Discuss about the Integrated Community Sustainability Planning.
Ochre Restaurant is a high-end catering company that is located is the City of Cairns, Australia (Ochre, 2017). The company is highly awarded given its quality and unique products and services, and currently operates in most parts North Queensland (Cairns, Port Douglas and Palm Cove). Apart from its exceptional cuisines, the restaurant also offers modern conference facilities, host any corporate event, amazing wedding receptions among other special events.
The company is in need of a comprehensive design and implementation of an Integrated Marketing Communication strategy to address its present related challenges. For instance, the company is facing direct and increased competition from other well-established restaurants in Cairns. These competitors have employed comprehensive marketing campaigns that are increasingly attracting the attention of other consumers in market (Ochre, 2017). Such competitive rivalries if not adequately mitigated is likely to influence Ochre’s targeted consumer loyalty. This is because consumers in Cairns are being exposed to varied information and messages on the related services in the market. Ochre must therefore embark on an effective brand awareness campaign and a detailed IMC strategy. This will enable Ochre to reach to its targeted consumer bases, influence and retain their loyalty (Ochre, 2017).
Consequently, this report has included an Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) Plan that will help Ochre to increase its brand awareness by 20% in the Australian market. The IMC Plan will include various communication objectives, the company’s segments and target markets, positioning and communication strategies, and the projected budget among other important metrics.
Ochre is currently facing direct competitions from other restaurants in Cairns. Some of these restaurants include the Vivaldis Restaurant, Tamarind, Temple of Tastes and Restaurant M Yogo. These restaurants offers relatively similar products and services, and are currently engaged in numerous marketing campaigns to attract and retain Ochre’s co consumers. Therefore,
Ochre Restaurant aim at mitigating these competitive threats by devising relevant communication strategies that will converse its unique and diverse service and product offerings to the targeted consumers. This will include increased marketing campaigns aimed at sensitizing the target markets of Ochre’s unique banqueting experiences and strengthening its brand influence. Such initiatives are likely to increase consumption decisions and attract more customers to the company.
Ochre Restaurant generally appeals to an expanded target market that include households (family dining) in the City of Cairns. Most of these families are looking for exciting dining experiences and Ochre Restaurant promises the ultimate feeling of enjoyment. Ochre also targets individuals with special dietary requirements with specially crafted native ingredients.
Ochre further targets the youthful generations with its delightful and modern exciting cuisines. Indeed, the company’s exquisite dishes are savouring further explaining why this target group is relevant. The company also targets corporate events given that it has some of the best catering services in North Queensland. The restaurant has a competent team of planners, and therefore, corporate entities can be sure of unique and truly memorable experiences. Lastly, Ochre targets wedding events with its quality wedding planning and catering services.
According to Kotler (2011), consumer brand awareness refers to the characteristic ability of an individual consumer to recall and establish a particular brand. Research by Belch & Belch (2004) further connects brand awareness to the company’s brand symbol, name and logo among other important facets. Consequently, to shape a strong brand awareness campaign, Ochre must ensure that its consumers can articulately comprehend its diverse brands. Specifically, there must be a clear description of the products and services that are being offered by Ochre to differentiate them from those offered by other market players.
Ochre has a well-established business connection and adequate market experience in Cairns. However, there is an inherent need for the company to increase its consumers through brand awareness of its varied products and services. Therefore, to pass relevant information to the targeted audience, Ochre must embark on a well-organized marketing campaign that will be based on simple and general communications about the restaurant. Undoubtedly, increased brand awareness will help Ochre to establish a strong brand equity and name in a market that is increasingly becoming competitive. When the company’s products are repeated frequently, the target consumers will be able to easily recall in their memories. Therefore, according to Roberts et al. (2011), effective brand awareness campaign should utilize the concept of buyers’ psychological processes of recognitions.
Specifically, brand awareness will help Ochre to elicit certain emotional attachment towards its products. This will be attained through a comprehensive feedback program that will be used to gauge the consumers’ level of partiality and awareness for Ochre’s products and services (Luthra, 2015). The feedback program will also help Ochre to address various issues or feelings that may arise from the customers’ varied responses. Such programs will further help Ochre to continue with its communication as an appealing entity that resonate well with its consumers (Morecroft, 2015).
