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Consumers have come a long way since the 160s when John Fitzgerald Kennedy established the Consumers Bill of Rights. In actuality, the consumers have grown skeptical, due to gaps between what company's say and in how they (or their products) actually perform. Enter Integrated Marketing Communication (hereafter referred to as IMC). The decline in corporations and their productivity has led to a new movement intending to integrate the three main assets of business public relations (hereafter referred to as PR), advertising and marketing. The purpose of this paper is to determine the role of PR in IMC; however, in order to do this, we must first understand what IMC is and what purpose it serves.In recent years there has been a shift from the emphasis on the individual spectrums of advertising, marketing, and PR to movement toward IMC. Its goal? To create a unified message. To find one efficient definition of IMC is hard to come by; however, loosely defined Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) isThe process of building and reinforcing mutually profitable relationships with employees, customers, other stake holders, and the general public by developing and coordinating a strategic communications program that enables them to make constructive contact with the company/brand through a variety of media (Arens, IT10).Initially companies took an inside-out view of IMC. To them it was a means to coordinate and manage advertising, PR and marketing in order to give a consistent message to their target audience. This idea was soon ousted by the outside-in perspective. Outside-in sees consumers as partners in a lasting, continual relationship, knowing every last detail from their buying references to the ways in which they come into contact with companies or brands. In this perspective, the customer, not the employer or employees, are their biggest assets.
Tom Duncan, former director of the IMC grad program at the University of Colorado, Boulder, identified four levels of integration that companies use-consciously or unconsciously-in IMC. These four levels, known collectively as the IMC synergy model, are (1) Unified Image, in which the approach is focused on a brand's image; 'one look, one voice' this "approach emphasizes unity among various communication and promotional tools to reflect a single positioning strategy at the outset of a promotional campaign" (Carlson, Dorsch, and Grove, 5); () Consistent Voice where messages are consistent in tone and look; coordinated toward various audiences; () Good Listener, which is mildly interactive and solicits two-way communication for long periods of time, thus allowing feedback through different media (surveys, toll-free calls, etc.); and (4) World Class Citizen, which is very interactive, social and based in strong company morals and culture; the focus is the community at large. (Moriarty, 40-41)Another theory Duncan coined in determining the works to IMC was that of IMC Message Typology, which is a model of four kinds of company-related messages communicated through an organization. The four types of messages that a company needs to be aware of are planned, inferred (product), maintenance (service) and unplanned messages. Planned messages are deliberate, traditional communication and generally have the least impact in that they are viewed as self-serving. Inferred, also known as product, messages, have great impact on audiences because they are based upon the impressions a brand or organization makes on the individual; however, if the people are not satisfied with claims or image, then a negative message is more than likely going to be conveyed. Maintenance, a.k.a. service, messages are the result of employee and customer interaction, i.e., communicated through service. In this type of messaging, the marketing department generally works with individuals in operations to lessen the amount of negative messages and maximize the positive ones. In the final type of messages, unplanned messages, organizations have very little control. This form of message is generated through rumors or employee gossip, unsought news stories or investigations done by reporters, and through disasters. (Arens, 41 and Moriarty, 8-). When observing IMC message typology, organizations obtain "a more logical structure for developing stakeholder communication strategies"(Moriarty, ). Unplanned messages have the tendency to affect a consumer's attitudes but can sometimes be anticipated. The final theory Duncan has brought to the concept of IMC is Zero Based Planning. In zero based planning strategy planning, and budget planning begin from the bottom and work their way up. Zero based planning varies from traditional communication planning in that it identifies an objective to a communication area that is more likely to deliver success. With knowledge of Duncan's three important theories to IMC, it is a wonder where exactly PR fits into the overall scheme of IMC. Public Relations, as defined in a class lecture, is a management function that establishes and maintains mutually beneficial relationships between and organization and its publics. This is done through obtaining publicity favorable to the company, creating a good "corporate image" and handling or heading off unfavorable rumors, stories and events. (Seitel, ). PR is a function that fits into all three of the theories addressed earlier in the paper as well as having many other individual functions, being that those theories do not make up all of IMC. The tasks of a Public Relations professional are much the same as they are in a company without IMC, however, with IMC, it forces different arenas of business to work together, sharing everything equally. Essential to any organization is the need to have a firm grasp on its publics. In IMC it is not only essential to have a firm grasp on its publics, but more importantly customers, individually. According to Ken Reich, "customer perceptions and behavior are crucial to crystallizing the keys to successful marketing