Integrated marketing, multi-channel or 'omnimarketing' are terms that all mean the same thing, and in today's savvy-consumer age, need to be at the forefront of all marketing strategy and planning.
Integrated marketing means that the brand and product messaging are consistent across all channels. While the style or tone may differ slightly to suit the channel (meaning you can really get on a roll on Medium or LinkedIn, you’re making it short and sweet via Twitter, and your digital display ads are creative and visually rich), they all tie into a core campaign message, and align with the brand, regardless of channel.
The intent is that your customers will see your brand at multiple touch points and quickly recognise it, regardless of channel. By understanding and embracing this too, you increase your bang for buck, the sum of the parts is much greater than the whole.
Here's a couple of strong bottom-line reasons why an integrated game plan is key ...
- 15 years ago the average consumer typically used two touch-points when buying an item and only 7% regularly used more than four. Today consumers use an average of almost six touch-points with nearly 50% regularly using more than four. (Source: Marketing Week)
- Companies with extremely strong omnichannel customer engagement see a 9.5% year-over-year increase in annual revenue, compared to 3.4% for weak omnichannel companies. Similarly, strong omnichannel companies see a 7.5% year-over-year decrease in cost per contact, compared to a 0.2% year-over-year decrease for weak companies. (Source: Aberdeen Group)
