Integrated Communications Assignment Sample
INTRODUCTION
Integrated communication is considered as a connective strategy that brings brand consistency across all the different channels that helps to align with the main objectives of the company. The report will be based on Superdry Plc which is a UK branding clothing company which is a premium brand. The study will helps to develop understanding of the industry background as Superdry belongs to fashioned clothing industry. Apart from this study will also help to undertake detailed analysis of current integrated communication strategy. Apart from this various communication models will be applied along with the use of MacLean’s conceptual model in business.
MAIN BODY
Industry analysis
Superdry Plc is a British fashion retailer company that deals with clothing, accessories, footwear, cosmetics etc. A fashion retail company mainly holds the market value of 6.2 billion dollars and also the online fashion stores over 850 brands. The biggest companies that holds the largest market share in the fashion retail company includes Next plc and Primark Ltd. Moreover the apparel and footwear market in UK is also expected to grow steadily in the upcoming years (Sohn and Spiliotopoulos, 2021). Also the overall revenue estimated from the fashion retail industry of UK is around 52 billion British Pounds before the era of Pandemic. The fashion retail industries mainly buy fashioned clothing products from the manufacturing industries and thus sale them to final consumers.
Current integrated communication strategy in Superdry Plc.
Superdry Plc currently aimed at delivering continued growth through disruptive multi-channel approach to communicate business value. Superdry Plc mainly adopts various communication channels in the form of Ecommerce along with various wholesale and physical stores to sale products and services among targeted audience (Edelson et.al. 2018). The company operates across 55 countries in various development countries across the world. Superdry is also focused towards increasing global ambitions and company is focused towards the exploration of online market through digital channels.
Digital Ecommerce strategy: Superdry has a Ecommerce site that allows the company to conduct buying and selling of goods through providing various fund transmitting channels to customers across the different areas across world.
Also, it easily enables the company to communicate better with the targeted customers. Ecommerce strategy helps to derive more powerful and effective customer experience in Superdry.
iKiosk Technology: This technology enables Superdry to provide a computer terminal by featuring specialized hardware and software that helps to provide access to information and application for proper communication (Lv et.al. 2017). This is one of the effective technology used by Superdry to reach to the potential customers in more information manner through temporary booths placed in high traffic areas.
Global digital strategy: This strategy enables Superdry to understand its online customer base and thus obtaining online reviews through digital strategy also helps in strengthening the customer base of the company (Pelger and Nilsson, 2018). This strategy enables the company to connect with wide audience through the use of online channels such as email campaigns, social media, running banner ads and advertising articles etc. Digital communication is a strategic communication plan used by the brand to position the company and grab the attention of the key audience to achieve long term business objectives.
Physical store strategy: This strategy enables the customer to easily reach targeted audience through the availability of the physical stores.
This supports Superdry to easily convert leads of the customer into the sales and thus helps in effectively communicating the values to the potential customers of the company. This communication strategy is adopted by Superdry to communicate all the product values verbally and thus it enhances the customer experiences.
Models of communication
Integrated Business communication is the process of engaging employees towards the main operations of the business. Also business communication strategy helps to create better workplace and supports in achieving business objectives. It is the approach used by Superdry for the brand communication (Hu and Yang, 2018). There are multiple theories and approaches that creates a seamless experiences for the customers and thus helps to reinforce brand’s core value to customers.
Berlo’s model of communication
The Berlo’s communication model has been founded by David Berlo in 1960 and this model mainly referred as SMCR model that consists of source message channel and receiver.
Source: It represents the sender who creates the message intended for the receiver. It enables the organization to send message to communicate value, benefits or to promote new products among intended receiver that is the targeted audience (HR and Aithal, 2020).
Message: It consists of the information or a message that sender wants to transmit to the receiver. The message could be in the form of content, element, treatment, structure, code as well as through photos and videos etc.
Channel: It states the means through which the message can be transmitted to the potential audience. It is very important aspect through which company communicates the product or brand value to its targeted audience. When the audience or intended receiver receives the message, they interpret with different point of views. The Berlo communication model mainly helps the company to select an appropriate model to communicate the product value and branding to the customers in more effective ways.
Receiver: It is the final source who collects the message and it the final destination that helps Superdry fashion clothing company to reach to targeted audience.
Aristotle model of communication
This model is mainly speaker centred and this model can be often divided into speaker, speech, occasion, audience and effect. As per the Aristotle model of communication, speaker gives speech whereas the targeted audience is passively influenced (HR and Aithal, 2020). This model of communication main referred as a golden rule of excels that enables the Superdry to communicate the organizational value to its potential customers. It enables the company to design an impressive content to pass the message to targeted respondents. This is one of the traditional models of communication and thus it enables the company to select words and communication message in effective ways. This model of communication enables the marketer of the organization to effectively communicate the values to the intended audience of the firm.
Transactional model of communication
It can be reffered as a model of communication that enables the organization to continuously exchange information in which both the receiver and sender are involved in the process of communication (James and Montgomery, 2017). It states that both sender and receiver of the message actively participate in communication aspect. However, this model of communication also enables the business to communicate the values and products and services in order to reach to the targeted audience. Thereby transactional model of communication mainly includes encoding and decoding process in which company transmits its values but every customer interprets the message in different ways. The process of transactional model of communication mainly goes through the process of communicating message through a particular channel and specific noise. This model can also be considered as a circular model of communication that helps in transmitting values to targeted audience.
