mesh together to provide a wide
scope for stimulating consumers’ senses. Different media types provide opportunities to
expand the possible ways consumers can process the campaign exposure.

• What follows are two campaigns which you are to assess for their adherence to
both Kotler and Sharp’s approaches to the optimum IMC strategy.
Integrated Marketing Communications Campaign (Company)

John West

According to their website, John West have “been out there on the roughest seas
catching quality wild fish since 1857. And all that time we've been doing it the John West
way, keeping true to the pioneering spirit of our founder. It means that our quality today
is as consistent as it has always been and that we will continue to serve you the finest
and tastiest wild fish the oceans and rivers have to offer”.

This may well be the case but how, as a private company, do they fare in terms of IMC
strategy? Research the resources below and form your own opinion and then answer the
questions that follow in Activity 9.5.

Website – Their website is available here.

Television Advertising – An overview of their advertisements over the years is

available here.

PR – Their sustainability promises and operational information is displayed here.

Events and experiences – A competition run by John West (though now closed) is
available here.
 Of course, we don’t all have a marketing budget like John West!
• So, what other media vehicles could be considered?
• Is there a role for other digital media beyond organisational
Activity websites?
• What role could social networking sites play?
• What could smaller organisations do to try and compete with John
West?

Integrated Marketing Communications Campaign (Industry)

Alaskan Seafood Marketing Institute (ASMI)

According to the ASMI:

The organization is charged with the mission of increasing the economic value of the
Alaska seafood resource through:

• Increasing the positive awareness of the Alaska Seafood brand;

• Collaborative marketing programs that align ASMI and industry marketing efforts
for maximum impact within the food industry;
• Long-term proactive marketing planning;
• Quality assurance, technical industry analysis, education, advocacy and research;
• Prudent, efficient fiscal management.

ASMI is a public-private partnership between the State of Alaska and the Alaska seafood
industry established to foster economic development of a renewable natural resource.
ASMI is playing a key role in the repositioning of Alaska’s seafood industry as a
competitive market-driven food production industry. Its work to boost the value of
Alaska’s seafood product portfolio is accomplished through partnerships with retail
grocers, foodservice distributors, restaurant chains, foodservice operators, universities,
culinary schools, and the media. It conducts consumer campaigns, public relations and
advertising activities, and aligns with industry efforts for maximum effectiveness. ASMI
also functions as a brand manager of the Alaska Seafood family of brands.
Alaska Seafood’s website is available here.

Please follow the following link in considering your answers to Activity 9.6.
 As with John West, ASMI is a well-organised and well-funded.
However, the difference is that it exists for quite different functional
purposes as stated in its mission statement.

Activity Despite these differences in its functional existence, how does the ASMI
fare as an organisation when it comes to implementing an IMC campaign?
• So, what other media vehicles could be considered?
• Is there a role for other digital media beyond organisational
websites?
• What role could social networking sites play?

Sydney Seafood School

Operating at the Sydney Fish Market (SFM), the
Sydney Seafood School opened in 1989 to
educate visitors about the consumption of
seafood through practical cooking classes. As
the SFM is the largest fish market in the
Southern Hemisphere, trading over 14,500
tonnes of seafood annually; the SFM is an ideal
location to further educate consumers in the art
of seafood preparation and presentation.

Originally, the School’s aim was to encourage

visitors to cook with more unusual seafood
ingredients (e.g. abalone, octopus and squid),
which weren’t utilised by the broader community. Visitors nowadays enjoy using more
exotic ingredients, and aren’t afraid to prepare them in a wider variety of cuisines.

In addition to regular demonstrators, chefs are sourced from high-end restaurants

around Sydney to teach classes in-person, which adds to the professional allure of the
School. Appearances by celebrity chefs such as Justin North and Darren Robertson fuel
the increasing public interest in gourmet food, termed the ‘MasterChef Effect’.

