Marketing communication or marketing communication (marcom) is certainly no longer a foreign term. Especially for those of you who are engaged in marketing and sales (sales). Basically, marketing communication itself refers to the strategies companies use to reach the target market in accordance with business objectives.
To achieve this goal, the company will of course implement various strategies in the business processes or business processes that it executes. Its application can also be done through various media such as a media marketing campaign.
For example, search engine advertising such as Google Ads, social media advertising such as Facebook Ads and Instagram Ads, through direct marketing (personal selling and direct marketing), traditional marketing such as serving ads on TV and billboards, media mix or other types of marketing campaigns.
However, implementing a marketing communication strategy is not easy. Careful planning is required in terms of marketing plan and marketing strategy so that this marketing communication can go smoothly.
So, how to apply marcom as an effective marketing strategy?
What is Marketing Communications?
Launch from Small Business Chron, marketing communications or commercial communication is all the messages and media that the company conveys in order to communicate with the target market.
The shape of this marcom also varies. Starting with marketing campaign strategy, brand strategy, public relations activities, CSR strategy, business approach and sales pitch, sponsorship, etc. Because the most important thing in marketing communication is knowing how to interact and transmit product knowledge to the target and market segmentation that the company is aiming for.
If the marketing communication is attractive enough, the company can not only increase sales and sales growth. However, the possibility of converting consumers who make repeat purchases into loyal customers will also increase.
However, the marcom concept often fails due to the selection of marketing methods that are not in line with the target market. It is therefore important to develop the right strategy. Be sure to do market research (market research) to know the positioning and direction of the market correctly and on target.
On the other hand, in its development, companies sometimes also apply IMC (integrated marketing communication). IMC is an integrated marketing communication. It is an approach to ensure harmonized brand communication for consumers across all marketing channels. Whether via omnichannel or multichannel.
The main concept of IMC is to create a better customer experience in various aspects of the marketing mix. Whether it is a 4p marketing mix strategy, a 5p marketing mix or even a 7p marketing mix. In addition, IMC also plays an important role in maximizing the communication process and spreading an effective brand voice to maximize the relationship between brands and customers.
IMC itself is the most effective strategy you can use to attract market interest with promotional items and strategies based on the AIDA model. Namely attention/consciousness (attention), interest (interest), desire (desire) and action (action).
Benefits of marketing communication
You should know that implementing marcom comes down to pursuing a long-term marketing strategy. Because it is different from other marketing concepts, marcom will show concrete results in a long time.
Here are some of the benefits of implementing the marcom strategy:
- Effectively increase your brand awareness with a strong and consistent message. Thus, the risk of customers ignoring your message will be even lower.
- Aims to convey a consistent brand voice and message. So that prospects can really receive and understand the message that your brand wants to convey. A lead is a collection of potential customers who are interested or have an interest in your brand.
- Marketing communication plays a role in changing customer perceptions and feelings. Because it’s not uncommon for misunderstandings to often arise in the community regarding a company’s product or service
- Useful for building a brand image. With marcom, brand assets will be formed more easily. For example, logo, value proposition, marketing content and brand voice
- Can create an effective customer experience. Today, customers are not only looking for their favorite product or service, but also want an experience that works for them. With marcom, customers will help determine how your marketing message is delivered. So that it can produce a better customer experience
- Building brand trust and attracting more brand loyal customers (brand loyalty)
- Encourage customers to make repeat purchases in the customer lifecycle. For example, with a marketing campaign that emphasizes the benefits customers will get (customer value).
Marketing communication strategies
To support the success of marketing communication, the company needs a precise strategy. The implementation of this strategy is in line with the company’s business targets and objectives. For example, the business wants to focus on increasing revenue or building customer loyalty (customer retention).
Here are the marketing communication strategies you can apply:
1. Determine the target market
The first and most important strategy that businesses must adopt is to first identify the target market. The trick is to do market research and market segmentation. You can perform STP or segmentation based on customer behavior when purchasing goods (behavioral segmentation). Additionally, you can also map customers based on psychographics, demographics, and geography.
2. Determine the Unique Selling Point (USP)
The second is to determine the USP or Unique Selling Point. Namely the features or uniqueness that your product offers to customers. This USP is important to ensure that your product has a different product value than other competitors.
To determine the USP, you can first map the UVP to find out weak points and what customers want from a product. In addition, you should also perform competitive analysis or competitor analysis to analyze the capability of your competitors.
This way, you can find out which values will make your product stand out more than competitors’ products.
3. Consistent
All strategies, of course, require consistency in their implementation. Likewise with marketing communications. Consistency here means trying to get the company to deliver a message that is clear, aligned, and persistent in the minds of customers. This will make it easier for customers to recognize your product.
The trick is to adjust the language style or communication style (brand voice) across all platforms. Adapt this style of language to your target market. For example, if you’re targeting teenagers, use relaxed, casual language. In the meantime, if you’re targeting the upper middle class, it’s best to use a formal, professional style of language.
To be more aligned, make sure to design clear brand guidelines. With these guidelines, consistency will be created across all platforms or marketing channels.
4. Choose the right marketing channel
The last strategy is to choose the most suitable marketing channel or marketing channel. As we know, there are many marketing channels we can choose from. From owned media, paid media, earned media. For successful marketing communication, choose the marketing channel that best suits the target market.
For example, your target is millennials and Gen Zs. Then using proprietary media such as social media will be the best bet. You can implement marketing communications through social media marketing content.
This is a review of marketing communication and its benefits and implementation strategies. Basically, marketing communication is very important in supporting the achievement of business goals of the company. With smooth marketing communications, business metrics (business performance metrics) for marketing activities can be obtained more easily.
On the other hand, you can also take advantage of the services of a digital marketing agency that can help support your business success. Some of the marketing strategies that can be implemented are growth hack marketing, inbound marketing, 360 digital marketing and data driven marketing so that the business can grow rapidly.
