MARKET-BACK APPROACH TO THE DESIGN OF INTEGRATED COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAMS - A CHANGE IN PARADIGM AND A FOCUS ON DETERMINANTS OF SUCCESS

Although widely used in practice, integrated marketing communications (IMC) remains poorly defined and has met with mixed success. The prese nt article reviews various definitions of IMC and suggests that each o f these definitions is consistent with a more general paradigmatic vie w of integrated communications, Four misleading assumptions implicit i n the development of IMC programs that may reduce the effectiveness of such programs are identified. Use of a ''market back'' process for th e design of coordinated marketing programs as a means for increasing t he probability of the success of IMC programs is suggested. This appro ach and the assumptions implicit in IMC suggest the need for a very di fferent approach to the management of marketing communications. (C) 19 96 Elsevier Science Inc.