The School attracts 13,000 people annually. The types of classes offered range from
demonstrations, hands-on cooking classes, food photography workshops, and tours
which offer the opportunity for guests to tour Thai food shops in Chinatown. The Sydney
Seafood School caters for all skill levels and offers a professional perspective into food
preparation, while ensuring that guests socialise and enjoy expanding their knowledge
and creativity when preparing seafood. Here is a brief video of the school in action.

Discussion Questions

1. Where does the Cooking School fit in terms of the promotional mix? How effective
do you think this strategy is in terms of promoting Australian seafood, and
specifically undervalued species?
2. What additional benefits would exist from having celebrity chefs teach classes, in
terms of promoting Australian seafood?
3. What benefits would the celebrity chefs get from teaching these classes?
9.6 Conclusions
This module has presented a definition of marketing communications and outlined the
strategic importance of integrated marketing communication. It details the types of
media strategies and mediums that both individual companies and industry bodies use to
deliver their marketing messages and how they position themselves strategically as a
result. The members of the fragmented Australian food industry have to use this
knowledge to best design the most effective communication campaigns for their
particular products – a process that, as the case studies and examples demonstrated,
can vary widely. In a gestalt sense, the key elements of successful IMC were outlined,
but with specific reference to particular industry players and producer types as
examples. The module concluded by reinforcing the need to successfully and effectively
integrate communication formats and strategies to offer companies and industries the
optimum chance of market success. This module in particular should provide food for
thought in considering the IMC approach for your particular industry.
References

Australian Butchers’ Guild n.d, available at, <http://www.australianbutchersguild.com.au/Home>

Barnard, N. & Ehrenberg, A. 1997, ‘Advertising: strongly persuasive or nudging?’, Journal of

Advertising Research, vol. 37, no. 1, pp. 21-32.

Fill, C. & Jamieson, B. 2006, Marketing communications, Edinburgh Business School, (pp. 3 – 17),
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Greenpeace 2014, ‘2014 canned tuna guide – rank’, available at: <
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guide/ranking/>

Keller, KL. 1993, ‘Conceptualizing, measuring, and managing customer-based brand equity’,
Journal of Marketing, vol. 57, no.1, pp. 1 – 22.

Keller, KL. 2009, ‘Building strong brands in a modern marketing communications

environment’, Journal of Marketing Communications, vol.15, no. 2 – 3, pp. 139 – 155.

Kotler, P. & Keller, KL. 2009, A framework for marketing management, 4th edn, Prentice Hall,
Upper Saddle River, pp. 274 – 276.

Merzereau, P. & Battais, L. 2000, ‘Continuity or burst? How do TV strategies compare?’, Admap,
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Loose, SM., Peschel, A. & Grebitus, C. 2013, ‘Quantifying effects of convenience and product
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Sharp, B. 2010, How brands grow: What marketers don't know, Oxford University Press, South
Melbourne.

Sharp, B. 2013, Marketing: theory, evidence, practice, Oxford University Press, South Melbourne,
(Chapter 11 – Media Decisions: Reaching Buyers with Advertising, pp. 380 – 431).

Towie, N. 2011, ‘Sustainable tinned tuna brand revealed’ Perth Now, August 14, available at: <
http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/sustainable-tinned-tuna-brand-revealed/story-e6frg19l-
1226114724013>

Woolworths 2014a, Australian thawed Prawn Tiger cooked medium per kg, available at: <
http://www2.woolworthsonline.com.au/shop/ProductDetails?Stockcode=66384&name=austr
alian-thawed-prawns-tiger-cooked-medium>

Woolworths 2014b, Thawed Prawn Vannamei cooked small per kg, available at: <
http://www2.woolworthsonline.com.au/shop/ProductDetails?Stockcode=190683&name=tha
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Tassal Vignette References

Romaniuk, J. 2013, Evaluation of the impact of advertising Tassal Atlantic Salmon on growth of
sales of the Tassal brand and the whole salmon category, Seafood CRC project 2011/756,
Australian Seafood Cooperative Research Centre.

Sydney Seafood School Vignette References

Sydney Fish Market 2014, available at: <http://www.sydneyfishmarket.com.au>.