BMM640 INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS

Academic Year 2013/14

Number of Aston Credits: 15

Number of ECTS Credits: 7.5

Staff Member Responsible for the Module:

Dr. Dina Rasolofoarison - Marketing Group
Aston Business School Building, Room 242 Extension: 4794
Email: d.rasolofoarison@aston.ac.uk
Availability: Thursdays 1-5pm
(please visit http://tinyurl.com/rasolofoarison
to book an appointment during my office hours)
Or contact the Marketing Group Administrator
Samantha Doidge ABS 236 Extension 3147

Pre-requisites for the Module:

None

Mode of Attendance:
On Campus

Module Objectives and Learning Outcomes:

Objectives:

To introduce key terms, definitions, concepts, current theories and practices used
in Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC).
To explain the communication process.
To explore the use of main promotional tools of advertising, public relations, sales
promotion, direct marketing, event marketing, and online marketing.
To understand how IMC helps build brand identity and create brand equity
through brand synergy.
To equip students with frameworks to critically assess marketing communications’
campaigns.
To explore contemporary and critical issues in IMC such as global IMC and ethics
and regulation
Learning Outcomes:

On successful completion of the module, students should be able to:

Understand key theories, concepts and models in IMC.

Apply the key terms, definitions, and concepts used IMC.
Demonstrate the knowledge and skills required for assessing IMC campaigns.
Develop critical reasoning regarding theories, models and also practices in IMC.
Develop written and verbal presentational skills.

Module Content and Essential Reading:

Week 1: The IMC landscape. Introduction to IMC and its role within the marketing
process
Semenik et al. (2012) - Chapter 1

Week 2: The consumer perspective. Consumer behaviour issues + segmentation,

positioning, and value proposition
Semenik et al. (2012) – Chapters 5 & 6

Week 3: The communication process.

Belch and Belch (2009) – Chapter 5

Week 4: IMC tools (I). Advertising (1/2): Creativity. Creative message strategy and
implementation
Semenik et al. (2012) – Chapters 10 & 11

Week 5: IMC tools (I). Advertising (2/2): The media landscape. Media planning and
selection
Semenik et al. (2012) – Chapters 12 & 13

Week 6: IMC tools (II). Sales promotion, POP advertising, support media, event
sponsorship, product placements, and branded entertainment
Semenik et al. (2012) – Chapters 15 & 16

Week 7: IMC tools (III). Direct marketing, personal selling, public relations,
influencer marketing, and corporate advertising
Semenik et al. (2012) – Chapters 17 & 18

Week 8: Issues in IMC. Global IMC + regulation and ethics

Semenik et al. (2012) - Chapter 3

Week 9: Revision session

Week 10: Examination

The lecture topics are key foundation areas within Integrated Marketing Communications.
The lectures are supported by chapters from the essential text in addition to selected
magazine or journal articles provided with the lecture notes. Students are expected to
have read the relevant material prior to the lectures to ensure all the learning outcomes
detailed above are met.

Corporate Connections:

Examples and references to current business and corporate practices will be used
throughout the module to illustrate the real life nature of presenting brands through
integrated marketing communications. Moreover, guest speakers from industry will come
and share their experience.

International Dimensions:
BMM640 draws on a variety of examples, some of which have an international dimension.
Brand marketing communications strategies often cross borders.

Therefore, issues of different cultural interpretation of brand marketing communications

tools are central to many communications strategies. This topic will be discussed
throughout the module and more specifically in session 8.

Contribution of Research:
The course will make use of past and current research on brand management, consumer
psychology, visual literacy, and marketing communications.

Ethics, Responsibility & Sustainability:

Many aspects of IMC involve ethical consideration. Advertising and Promotion are often
perceived as areas where ethics and regulation seldom apply. On the contrary, we will see
that it is more and more critical for future managers to take these matters into
consideration in each and every IMC decision. This topic will be discussed throughout the
module and more specifically in session 8.

