Susanna Winter and Sanna Sundqvist-IMC strategies in new high technology product launches

Description

Marketing Intelligence & Planning Vol. 27 No. 2, 2009 pp. 191-215AbstractPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical evidence on the use of IMC in new high technology product launches among companies that operate in different fields of business, yetproviding similar innovation to the same market.Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative case research methodology is applied. Multiplesources of evidence are gathered. These include interviews with key informants and documentary data, and IMC mini audits. Concerning the theoretical approach, the related literature in IMC, new product launch and high technology marketing is reviewed.Findings – IMC is vital to high technology marketers launching new products and services. Theanalyses reveal that IMC practices vary across firm size, industry type, product/service orientation,and customer orientation.Practical implications – Companies of different types can be on an equal footing in theirintegration efforts. Whether service- or product-oriented companies, business-to-consumer orbusiness-to-business marketers, companies from all backgrounds can achieve higher levels of IMC.What matters most is customer-centricity, i.e. having a close interaction with customers and being responsive to their feedback.Originality/value – The study contributes to the integrated marketing communications researchfield in several important respects. First, it focuses on IMC usage among firms in different industries.Second, it takes a genuinely refreshing view on studying IMC strategies by focusing on usage of IMC as part of new high technology product launch strategy.Keywords Integrated marketing communications, Product launchPaper type Case study