Moreover, Ochre plans to market itself as a company that cares for the ultimate satisfaction of its customers (Broderick & Pickton, 2001). This is a very important strategy that will differentiate it from its close market competitors in Cairns and beyond. As such, in its awareness campaigns, the restaurant will continue to communicate its distinctive dining experiences and identify some of its exclusive selling points based on the perception of the target consumers’ actions, insolences and personal inclinations.
Ochre’s consumer awareness will be attained through the use of the company’s website and other social media sites such Twitter. These platforms will help the restaurant to establish consumer preferences and aggregate diverse suggestions on brand improvement and supply. Correspondingly, through these social media sites, Ochre can effectively communicate its commitment towards superior and quality provision of products and services. Brand awareness will significantly influence the probability that Ochre dining experiences will be considered by locals in Cairns and from other parts of Australia. Majorly, the company relies on its exquisite services to increase its brand awareness. Therefore, psychologically, Ochre Restaurant’s superb services and products generates strong awareness among consumers who have an increased inclination to dine at the restaurant.
Ochre derives most of its marketing objectives from Hierarchy of Effects Model stipulated in the figure below.
According to this model, consumers’ purchase decisions are mostly determined by various cognitive, emotional and interactive phases. Such phases include the inherent need to increase brand awareness, information about product and services offered, taste, inclinations, belief and ensuing consumption. Based on this model, Ochre’s primary marketing communication objective is to increase its brand awareness and power in Cairns and other parts of Australia (Madhavaram et al., 2005).
In general, some of Ochre’s long-term marketing communication objectives include:
To create a general brand awareness of Ochre Restaurant among the targeted consumer base
To gauge the targeted consumers’ level of preferences and probability of purchase
To establish a strong relationship with the targeted consumers by offering them splendid products and services
To escalate the overall company’s sales and maximize its profit margins
These marketing communication objectives will help Ochre to stay focussed on attaining its overall organizational objectives. Similarly, these objectives provides Ochre with a comprehensive yardstick for gauging the company’s perceived successes and failures during the implementation of this integrated marketing communication plan.
Ochre Restaurant aim at attaining brand loyalty among its target consumers. The company will achieve this by convincingly communicating the perceived benefits of its products and services. Ochre will also establish a brand personality that will capitalize on the consumers’ behavioural profiles and resonance with the company’s products. According to Kliatchko (2005) brand personality refers to diverse sets of consumers thoughtful and associative features that relates to a specific brand name. These features can significantly shape individual perceptions about Ochre’s products and services as they are based on the alleged functional benefits and market performances of the brand name. Similarly, Morgan et al. (2014) describes brand personality as benchmark upon which a company like Ochre can shape their consumers’ views and establish a theoretical concept about the products and services.
Ochre’s message strategy aimed at strengthening its brand positioning will be that of the company’s inherent ability to satisfy the varied needs of all its identified consumer segments. According to Nazari (2016), an effective brand positioning should be able to convince the targeted consumers that the company satisfy all of their normal, physical, social and ego needs. Ochre will differentiate itself from its close market competitors through brand positioning and awareness campaigns that will help in communicating the company’s unique and amazing customer dining experiences. Such messages aim at portraying the company as customer-centred with services and products that are exclusive are exclusively geared towards attaining customers’ fulfilment (Chaudhuri and Holbrook, 2011).
Ochre will base its brand positioning on the concept of brand personality given that the company stresses majorly on sincerity, excitement, competence, sophistication and ruggedness.
Ochre will strive to make sure that its consumers can effectively relate to the exciting and wholesome dining experiences to further increase its brand awareness and popularity (Chaudhuri and Holbrook, 2011). Also, Ochre plan to make its targeted consumers to perceive its brand name as sincere by making them feel satisfied with the company’s services and products. This is aimed at increasing the probability of first time and repeat purchases given that the consumers shall have positive personal perceptions and attitudes towards Ochre brand. Therefore, Ochre must strive to enhance its relationship with the consumers and ensure an emotional satisfaction that will ultimately influence purchase intentions. Such emotional bonding with Ochre’s brands (illustrated in the figure below) is very instrumental in ensuring the company’s market successes.
Presently, based on the brand personality framework and on other important analyses, Ochre Restaurant would score highly on areas such as sincerity, competence, excitement and ruggedness (Marin, Ruiz & Rubio, 2009). Notably, Ochre will still use celebrities in Cairns to further help in strengthening its brand personality and credibility. Such marketing initiatives will help Ochre to achieve emotional and symbolic resonance within its projected consumer bases. Some of these notable celebrities that Ochre will use will include Australian models and business personalities, athletes and media personalities among other important personalities.
