Institute of Business Management

College of Business Management

Course Outline
Integrated Marketing Communication [MKT527]
University: Institute of Business Management
Faculty: Ejaz Wasay
Course specifications
Program(s) on which the course is given:
Major or minor elements of Programs:
Department offering the Program:
Management
Department offering the course:
Academic year/Level:
Date of upgraded specification approval:

MBA
Marketing Major
College of Business
Marketing
2013 / Level 3
September 2016

A. Basic Information
Title: Integrated Marketing Communication Code: MKT 527
Credit hours: 3
Tutorial: 1

Lectures: 2
Practical:

Total: 3

B. Professional Information
1. Overall aims of course
The objective of this elective course is to provide students with a more
contemporary understanding of Integrated Marketing Communication
(IMC), both from a conceptual point of view as well as its practical
application in business today.
The course will take students through the evolutionary process of IMC
starting from its origins in the 1980s and 1990s, when the concept of
integrating marketing communication emerged as a mean of bringing all
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forms of external marketing communication on a single platform. Most

organizations at the time were structurally oriented with functional lines
clearly demarcated and communication along vertical lines. IMC was
presented as a counterforce to the traditional business model, by experts
like Don Schulz, Stanley I. Tannenbaum, and Robert F. Lauterborn and it
rapidly gained support as more matrix and cross-functional orientation in
organizations becoming a reality.
Discussions will cover the concept and principles of value-based IMC,
impact of communication on buying behavior, the role of promotional
activities and tools and their influence on behavior, as well as the
importance of creativity, consistency and effective resource allocations. The
materials used will provide insight into more advanced concepts of
integration and reciprocity, including integration with the supply chain and
partner organizations, and the enhanced role of IMC within the social media
ecosystem, before rounding off with structural changes required within
organizations for optimal implementation. Case studies will form an
essential part of the pedagogy and the basis of real-life-experience based
discussions on the subject.
2. Intended learning outcomes of course (ILOs)
a. Knowledge and understanding
1) Role of IMC in the changing business & market ecosystem.
2) Influence of communication on consumer buying behavior.
3) New rules of integration resulting in more effective use of resources.
4) Integration of traditional and new media vehicles.
5) Organizational restructuring in the face of changing business
dynamics.
b. Intellectual skills
1) Enhancing the capacity for critical thinking and analysis within the
business communications area.
2) Adopting a more holistic approach to marketing communications.
3) Developing new models and thought processes for specific business
situations.
c. Professional and practical skills
1) Analyzing business case studies and relating issues to the local
business environment.
2) Effective use of media vehicles and media research tools and
techniques.
d. General and transferable skills
1) Writing articles & case studies based on interaction with he
corporate sector.
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2) Working together in teams making joint presentations.

Pedagogy
Lecture with interactive discussion
Case study discussion.
Input sessions (student centered)
Review and evaluation (interactive).

1
&
2

Revisiting Marketing Communication

Introduction
to
Integrated
Communication (IMC)

3.
Marketing 0

3.
0

This opening session will begin with a recap of the

traditional concept of Marketing Communication. Students
will be introduced to the concept of IMC as it has evolved
from the 1980a to the early 2000s. Comparisons will be
made between the classical approach of business, driven by
the overall objective of capturing and controlling market
segments by outspending and out-maneuvering competition,
and the more customer-driven approach already well
entrenched in Japan and Western European markets. The
drivers of IMC such as digital technology, branding and
growing focus on globalization, are also discussed in some
detail.
Learning Outcomes:

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Tutorial

Topic

Lecture

No. of hours

3. Contents/ Learning Outcomes:

1. Evaluate the inherent limitations of traditional 4Ps

Marketing the impact of the changing business
environment on marketing of products and services.
2. Review the stages of evolution of IMC.
3. Understand the impact of emerging technologies and
global orientation on businesses, and the need to adopt a
more cohesive approach across markets.
3
&
4

What we know about IMC.

3.
0

2.
0

1.
0

Guiding Principles of Value-based IMC/ IMC 3.

0
Planning Process
Deadline 1: Submission of Term Project Proposal
along with Team names and Company selected.

2.
0

1.
0

This chapter from the prescribed text focuses on

developments in IMC from three separate perspectives.
Firstly, it analyzes research findings on where organizations
stand with respect to developing plans for and implanting
IMC. Secondly, it examines the findings of a global study to
see how IMC is practiced in five selected countries. And,
finally, the discussion concentrates on how companies use
technology to leverage customer know-how and build
customer relationships on that basis.
Learning outcomes:
1. Understand the stages in the development of IMC based
on the findings of a global research project covering
Partner Companies (already practicing or in the process
of implementing IMC) and Sponsors (those desirous of
implementing IMC).
2. Identify factors that either assist in or impede the
implementation of IMC.
3. Review how companies leverage (acquire, manage and
use) customer data to facilitate the process.

