Integrated Communications Revisited
Increasingly, clients and colleagues in healthcare communications have been posing questions about the balance between online and offline. And, certainly, the demise of newspapers further highlights a general anxiety and uncertainty about the future of print. Last week, previews of the results of The Future of Advertising project, conducted by the Wharton School and the Advertising Research Foundation (ARF), offer reassurance to print and TV media. Here are some highlights from the 21 papers to be published in ARF’s Journal of Advertising later this month, as summarized in the June 1 issue of Advertising Age.
- “22% of word-of-mouth conversations were sparked directly by advertising.”
- 30% of online buzz was generated by ads.
- “Print is more effective than TV or online at creating purchasing intent.”
- “Print advertising produces a higher sales lift per dollar spent than TV.”
- “Search generates a higher lift in offline sales per consumer exposure than display.”
- “Display and search used together produce a higher lift than the continued effects of using either separately.”
From my perspective, these findings reinforce what healthcare marketers have always known (though some of us are more diligent at applying it): that a thoughtful integration of different communication tools across multiple channels is key. For example:
- Online and offline communications reinforce each other. Neither one stands alone. For those of us looking for guidance on the appropriate budget allocation, data is not available at this time but there are ongoing studies.
- Recognizing that the various media (and I would include the myriad of tools both conventional, such as direct mail, conventions and education, and new, such as social media) must work together, the time to strengthen and unify your brand strategy is now. Now more than ever, healthcare marketers must see to it that their agency teams are working together and creative executions are synergistic.
- Speaking of branding, don’t forget the customer and that branding is all about building relationships with your customers. “A brand is the sum total of a company’s conversation with society,” said Clive Chajet in his book, Image by Design.
As an example of integrated communications at work, I’d like to point out a clever, effective but very disciplined use of viral communications in the life science research space. Bio-Rad Laboratories, which markets many products to young PhD-level researchers in biology and medicine, was the first to launch tongue-in-cheek music videos to promote their products. The success spawned many imitators. Many of these imitators have well-executed music videos, but I am not aware of any that has kept it up and made them part of the brand. Take a look at Bio-Rad’s latest creation and I think you’ll agree with me that—at least for the foreseeable future—music videos are part of their brand.