Method of Teaching:
Lectures:
Teaching will be via lectures, discussing the key conceptual and theoretical ideas in IMC.
Lectures will take place during the first two hours of each session. Students will be
expected to prepare for lectures through identified readings and exercises.
Group activities:
Students will take part in group activities for the last hour of each session. These group
activities will help students putting ideas explored in the lectures into practice. Strong
emphasis is placed on group participation developing the students’ inter-personal and
team working skills.

Method of Assessment and Feedback:

The module will be assessed by one piece of individual coursework (30%), a two-hour
exam (60%), and class participation (10%).

The coursework requires the formal assessment of a communication campaign. It will

enable students to apply the visual analytic framework seen in class aiming at assessing
IMC campaigns’ efficiency. In addition, this assessment will develop students’ written
presentation skills. General feedback for the coursework will be provided during week 8.

The exam is in CLOSED BOOK format. There will be two sections.

Section A: Students will be expected to choose one question among two. The question will
be based on the lecture programme. It will assess students’ comprehension and critical
understanding of the module.
Section B. Students will be expected to choose one question among two. The question will
consist of a formal assessment of a communication campaign. The exercise is similar to
the individual coursework assessment, but the chosen campaign will be different.

Class participation will be assessed through participation in class, participation in

discussions on the Blackboard forum, and the completion of exercises and activities given
throughout the module term.

Learning Hours:
Contact & Directed Hours Hours
Pre-reading 25
Lectures
Lectures 18
Group activities/tutorials 9
Directed Reading 20
Self Directed Reading 15
Coursework preparation
Directed Reading 13
Self Directed Reading 10
Exam revision 40
Total 150
The following readings are subject to change. Students should not
therefore purchase textbooks prior to commencing their course. If
students wish to undertake background reading before starting the
course, many of the chapters/readings are available in electronic form
via on-line library catalogues and other resources.

Pre-reading:
Book chapter: Chapter 1. Semenik, Allen, O’Guinn and Kaufmann (2012), Advertising and
th
Promotions: An Integrated Brand Approach, International Edition, 6 ed. Cengage
Learning.

Book chapter: Chapter 2. Semenik, Allen, O’Guinn and Kaufmann (2012), Advertising and
th
Promotions: An Integrated Brand Approach, International Edition, 6 ed. Cengage
Learning.

Book chapter: Chapter 4. Semenik, Allen, O’Guinn and Kaufmann (2012), Advertising and
th
Promotions: An Integrated Brand Approach, International Edition, 6 ed. Cengage
Learning.

Article: Schultz, Don E. (2010). “New, Newer, Newest: Evolving Stages of IMC”. Journal of
Integrated Marketing Communication. 14–21

Article: Philip J. Kitchen, Don E. Schultz, Ilchul Kim, Dongsub Han, Tao Li, (2004). "Will
agencies ever "get" (or understand) IMC?", European Journal of Marketing, 38 (11), 1417
– 1436

Video: The Apprentice 6/12 on advertising (available on Box of Broadcasts from Aston
Library)

Video: The Rise and Fall of the Ad Man (available on Box of Broadcasts from Aston
Library)

Video: Ways of Seeing (available on Box of Broadcasts from Aston Library)

Essential Readings:

Semenik, Allen, O’Guinn and Kaufmann (2012), Advertising and Promotions: An

th
Integrated Brand Approach, International Edition, 6 ed. Cengage Learning.

Belch, G.E. & Belch, M.A. (2009), Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing
Communications Perspective, 8th Edition, Boston; London. : McGraw-Hill Irwin.
Useful Journals & Magazines:
International Journal of Advertising
Journal of Advertising
Journal of Advertising Research
Journal of Brand Management
Journal of Marketing Communications
Marketing Week
Marketing
Campaign
PR Week
Ad Age

Useful Online Sources:

ABI Inform
EBSCO
Elsevier
Emerald
ProQuest