5
&
6

This session will concentrate on the essentials of IMC

implementation. It will focus on the changes companies
require in their structure and operations, before graduating
from the initial stage, where IMC only aims at coordinating
the functional elements of marketing communication. The
more elevated role of communication- both marketing and
corporate - as a strategic management tool will be discussed.
The eight guiding principles and the five steps of IMC
planning form part of the discussion.
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Learning Outcomes:
1. Visualize IMC as a strategic management tool based on
Intels Intel Inside campaign.
2. Review the guiding principles of customer-oriented, valuebased IMC.
3. Comprehend step-wise process for developing and
implementing IMC programs and their place in a
companys SOP.
7
&
8

Defining Customers, Identifying Behavior

3.
0

2.
0

1.
0

The focus of this chapter is on redefining customers and

identifying patterns of behavior not along traditional lines,
where market segments are created by breaking down the
larger
market
into
smaller
groups
with
similar
characteristics, but by means of a bottom-up approach. The
discussion will bring out the importance of looking at
customers as individuals, and not groups, and the source of
income-flows for companies. The rationale behind this
approach is that when companies lose sight of the individual
behind the purchase, they lose sight of the objectives of
communication.
Learning Outcomes:
1. Explore the dynamics of buyer behavior based on
concrete behavioral data rather than purchase intentions
research.
2. Compare
the
process
of
aggregation
with
segmentation as a means of classifying the market.
3. Identify sources of customer data - internal and external
and ways of organizing data on a continuum going from
tactical to strategic using the BMW example to
illustrate the point.
4. Understand how data may be combined and shared for
better consumer insight, across the organization.

1st Mid-Term Exam

1
0

Planning MarCom Delivery

1.
5
1.
5

1.
5
0.
5

Once customer identification is complete and customer

valuation is available the discussion on IMC moves to
planning its delivery in an effective manner. That would
require in-depth understanding of where and how customers
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come into contact with brands, as well as the existence and

functioning of customer-driven brand networks, outside of
the formal media networks. The discussion will also highlight
the point that contrary to traditional practice where message
is developed first and the media identified later, IMC
requires the identification of media before developing the
message.
Learning Outcomes:
1. Learn how to conduct and use brand contact audits
(based on CIGNA & AUDI examples) to identify
customers..
2. Appreciate how brand contact can be optimized based on
relevance and receptivity.
3. Understand the challenge of media integration and the
reverse flow of communication.
4. Learn how to utilize brand media networks.
1
1

3.
Planning MarCom Content
Deadline 2: Deadline for submission of Questionnaire/ 0
Discussion Guide for meeting with company.

2.
0

1.
0

This session starts off with developing an understanding of

how consumers perceive communication. The discussion
then proceeds to understanding the tools and techniques of
gathering customer insights, and its importance in the
development of effective marketing communication. The
importance of achieving the right fit between a brand or
category, and organizational capability is also emphasized. In
the concluding part, the interplay of the message and the
incentive tactics is also debated.
Progress made in the work for the Term Project will be
reviewed based on submissions of Draft 1.
Learning Outcomes:
1. Identifying the need for developing & testing customer
insights.
2. Matching organizational capability and customer insight.
3. Using tools such as the communication development
strategy questionnaire to study target motivation, as well
as relevance of key product benefits and product
differentiation.
4. Devising insights pertaining to message and incentive
strategy.
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1
2
&
1
3

3.
Case study: IBM in the 21st Century
0
Case Review Session (Students Presentations)
The purpose of this case study on IBM is to understand how
the largest of companies can implement and benefit from
integration, in an increasingly challenging and complex
global business operating environments. The case highlights
the role that corporate values and principles play, in the
functioning of large, networked organizations, and the
importance of leadership in creating and implementing
companywide integration. The case also illustrates how
change management skills can be utilized to bring about
strategic and systemic transformation on a global scale.

1.
0

2.
0

2.
0

1.
0

Learning outcomes:
1. Understanding the forces that led IBM to continuously
reinvent itself over the last two decades.
2. Analyzing how IBM, a mainframe computer manufacturer,
could transform itself into a value-added solutions
provider in the late 1990s and then move on to become a
Globally Integrated Enterprise (GIE) in the new
millennium.
3. Identifying the skill sets of outstanding corporate leaders
and the strategic depth they can bring to a company.
4. Visualizing the process complexities and planning
required for implementing organizational integration.
1
4
&
1
5

Social Media Ecosystem

3.
0

This session on social media ecosystem will review the

article titled Were all connected: The power of the social
media ecosystem by three authors from Northeastern
University and Boston College. The article analyzes the role
of modern-day customers in co-creating marketing content.
The authors point out that while this collaborative effort is
gaining momentum, most companies are unaware of social
media metrics and shy away from integrating it with
mainstream marketing programs. The authors use a bestpractice case study to establish the viability of integrating
social and traditional media campaigns. The Grammy Awards
example will be used to illustrate how IMC can be effectively
used.
Learning Outcomes:
1. Understanding the role of technology as a key driver of
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social media, and source of empowerment for consumers.