MacLean’s model of communication
This model was introduced by Bruce Westley and Malcolm S. MacLean Junior. The Westley & MacLean model of communication helps to analyze the communication source and receiver (Kalogiannidis, 2020). This model states that three parties are involved in the communication process. Also this model has two perspectives such as mass interpersonal and mass communication.
Application of the MacLean’s model of communication allows Superdry to understand difference between interpersonal communication and mass communication that helps in identifying the feedback and thereby enables the company to understand market value and customer satisfaction (Edelson et.al. 2018). Thus, application of MacLean’s model of integrated communication in Superdry to establish a strong relationship between environmental factors and message in the communication process
Moreover, this model of communication consists of multiple components such as source, environment, sensory experience, object of orientation, coding of interpretation, receiver, object of orientation receiver and feedback and gatekeepers. All such components often creates confusion in the communication process of Superdry Plc.
CONCLUSION
From the above study it has been concluded that communication is one of the effective way to promote and communicate the business values in order to reach to targeted customers. The study has been based on Superdry which is a British Fashion clothing company. The report has also helped to derive insights for current communication strategies in order to enhance the distribution and sales of the firm to accomplish the long term business objectives. It has been identified that Superdry digital Ecommerce, digital strategy and iKiosk technology. The study has also helped in understanding different types of communication models such as MacLean’s communication model to position the business among the competitive businesses across the world.
REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Sohn, B.G. and Spiliotopoulos, V., (2021). 7 Scaffolding peer interaction within a language-and-content integrated business curriculum. Meaningful Teaching Interaction at the Internationalised University: Moving From Research to Impact, p.75.
Edelson, S.A., Senk, C.C. and Stock, K.L., (2018). Using an integrated business experience to take the place of “introduction to management” in an integrated curriculum. Journal of Education for Business, 93(7), pp.332-340.
Lv, K., Hu, J., Yu, Q. and Yang, K., (2017). Throughput maximization and fairness assurance in data and energy integrated communication networks. IEEE Internet of Things Journal, 5(2), pp.636-644.
Pelger, S. and Nilsson, P., (2018). Observed learning outcomes of integrated communication training in science education: skills and subject matter understanding. International Journal of Science Education, Part B, 8(2), pp.135-149.
Hu, J. and Yang, K., (2018). Data and Energy Integrated Communication Networks: A Brief Introduction. Springer.
HR, G. and Aithal, P.S., (2020). Consumer Communication Deployment Tactics: An Integrated Framework for Lifestyle Brands and Retailers in India (CCF-LS). International Journal of Applied Engineering and Management Letters (IJAEML), 4(2), pp.1-21.
HR, G. and Aithal, P.S., (2020). Establishing True Lifestyle Brand in India: An Integrated Marketing Mix Framework. International Journal of Management, Technology, and Social Sciences (IJMTS),(June 2020), 5(1), pp.261-284.
James, A.M. and Montgomery, B., (2017). Engaging the fashion consumer in a transparent business model. International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education, 10(3), pp.287-299.
Kalogiannidis, S., (2020). Impact of Effective Business Communication on Employee Performance. European Journal of Business and Management Research, 5(6).
Superdry Plc., (2021). [Online]. Available through :< https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.istockphoto.com%2Fphotos%2Fsuperdry-store-superdry-plc-is-a-uk-branded-clothing-company-and-of-picture-id1195433833&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.istockphoto.com%2Fphoto%2Fsuperdry-store-superdry-plc-is-a-uk-branded-clothing-company-and-owner-of-the-gm1195433833-340732647&tbnid=1ZwGM2WpxBJzFM&vet=12ahUKEwjd2vXa_uXzAhUWHrcAHR65CXkQMygIegUIARDHAQ..i&docid=vEs1m87FgFjGTM&w=1024&h=683&q=superdry%20Plc&ved=2ahUKEwjd2vXa_uXzAhUWHrcAHR65CXkQMygIegUIARDHAQ> [Accessed on 25th October 2021]
About Superdry Plc., (2021). About Superdry Plc. Available at :< https://corporate.superdry.com/about-superdry/> [Accessed on 25th October 2021]
MacLean’s communication model, (2018). MacLean’s communication model Available through:< https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fimage.slidesharecdn.com%2Fmodelsofcommunication-161106080757%2F95%2Fmodels-of-communication-11-638.jpg%3Fcb%3D1478419819&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.slideshare.net%2FAkhilBharti%2Fmodels-of-communication-68252809&tbnid=BrBbEcnBVg3DbM&vet=12ahUKEwiFl4T4gObzAhWwm0sFHTG-ByEQMygIegUIARC8AQ..i&docid=WbkcLyjY5TGJfM&w=638&h=359&q=MacLean%27s%20communication%20model&ved=2ahUKEwiFl4T4gObzAhWwm0sFHTG-ByEQMygIegUIARC8AQ> [Accessed on 25th October 2021]
Know more about UniqueSubmission’s other writing services:
