The Innovative Academy mentoring session was held again at the Manohara Hotel (28/10) with the screening of a video that was a video branding of Apple products. This session was filled by Muh. Faturrahman, who is the Network and Partnership Management Department Head at PT. Isuzu Astra Motor Indonesia, which is the brand holder, manufacturer and distributor of Isuzu commercial vehicles in Indonesia. Faturrahman, as the mentor in this mentoring session, explained how the video from Apple could create a lasting branding, just like the strategy of how PT. Isuzu Astra Motor Indonesia marketed its products.
“Why is Integrated Marketing Communications important?” asked the mentor. The question sparked a discussion between the talents and the mentor. Each talent had their own opinion and one of them said, “IMC is important to keep the brand consistent”.
Nowadays, marketing has become a two-way conversation. IMC integrates the communication of product and brand messages to a wider audience, making IMC the most appropriate way to create brand awareness. The important components of IMC are clear and useful products, understanding of specific target markets, competitors and market competition, corporate culture, brand identity from all aspects, and consumer experience to provide a different experience.
“To popularize products to end-users, brand communication is needed,” which is how a brand can communicate and build customer trust. In terms of B2B, brand communication can be done by paying attention to who the end-user is and measuring how the product can be accepted by the market. So that what is promised and can match the target customer.
To compile IMC, a marketing plan is needed that contains a marketing mix, such as product definition, price, and others. Besides IMC, SWOT analysis is often used. However, the mentor stressed, “Be careful in using SWOT analysis because of its high subjectivity.”
From this mentoring session, the mentor concluded that Integrated Marketing Communications is a way to deliver products with certain methods and tools that are appropriate.