One of the creative strategies that Ochre will develop is an informational or rational appeal that will be incorporated in its campaign messages. Such appeals will aim at resonating with the consumers’ values and attitudes and will also shape their ultimate purchase decisions. Rational appeal majorly aim at eliciting the consumers’ views, feelings and behavioural reactions towards the company’s dining experiences. According to Marin, Ruiz & Rubio (2009), this kind of creative strategy escalates product involvement and timbre with the consumers’ value systems.
Another important creative strategy that Ochre will use is the transformational appeal that will specifically aim at resonating with the consumers emotions. As such, Ochre will ensure that its campaign messages incorporates various emotional dimensions about its dining experiences. For example, Ochre will advertise its wedding planning services as glamorous and amazingly cute as this will attract couples who would wish to make such events to be as successful and memorable as possible. According to Lando (2014), his kind of creative appeal mainly aim at satisfying ab individual consumer’s sense of identity and form a formidable psychological connection with the company’s brands.
Ochre Restaurant will instigate an all-inclusive and a harmonised Integrated Marketing Communication campaign to increase its competitive advantage in the Australian food and hospitality industry. Ochre will implement the IMC plan through various communication channels that will combine traditional and relatively modern passages (Syed Alwi et al., 2016). The identified communication channels will help Ochre to effectively communicate its brand positioning among other important brand awareness messages to its target consumer bases. From the competitor and target market analysis, various strategies and communication channels have been identified and will be implemented as part of Ochre’s IMC plan.
The identified marketing channels will be used to influence the purchase or consumption decisions of the targeted consumers. These channels will help Ochre to create a loyal customer base through the convincing messages that will be delivered through such mediums. Therefore, the following are some of the communication channels that Ochre will be using to push the company’s diverse product and service messages to the target consumer bases. These communication channels will also augment Ochre’s brand awareness campaigns and influence subsequent consumptions.
Essentially, the use of the subsequently stipulated communication channels will enable Ochre to communicate its increase commitment and ability to provide superior value to its consumers. Some of the channels will also include options for contacting the company back in case of any inquiry and providing possible feedbacks (Celuch, 2017).
Ochre will organize various promotional events in in the city of Cairns, Port Douglas and Palm Cove. This will include sampling some of Ochre’s exquisite dishes in various parts of North Queensland and allowing the public to taste and make important suggestions. Ochre will also occasionally hold selected wedding events at subsidized costs to attract and retain consumers’ attention and trust. Besides, the company will occasionally introduce coupons to lucky customers who will be treated to beautiful dining experiences.
Ochre will also occasionally plan, organize and sponsor an eating extravaganza at Palm Gove. Various promotional flyers will also be issued in the streets of Cairns especially during rush-hours to ensure that the messages about the restaurant’s wonderful services spread as far as possible. Ochre will also use various celebrities in Cairns such as Christine Anu (actress) to increase its publicity. Notably, the company will direct a considerable amount of investment towards these promotional events to rapidly increase the company’s brand awareness in Cairns and other parts of North Queensland and Australia.
In addition, Ochre will introduce a customer loyalty program that will include issuing cards to customers who have been loyal to the company. The loyalty program will enable these customers to earn loyalty points that can be redeemed for special dining experience every time they visit Ochre Restaurant. This aim at influencing the targeted consumers to become loyal to Ochre so as to enjoy similar benefits.
Ochre will use various print ads such as the weekly City of Cairns pulse magazines to advertise its brands to the targeted consumers. The restaurant will also issue various promotional flyers and fridge stickers across North Queensland (Syed Alwi et al., 2016). Such flyers will specifically display Ochre’s special offers and briefly explain the company’s unique selling prepositions. Ochre will also advertise its amazing dining experiences through popular health and lifestyle and family magazines in Australia. Ochre will also use billboards located in strategic places such as next to train and bus stops in the city of Cairns. The company will also market its products and services through local radio and TV stations to reach to an expanded market base
Ochre will effectively utilize its online presence to amplify its brand awareness campaigns. This will specifically be achieved through social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter among others. Directly emailing the company’s products and service offerings to the targeted consumers will also help Ochre to further augment its marketing campaigns. Such emails will also include special links to the company’s various social media pages. The use of Facebook and Twitter will help similarly Ochre to access youthful consumers who are very familiar with such platforms
Ochre will develop a distinctive smartphone application that will be used to automatically send short text messages on the company’s various promotions to the company’s present and targeted customers. This application will amplify Ochre’s efforts of providing value to its consumers and ensuring timely communication of all its upcoming special events (Syed Alwi et al., 2016). The application will help Ochre to increase knowledge and awareness about its brands within the target customer bases.
