SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSION AND

RECOMMENDATIONS
Successful marketing communication relies on a combination of options called the
promotional mix. These options include advertising, sales promotion, public relations,
direct marketing, and personal selling. The Internet has also become a powerful tool
for reaching certain important audiences. The role each element takes in a marketing
communication programme relies in part on whether a company employs a push
strategy or a pull strategy. A pull strategy relies more on consumer demand than
personal selling for the product to travel from the manufacturer to the end user. The
demand generated by advertising, public relations, and sales promotion "pulls" the
good or service through the channels of distribution. A push strategy, on the other
hand, emphasizes personal selling to push the product through the marketing channels.
(The Channels of distribution). These two channels have been considered in this study
and factors that promote the two channels were investigated the summary of the
findings presented below.

The higher the agency-customer integration the more effective the Integrated
Marketing Communication
2. the more an organisation adopts Integrated Marketing Communication the more
fund it will spend on promotional actievities in the long run
3. the more an organisation adopts Integrated Marketing Communication the more
client-customer relationship it will build
4. the more an organisation adopts Integrated Marketing Communication at
differen stages of a product life cycle, the more market share it will build
These findings indicated that successful marketing communication
relies on sound management decisions regarding the coordination of
the various elements of the promotional mix.

Factors that can enhance the use of Integrated Marketing

Communications by Firms

Respondents believed that there should be increase in the display of

professionalism on the part of marketing communications organizations. As
professionals in marketing communication, they stand in vantage positions in
advising their clients on the best way to combine the various promotional tools
in order to achieve clarity, consistency and competitive messages.
Respondents are of the opinion that there should be better coordination of the
marketing communication budget. This, they asserted would lead to reduction
in the overall promotional budget and thus have the multiplier effect of
increasing the profitability level of such companies.
Respondents are of the opinion that there should be better coordination of the
marketing communication budget. This, they asserted would lead to reduction
in the overall promotional budget and thus have the multiplier effect of
increasing the profitability level of such companies.

Most respondents from marketing communication organizations are of the
opinion that there is still need for proper Client-Agency education on the IMC
concept. In other words, marketing communication organizations need to
properly educate their clients on the inherent benefits they stand to gain if they
start adopting the IMC concept in their marketing communication campaigns
such as Advertising, Public Relations, Sales Promotion, Personal Selling,
Direct and Integrative Marketing.
Respondents asserted there should also be contentious and selective usage of
the marketing communication tools without bias. In other words, management
of beverage producing companies needs to be high focused as regards their
marketing and promotional objectives. This will enable such objectives to
achieve set target.
It needs be pointed out that most respondents from marketing communication
organizations stressed the fact that marketing and promotional objectives must
be realistic, measurable, achievable, specific and time bound. This will make
firms to know whether or not the objectives are being achieved. If there are
needs for corrections, it can be properly and timely effected so that the firm
will not derail on this course of action.

Consumer respondents call for better creation of better advertising messages

from beverage producers and attractive sales promotional packages. Consumer
respondents believe that sales promotion packages must not be deceitful and
must be realistic. Such as sales promotion packages must have incentives that
can move consumers to buy more of the company products.

Companies will be able to achieve set promotional objectives if they produce

quality products. Respondents emphasize the production of quality products
that can meet peoples taste. Respondents believed that firms will be able to
beat their competitors with their marketing promotions if such promotions are
used on better/quality products produced. Certainly, you cannot continue to
deceive the consumers.

Better, effective, and reasonable pricing policies must be given consideration.

Respondents believe that firms should not over-price themselves out of the
market. Respondents believe that marketing communications will be more
impactful if such products are priced effectively and at a degree of
reasonability.

Good personal selling presentation on the part of companies salesmen is a

factor that respondents believe will enhance the use of Integrated Marketing
Communications. Respondents believe that the salesmen messages must be
consistent with the advertising and sales promotion messages. This, they
believe will help to register the promotion messages well in the minds of
consumers.
 Sponsorship of events such as schools inter-house competitions will help
promote promotional messages. Firms must seek when most popular schools
are embarking on their inter-house competition. In fact, it will be a cheap way
of selling the companys promotional messages in the minds of these youths.