plans" (Reich, 7). Organizations have a very small chance of success if they do not have good relationships with their customers "that go beyond the pure selling of a product or service" (Seitel, 6). PR revolves around relationships. Part of the PR job description is to research to determine who their customers are, and what they want, in an attempt to establish credibility with the product, as well as the organization. Once they have this, it can be passed along to advertising and marketing departments so as to adhere to what these customers are looking for and desiring from a certain good or service. Since this is a major aspect in IMC, it is believed that PR professionals are better required to lead the IMC initiative. While it may be true that PR professionals are well suited to lead the initiative, it is a decision that needs to be fair and based on qualifications.Aside from customer communication, PR professionals can bring management into the communication circle in order to demonstrate the importance of good communication. To be fully integrated into the organization, PR needs to be able to "learn how to counsel management and manage communication in a way that shapes the opinions and behavior of relevant constituents" (Gonring, 46). This can prepare management for any unforseen issues that could cause detriment to the organization. This exemplifies the way PR is worked into the unplanned messages that Duncan coined for all of IMC. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, PR plays a role in unplanned messages. However, it is not limited strictly to the unplanned aspect of IMC message typology. Planned messages, entails PR through the use of news releases, direct response actions, etc. Maintenance messages respond to customer contact as well as employee relations programs, which, as stated before, are a main part in any communication and a very large aspect of PR. Public relation's role in the IMC synergy model varies with each aspect. PR withing the unified voice is the basic crux of what IMC is all about, working together toward a single goal. Consistency, which is concerned with brand image, is more concerned with advertising and promotion, although PR advice is sometimes needed to determine what the consistent message should be. PR is incorporated into the Good Listener model because of the extent to which it values two-way communication. Two-way communication allows for a constant flow of organization to consumer communication, and constant feedback, working in a cyclical fashion. This process aides in maintaining relationships with consumers and publics, because it shows true concern on an organization's part to please the individual, one of the main concepts behind PR. Finally the last component of the IMC synergy model, world class citizen applies to PR through the customer/organizational relations, but also the employee/management relations within an organization. The morals and missions of a company are more than just words on a paper here, instead they are the means in which each employee interacts with one another and its publics with the objective of promoting the company in a positive light. This creates a good "corporate image," which is one of the most important aspects of PR. Companies like Disney and Hallmark use this model, and rely heavily on effective PR and event planning and less on advertising. In this strategy, high level PR is necessary in determining the mission strategy and creates buy-in throughout the organization (4). Zero based planning can incorporate PR, however, it depends upon the situation. If the strategy or budget plan being created is meant to establish believability especially when it deals with claims on a product or the viewpoints of a corporation, then a PR professional might be best suited to lead this endeavor. Within the context of this particular situation, advertising and marketing are not forgotten, but are necessary to provide support in reinforcing the main message strategy. PR professionals know with whom the message strategy should communicate, i.e., local communities, employees, and the media -and what each of their particular needs are. Being able to locate these audiences is the determining facto in who will address each audience and with what particular message. Since individuals can wear the dual hat -that of the shareholder and that of the employee-there is a chance that conflicting messages can be sent to the same individual twice. PR professionals, who are skilled in cross message conflicts, can aid in this aspect of communication integration. Lastly, the timing of the campaign planning is important. Publicity is dependent upon announcing news. Because of this, PR will generally make announcements before the message is handed over to advertising and sales promotion. PR's presence in the planning process with all the other marketing communication functions is crucial. This allows for integrated strategies to be integrated effectively. (Moriarty, 4-4).Not every organization has adopted Integrated Marketing Communication, but as time moves on, more of them will. PR's role varies with each aspect of IMC. It can be a mediator between each department of organizations, and a liaison to the public or the head of a zero based planning strategy. Whatever the role may be, it is important for a PR professional to realize that they are no longer limited to practicing strictly PR. PR people in IMC are required to expand their horizons, and increase their knowledge of all other facets of a company and willing participate in any way shape or form. Please note that this sample paper on Public Relations Role In Integrated Marketing Communication is for your review only. In order to eliminate any of the plagiarism issues, it is highly recommended that you do not use it for you own writing purposes. In case you experience difficulties with writing a well structured and accurately composed paper on Public Relations Role In Integrated Marketing Communication, we are here to assist you. 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