Ochre will use its official website to disseminate important product and service information that will be crucial in facilitating its brand awareness campaigns. This will include vital information on the company’s rich history of quality performances among other essential communications. Ochre’s website will also include contact information and links to the company’s various social media sites. According to Lando (2014), companies’ websites are very crucial in communicating vital information about the company to the present and prospective consumers.
Ochre Restaurant will encourage its existing customers to refer friends and close family members by offering them discounted dining rewards. The company will also rely on its present customers to be its brand ambassadors by encouraging them to spread the information about Ochre’s products and services. Ochre will also encourage its present customers to occasionally check the company’s social website for any new information and refer friends and associates to such platforms.
Undeniably, Ochre’s CEO and owner (Craig Squire) has invested huge amount of money on advertisements. Therefore, there is an inherent need of effective budgeting plan that take into consideration marketing objectives and transparency in expenditures. Ochre’s finance and marketing managers (Carley) will often be required to clearly clarify to the CEO how every cash allocated for advertisement is spent and possible deficits that may occur.
Ochre’s finance management department will be made up of a team of chartered accountants who are well-versed with various relevant programs such as MS Excel spreadsheets and MS Project. Such programs will enable the team to account for the allocated advertisement expenditure and attain other stipulated organizational objectives. Effective expenditure will facilitate the marketing campaign and ultimately result into more customers at Ochre and expanded profit margins.
Ochre will partner with other important partners in communication to facilitate the implementation of this IMC Plan. Effective implementation will significantly increase the impact of Ochre’s marketing campaign messages directed to the targeted consumers. Ochre’s owner will regularly assess and review how the contracted communication partners work to ensure compliance with the company’s marketing objectives. Some of these partners will include website designers to improve Ochre’s official website, PR and Events agencies to facilitate relevant activities and competent accountants. Other partners will include graphic and interior designers, celebrities and photographers who will be tasked with different activities.
Ochre will conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the IMC Plan every three months to establish the success of the implementation and effectiveness of the strategy towards attaining maximum customer satisfaction and brand fidelity. The first evaluation procedure will involve a careful scrutiny of Ochre’s internal sales records. This will be used to show whether the IMC Plan had any significant influence on the firm’s sales figures and other performance levels. Ochre will also assess its cost balance sheet to gauge whether the company recorded any significant increase in profit margins.
Ochre’s owner will also need to justify the company’s advertisement budget. This will be attained through comparing the stipulated marketing objectives against actual performances. According to Fill (2005), such comparisons are necessary in justifying whether the amount directed towards the implementation of the IMC Plan is reasonable.
Ochre will also conduct a short manual survey on the number of new customers visiting the premises. Subsequently, surveillance cameras that are installed at various strategic locations in the company will be assessed to establish the real customer demographics against the targeted number. Ochre will also determine whether the information on market penetration is accurate through various data mining activities in the company’s website (Hair, 2007). Such data mining activities will also establish whether the company is fulfilling various customers’ preferences. Lastly, a comprehensive audit of the identified marketing communication channels will ascertain whether Ochre is meeting the specified objectives.
Conclusion
Undeniably, if effectively implemented, this IMC Plan can help Ochre to successfully attain the postulated marketing objectives. Ochre, just like any other company seeks to maximize its profit margins and attaining competitive market advantage. This IMC Plan is based on customers’ preferences and satisfaction, and if implemented effectively can maximize the desired impact.
The IMC Plan further aim at helping Ochre to reach its target audience with their anticipated product and service messages in a well-choreographed intention to establish customer loyalty. The company will achieve most of its marketing objectives by maximizing on the Hierarchy of Effects Model to capture the mental attention and awareness. Ochre will also strive to satisfy the varied quality wants of their clients to capture and retain their loyalty. In essence, the provision of superior quality value and maintaining brand loyalty is a competitive edge that Ochre intends to maintain.
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