There is need for companies to start exploring the use of Internet in selling their
products to distributors. Placing such distributors wanted on the net can also
help in promoting a companys selling effort.

Marketing communication messages must be consumer oriented and not just
profit oriented. Respondents believe that if marketing communication messages
are really consumer oriented, firms will make their money in the long run
through repeat purchases, enhanced market share, and customer loyalty.
There is also the need to ensure that firms create awareness programme for
their products using appropriate mix of the promotional elements. Catching
advert messages must be designed in such a way that consumers can remember
these messages at the point of purchase. Since AIDA model emphasizes
Attention! Interest! Desire! And Action; respondents believe that firms must
design their messages in such manner that the final action which represent
purchase can be obtained from consumers.
Effective branding policy is believed to be a strategic factor that can enhance
the development of Integrated Marketing Communications. Many respondents
believed that when products are developed to effective brands, usage of
integrated marketing communication to promote such products becomes easier
and more cost effective. This is because many of the consumers would have
been used to the product. Little usage of marketing communication tools would
thereafter bring more results.

To enhance proper development of Integrated Marketing Communication
approach, respondents believe that there is need for marketing communications
to always set proper marketing communication objectives. Without objectives,
evaluation cannot be in sight. The marketing communication objectives must
be definitely specific, measurable, accurate, realistic and time bound. With
proper evaluation and success of the IMC approach, other users of the IMC
concept will be encourage and motivated if the results are clear and certain.
Many respondents recommended that for the use and proper coordination of
Integrated Marketing Communication when a firm wants to strategically position itself
in the industry such as when a firm wants good increase in its market share and its
product sales.
Conclusion
It is worthy of note that many companies still rely on one or two marketing
communication tools in their attempt to achieve their marketing
communication objectives. This practice persists despite growing sophistication
of consumers, dynamic nature of the market, growing competition in most
industrial sectors and the need for efficient allocation of marketing
communication budgets. Yet, the wide range of marketing communication
tools, messages and audiences make it imperative for companies to move
towards the IMC approach in an effort to ensure clarity of messages,
consistency, and credible messages and above all, a competitive message across
to target audience.

The result of this research confirms that Integrated Marketing Communications

direct is focus on audiences, which are consumes, other stakeholders and it also
uses many channels to achieve results.
Findings of this research confirm that Integrated marketing Communication
can help Organizations to maintain long term customer relationships.

Findings confirmed that the use of Integrated Marketing Communications will

make a company product to compete effectively in the market. This is achieved
through clear, consistent and competitive messages across to target audiences.

It is fundamental to note that findings confirm that proper implementation of
integrated Marketing Communications will help an organization to reduce its
cost of marketing communications in the long run. This is because of the
energy effect, which the integration of marketing Communications will
produce.

Recommendations

There is need for organizations to first conduct research in effectively

identifying the need for marketing communications, where and to what extent.

Companies need to properly integrate their marketing communications
agencies, Advertising Agencies & Public Relations firms with one another in
order to ensure clarity of messages, consistency, credibility and a highly
competitive message across to target audience. However, if a firm cannot do
this, then it is advisable such a firm should use one single agency for its
marketing communication messages.

 There is need for an organization to be consistent and not conflicting about its
marketing communication because consistency in message creates better
awareness, reinforces the message and helps in building a solid brand while
conflicting messages confuses and could even scare away customers.
Needs for organizations to institute regular cross-functional meetings e.g.
meetings involving all departmental heads that are involved in the IMC
programmes.

The monitoring mechanism must be adequate. There is need to monitor the

results of marketing communications across all media.
The above researchers also suggested that multinational companies may have
an additional problem in coordinating communication policies and strategies
cross subsidiaries. Hence when a firm has many subsidiaries, there is need for
better coordination of marketing communication messages so that, most tools
of communication voice out same and consistent message to target audience.