2. Exploring platforms available for social media campaigns.
Discussing the growing importance of consumer
conversations as opposed to corporate messages in
creating demand for brands.
3. Evaluating the changing role of a consumer - from
Bystander to Hunter to Participant.
1
6

3.
0

1.
0

2.
0

1 IMC, BE & Shareholder Value

3.
7
0
& The topic focuses on the strong relationship between IMC
1 and Brand Equity. It highlights the fact that just as IMC aims
8 to generate income flows, brand equity also represents
future earning potential of a brand. The discussion explains
how IMC perspective a brand as a bundle of assets. It also
emphasizes how intangible aspects of a brand such as brand
presence, identity, perceived quality and customer
commitment contribute towards building brand value. In the
latter part, the discussion focuses on the role of brand as a
key value driver.

2.
0

1.
0

Case Study: HP is Personal Again

HP advertising campaign, implemented at the end of 2006,

was a truly unique example of how a computer manufacturer
created a place in the hearts and minds of consumers for the
brand, and extended its reach to a global level. Several
hundred million dollars were spent on the campaign targeted
at 18-34 year old individual customers and small to mid-size
companies. Its theme - The Computer is Personal Again
continued to lead the way to HPs success for many years.
Learning Outcomes:
1. Discover the challenges faced by a computer brand in a
competitive market situation when computers were still
not seen as a necessary part of ones life.
2. Evaluate how HP took a bold step in trying to give
computers the human touch. Discuss the process by
which the company took the campaign idea to ensure its
acceptability among the potential segment young office
workers or executives.
3. Assess the impact of the campaign on HP and the
personal computer industry.

Learning Outcomes:
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1. Understand the role of Brand Equity (BE) in generating

long-term shareholder value.
2. Analyze the asset nature of brands from a legal,
financial and relationship building perspective.
Identify the four major aspects of a brand that influence
the calculation of BE under IMC.
2nd Mid-Term Exam

1
9
2 Case study Barack Obama
3.
0 Case Review Session (Students Presentations)
0
& This case study is an outstanding example of how an
2 integrated, social media driven campaign the first of its
1 kind helped elect the President of the United States. Of
special interest is the description of the organization and the
entire campaign process, and reflects how best the principle
of integrated marketing communication can be utilized even
beyond the corporate environment.

1.
0

2.
0

1.
0

2.
0

Learning Outcomes:
1. Understand the importance of objectives in the
development of strategy.
2. Learn how to identify opportunities and capitalize on
them with confidence.
3. Discuss and observe the role close coordination between
different units of departments in creating impactful
communication
4. Experience the excitement of winning a campaign and the
rigor in achieving success.
2 Organizing for Integration
3.
2 Deadline for submission of Rough Draft of Term Project 0
&
write-up.
2
3 This session explores some of the major organizational issues
that impede integration, principal among them being
ineffective organizational design and obsolete organizational
structures. These also result in inefficient use of people and
resources. The discussion will consider how alignment of the
firms material resources, people, activities, and actions play
a part in creating an integrated organization. The discussion
is rounded off with an understanding of the need for external
as opposed to internal focus for developing horizontal
communication systems, the importance of incentivizing
stakeholders and of adopting a long-term view in decision
making. Finally, the need to elevate the role of the marketing

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communications manager is also emphasized.

Learning Outcomes:
1. Identify organizational issues that impede the
implementation of IMC in organizations. Understand the
four specific areas that organizations need to address.
2. Appreciate the importance of organizational change
required, and the critical role of a marketing
communications manager for building and sustaining
customer relationships.
3. Assess the impact and acceptability of the marketing
communication manager in a more strategic role that that
of the Brand or Marketing Manager in the traditional
hierarchy.
2
4

Future directions for IMC

3.
0

2.
0

1.
0

This session will start off by revisiting the four barriers to

implementation of IMC, discussed at the beginning of the
term. It will recognize the progress made in organizations
working towards becoming customer-oriented, as well as the
inertia of 4P marketing, still observed in organizations.
Mandatory factors for integration will form part of the
debate. Finally, the discussion will highlight the seven future
challenges for IMC as well as solutions in terms of changes
in policies, practices and structure.
Learning Outcomes:
1. Revisiting barriers to advances in implementing IMC .
2. Identifying mandatory factors for integration in
organizations including patronage from the top.
3. Overcoming the seven challenges companies in
implementing IMC finding solutions.
4. Extending the experience of IMC to reinvent
marketing communication.
2
5
&
2
6
2
7

