• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, April 29, 2013

Integrated marketing communications is easier said than done -- and marketers face specific challenges when developing such plans, although most see it as a top priority.

The World Federation of Advertisers surveyed a portion of its membership -- multinational companies that collectively spend about $32 billion on marketing annually. Results were tallied with the help of communications planning specialist Naked Communications. Together, WFA and Naked devised analytic software to determine the “readiness” of companies to implement IMC strategies.

The WFA reported that 80% of advertisers surveyed identified IMC as a top priority.

The research pinpointed a number of areas that are potential barriers to effective IMC, including establishing the right key performance indicators. “Marketers need a better idea of what success looks like to help them measure the right metrics,” the study found. This is a particular challenge for single brand companies and those with an annual global ad spend of less than $500 million, per the report.

Demonstrating ROI is another potential IMC stumbling block, the study found. “Marketers need to be able to show that integrated marketing delivers financial results. The world’s biggest marketers -- those spending more than $2 billion annually -- have most work to do in this area.”

Company leadership and staffing are often obstacles as well, the findings show. If C-level suites don’t enthusiastically support IMC efforts, company-wide adoption will be difficult. “A top-down approach is critical,” the study concluded. "Companies must recruit and empower dedicated, specialized and experienced teams of staff to lead IMC efforts.”

Figuring out the right concepts to integrate can also be a challenge. “Companies still struggle to develop processes that help them develop unifying marketing ideas that can work across multiple channels," the research noted.

“Delivering integrated marketing in today’s complex media and communications landscape may not be easy, but is increasingly seen as critical,” stated Stephan Loerke, managing director of the WFA.

The software that the WFA developed with Naked contains a research tool called the IMC Scorecard that is designed to help companies track their progress in developing and implementing IMC plans. “Most companies still have some way to go before they have all the tools and talent in place to deliver truly integrated marketing communications,” Loerke added. More on the study can be found here.

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