United front

As we look to the future of marketing communications, integration will continue to grow in importance and relevancy. This especially holds true in an increasingly complicated world of communications, where physicians are expanding their role as spokespeople, consumers are playing the role of media, and channels of communication are opening where once there were none.

One question every brand should be asking as they evaluate how their marketing efforts are achieving their business goals is, "Are the marketing communications channels integrating to the best level that they can be?" However, when it comes to activating and delivering an integrated campaign, how do you ensure that your marketing and communications activities are working their hardest for your brand? Done the correct way, channel integration can help to increase greatly the visibility and impact of a program or campaign, pooling together resources and strengths can help surround the consumer with the right 360° messages.

Following, are some ways to ensure the most effective levels of integration:

The big idea can come from anywhere
When creating an integrated agency team, there is a pool of strategic thinkers who can help to develop the platform, from advertising to public relations to direct marketing or social media. Collective and collaborative brainstorming at the onset of the campaign can help to bring forth the best thinking, which can then be used to develop the individual channel plans.

Successful brand outcomes have been achieved when the marketing team offers the same brief to all agency partners, tasking each to develop the strongest strategic platform and 'big idea.' This has resulted in out-of-the-box idea generation and the positive form of friendly competition. In addition, as this world becomes more and more reliant on the latest technology and virtual offices, it is good to remember that sometimes nothing can be more productive than bringing the strategic leads together in person in one room to brainstorm.

Keep the strategic platform front and center
Developing a strategic approach and ensuring that the activation aligns against that approach are two very different tasks. A fruitful planning process doesn't end once the program has started – the ideas are only as good as the resulting consumer or professional behaviors. In order to maintain the intent of the program as the tactical plans begin to roll out, create integrated checkpoints to discuss execution success and learnings across agencies. This will allow for agencies to learn from each other and make shifts together to ensure strategic approach remains aligned and adjustments are uniform. These checkpoints also set realistic framework and timeframe for the agency partners.

Reward collaborative behavior
Integration can only happen if all of the partners involved are engaged – and exhilarated – in the process. Ensure that any routine evaluation mechanisms of your agency partners include collaborative approach through both the planning and execution phases of the campaign. This can be evaluated through 360° surveys with brand members and agency partners, to provide an honest perspective. The more focused your agencies are on delivering the best possible outcome for the brand, the better result for all involved.

An important part of helping agency partners be collaborative is to give clear direction and parameters of engagement of how they are to partner together. This includes an understanding from the outset of what the planning process is, which partners will serve as a lead integrator (and if there is none, where the brand will play that role), the prioritization of channel elements, and the sometimes challenging part of budget allocation. The more the agency partners understand roles and expectations at the start of a campaign or project, the stronger the result.

Shannon Jenest, Director, Public Relations at Philips Consumer Lifestyle says: "Working with an integrated agency team fosters strategic thinking and creativity on a level that would not otherwise be achievable. Each agency views the brief through their own lens, but with the freedom to explore opportunities that are peripheral to their discipline. This process leads to an intersection point where the best thinking comes together and we're able to fully leverage the marketing mix."

Measure outcomes instead of just outputs
The key to effective measurement is first to set clear goals — goals that in fact can be measured. Doing so involves first articulating the business objectives, and then identifying the channel strategies that support each business objective. Every program developed should include well-articulated, effective, measurable goals. Measuring outcomes is typically more difficult than measuring outputs; however, it is critical that outcomes are measured to gauge accurately the impact of your PR program. Measuring outcomes typically requires the use of some sort of custom quantitative research, primarily pre- and post surveys– common techniques used to measure awareness, comprehension, attitude and behavior.

So while consumer behavior continues to evolve and change, with factors even beyond the challenges all are facing with the economy, your agency partners can help to deliver the strongest return against your strategic programs, which will ultimately help get the consumer through a difficult period.

The author
Evelyn Sprigg is Director of Healthcare Marketing, Emanate and can be contacted at Evelyn.Sprigg@emanatepr.com