Communications strategy and contemporary challenges

By Maria Saflagioura Msc International Marketing student, University of West London. @msaflagioura

An effective and sustainable communication strategy has always been a major enigmatic issue for the corporate culture. So how can we implement a solid strategic planning which communicates our business goals, mission and vision in a highly competitive market?

The perfect synchronization between our strategic positioning and competitiveness should include the right balance of four crucial factors:

1)   The message

2)   The media channels

3)   The audiences

4)   The employees

Let’s examine a hypothetic example. Given that a successful advertising campaign of a strong brand with a massive influence to all the audiences (ages 15-64) has failed to build a level of trust between the majority of the employees. As a result the internal communication is becoming progressively dysfunctional affecting the external communication and the business performance.

According to a business analyst Rob Enderle “the dominance in a market will not ensure customer loyalty as your real threats are not competitors but the mistakes that you make”

 In 2009,France Telecoms one of the largest telecommunication companies globally has been the epicentre of international media due to bad management practices resulting to staff suicides.

To conclude I would like to make a valuable addition based on a recent survey that I found on Forbes Magazine . “More than 88% of consumers think that companies should try to achieve their business goals while improving society and the environment”. As generations of consumers are evolving they tend to have higher expectations from their society their workplace and their brands. Is this a continuous challenge for the marketers?