Barriers to the implementation of Integrated Marketing Communications: the client perspective

Discussions on Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) in the academic and practitioner journals are gradually changing from examining definitions and justifications to sharing good practice, with an acceptance that IMC is the only way forward in the multi-platform digital environment in which we now need to operate. Despite this growth in confidence, agencies report that the initiative in implementing IMC has to come from the client and barriers such as lack of understanding and organisational structures are preventing this from happening. But what do the clients think? There has been very little research into clients’ perception of IMC and its implementation. This study addresses this issue by examining the views of senior personal across both the client and agency sides of the industry. These views are obtained by analysing quantitative and qualitative feedback from an online questionnaire. Results show that the client is aware that IMC needs to be at the strategic level of an organisation and does perceive its implementation as difficult. The main challenge they face is in influencing other departments within the organisation to co-operate. The implications of these findings are explored further.