Fifth Generation IMC: Expanding the scope to Profit, People, and the Planet

TL;DR

This paper proposes a fifth-generation of integrated marketing communication that broadens focus to include stakeholders like society and the environment, emphasizing multi-stakeholder decision-making and future research directions.

Contribution

It introduces an expanded scope for IMC, integrating profit, people, and planet considerations, and outlines new research questions and strategic frameworks.

Findings

Highlights the shift to multi-stakeholder IMC

Provides industry examples of multi-stakeholder decision-making

Suggests future research directions in strategy, media, and measurement

Abstract

This editorial outlines an expanded scope for the next (fifth) generation of integrated marketing communication. It identifies key market forces that gave rise to this evolution and describes a trajectory of where Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) has been and where it is going. The central shift is moving from primarily focusing on one stakeholder to multiple ones, including people (employees and society), the planet (environment), and profits. It identifies examples from industry that exemplify multi-stakeholder decision-making and uses the examples to suggest research questions that academics and practitioners should address. Examples and research directions are organized around marketing strategy, communication media and messages, and measurement systems.