3.
Term Project Presentations
Students will present using PowerPoint and submit the 0
project write-up in Word format.

Case study - The Apple Store

3.
0

3.
0

1.
5

1.
5

This case contains many of the ingredients necessary to

teach the basics of marketing strategy. As Apple continue to
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launch innovative products at higher than market prices,

conventional
electronics
outlets
increasingly
appear
dysfunctional, and the company decides to launch its own
network of Apple Stores. The case depicts Apples strategic
background, recounts the early thinking surrounding the
stores initiative, and describes the store elements in some
detail.
Learning Outcomes:
1. Assessing the function of the distribution channel as a
tool beyond logistics and as a support for a firms
marketing & communication strategy.
2. Understanding the logic of consumer empowerment
and importance of engaging customer relationships.
3. Adopting the strategy of contrasting efficiency and
innovation as two strategies to defeat commoditization.
2
8

An Open House on IMC Debating Concept, Clarifying 3.

Understanding
0

2
9
&
3
0

Final Exam

3.
0

4. Teaching and learning methods

The teaching methodology will include lectures, professional academic
illustrative videos, class discussions, case studies, presentations and a term
project. Case studies have been selected to develop specific, actionable
skills and are not intended to be vehicles for endless discussions and
opinions about overall business generalizations. Therefore they will be very
focused on some specific business issues or successes with a view to
developing analytical skills and learning based on the experiences of
reputable brands and brand-owners. The lectures are designed to reinforce
and expand upon, not to substitute for, what students learn from the
assigned readings and study. The Open House is a new effort to engage
students in a debate on IMC that will not only strengthen their
understanding of IMC but also clarify concepts.
Class organization and Project
Semester-Long Experiential Learning Project
The objective of this Term Project will be to expose students to the practice
of IMC in organizations - to understand to what extent organizations have
adopted IMC and what challenges if any they face in its implementation.
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Students shall work in Groups of 3-4 students each.

Each Group will be required to deliver a Term Project in the form of a
Case Study, under the theme of IMC practices in organizations:
An analysis of decision-making models, organizational
structure, and cross-departmental dynamics.
Students will look for clues in:
o Organizational structure.
o Status of Marketing (as a pan-organizational discipline & as a
department) within the organization.
o Formal & informal modes of communication: internal & external
(Tools, techniques used or promoted).
o Coordination with Suppliers/ Vendors, Distributors, Communication
Agencies, Others.
o Interaction with customers (touch-points)/ Influence of customers
on company decision-making process.
o Opportunities for integration in organization.
Deadline 1 (Session 6): Deadline for submission of Term Project
Proposal along with Team names and Company selected.
Deadline 2 (Session 13): Deadline for submission of Questionnaire/
Discussion Guide for meeting with company.
Deadline 3 (Session 23): Deadline for submission of First Draft of
Term Project.
Presentation: (Sessions 25 & 26).

Usually, considerable company material is included in case studies, which

tends to mask the real objective of the project. Students will be encouraged
to focus on the use of such information to enhance their evaluation of the
marketing practices listed above and making recommendations.
5. Student assessment methods
CASE PRESENTATIONS ORAL PRESENTATION RUBRIC [OK]
Individual presentations will be graded based upon the following set of
criteria:
Content (45%)
Included here is whether the student has substantially and fully examined
all of the issues, problems, and understands all aspects of the facts of the
case. Does the student fully understand the dynamics of the case and have
they presented realistic alternatives, realistic objectives, and sound
implementation strategies.
Presentation Itself (30%)
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Included here are the layout, content, and presentation of the slides or
other forms for presenting the material. This takes into account the
professionalism of the presenters.
Completeness (25%)
This includes the correctness of answering questions from the instructor
and/or audience members, as well as preparation by the student member to
all of the relevant facts, figures, assumptions, recommendations, and
strategies of the student.
Assessment
methods
1 Assignments
3 Quizzes
4 Mid Term
Exams
5 Term Project
Work
6 Final exam

to access
Knowledge and
understanding
Knowledge and
understanding
Professional and
practical skills
Professional skills

Assessment
schedule: week:
Weekly

Weight
age
10%

As scheduled

5%
30%

As scheduled

15%

30

40%
Total: 100%

Formative assessments:
In class support behavior
Punctuality
Attendance.
6. List of references
Course notes: Handouts to be provided by Instructor as deemed necessary.
Notes - students responsibility.
Essential books (text books):
Schultz, Heidi Schultz

IMC: The Next Generation: Donald

Other reading materials: Case studies and relevant academic handouts to

be provided.
7. Facilities required for teaching and learning

Classroom multimedia with full sound system

Classroom overhead projector
Panoramic whiteboard across front class wall
Clock on back and front class wall
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Head of Department
Date:

Dean
Date:

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