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Part Five Developing the Integrated Marketing Communications Program
Belch: Advertising and
Promotion, Sixth Edition
Exhibit 15-3 Snapple
creates interest through
their website
V. Developing the
Integrated Marketing
Communications Program
15. The Internet and
Interactive Media
© The McGraw−Hill
Companies, 2003
designed to develop one-on-one relationships by offering a free sample to anyone who
sends in his or her name, address, and e-mail address. Thousands of people have
responded to the offer, providing Kimberly-Clark with an enormous database useful for
future marketing efforts. Another part targets parents visiting other websites such as
CTW.org (Children’s Television Workshop—producer of Sesame Street), Women.com,
iVillage.com, and BabyZone.com. In addition, anyone typing in the keywords diapers
or infant care on the portal AltaVista is greeted with a Huggies banner ad. To bring visitors
to the site, Huggies provides tips on baby care, chats with other parents, access to
other baby links, and additional information about Huggies products. Finally, to support
sales, the site directs customers to the nearest retail store that sells Huggies brands.
As the Huggies example demonstrates, a website can be an effective tool for the
marketer. Depending on the nature of one’s business and one’s marketing objectives
for the Internet, a website can range from being a very simple source of information
about the company and its products to being a powerful tool for developing a brand
image, sampling, and even generating sales. Following are some of the objectives
sought by those marketing on the Internet.
Communications Objectives
Unlike other media discussed thus far in the text, the Internet is actually a hybrid of
media. In part, it is a communications medium, allowing companies to create awareness,
provide information, and influence attitudes, as well as pursue other communications
objectives. But for some it is also a direct-response medium, allowing the user to
both purchase and sell products through e-commerce. Thus, we will discuss two sets
of objectives pursued by companies that use the Internet. Let’s first look at some of the
communications objectives these companies want to achieve.
Create Awareness Advertising on the Web can be useful in creating awareness
of an organization as well as its specific product and service offerings. For small companies
with limited budgets, the Web offers the opportunity to create awareness well
beyond what might be achieved through traditional media. For example, a company in
Los Angeles that distributed paper to business-to-business firms in the local market
now conducts 80 percent of its business internationally as a result of posting its website.
While a valuable tool for creating awareness—particularly for smaller companies that
may have limited advertising budgets—the Internet is not likely to be the most effective
of the IMC elements for achieving this objective. Advertising may be more useful
for this purpose, given its larger reach.
Generate Interest A visit to CocaCola.com or Snapple.com will demonstrate
how companies attempt to use the Web to generate interest in their sites as well as their
products and services. On the Coca-Cola site, visitors can find a number of activities
to generate and maintain their interests. For example, there is “Coke Music,” a click
upon which will take you on a musical tour
and allow you to create your own demo, take a
quiz, and chat with others about music. If your
interest is football, you can visit Coke Football
Town to see where the Coke football tour is in
your state. If your interests tend more to philanthropic
events, you can explore the Coke
Youth Partnership. While on the site, you can
also learn about Coca-Cola products, the company
itself, or visit the Coca-Cola Store to purchase
Coca-Cola clothing, clocks, and other
products. Snapple, in its attempt to attract visitors
and hold their interests, has created Snappleton,
a make-believe town with many places
to visit while learning about Snapple products
(Exhibit 15-3). The objectives of these sites is
simple: Create interest that will bring visitors
back to learn more about the products.