Chapter 4
The communication process

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Learning objectives
1. To understand the basic elements of the
communication process and the role of
communication in marketing.
2. To examine various models of the communication
process.
3. To analyse the response processes of receivers of
marketing communication, including alternative
response hierarchies and their implications for
integrated marketing communication planning and
strategy.
4. To examine the nature of consumers’ cognitive
processing of marketing communication.
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Who
What

Cognitive
response

Communication Response
process

How

How they
work

Whom

Traditional
models

Innovation
AIDA
adoption

Elaboration
likelihood

Response
hierarchies

Alternative
models

Information

processing

Standard
learning

Central or
peripheral

Hierarchy of FX

Dissonance
attribution

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Low
involvement

4-3


What’s the buzz?

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The nature of communication
 Communication has many diverse definitions.
 Typical definitions involve the ‘exchange of
ideas’ between a sender and a receiver.
 Marketing communication is a complex process.
 Effective communication depends on many
factors, including:
 the nature of the message
 the audience’s interpretation of it
 the environment in which it is received.

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4-5


Language and communication

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4-6


The communications process

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4-7


Source factors

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4-8


Forms of encoding
Encoding
Encoding
Musical
Musical

Verbal
Verbal

Graphic
Graphic

••Spoken
Spoken
word
word

•• Pictures
Pictures


•• Arrangement
Arrangement

•• Drawings
Drawings

•• InstrumentInstrumentation
ation

••Written
Written
word
word
••Song
Song
lyrics
lyrics

•• Charts
Charts
•• Symbols
Symbols

•• Voices
Voices

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Animation
Animation
•• Action/
Action/
motion
motion
•• Pace/speed
Pace/speed
•• Shape/form
Shape/form

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Louis Vuitton

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4-10


Message factors
 The message contains the information or
meaning the source intends to convey.
 Messages must be put into a transmittable form
appropriate to the channel.
 Messages communicate meaning at multiple
levels:
 literal meaning (conscious)

 symbolic meaning (subconscious).

 Marketers use individuals trained in semiotics and
cultural anthropology to understand conscious
and subconscious meanings.
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The semiotic perspective
Three components to every message

Object
Object
(e.g.
(e.g. brand
brand or
or
product
product attribute)
attribute)
Interpretant
Interpretant
(e.g.
(e.g. sexy,
sexy, glamorous,
glamorous,
individualistic)

individualistic)

Sign
Sign or
or symbol
symbol
(representing
(representing
intended
intended meaning)
meaning)

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4-12


Nicabate Valentines’ Day

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4-13


Communication channels
Personal
selling


Personal
Personal
channels
channels

Word of
mouth

Print
media

Broadcast
media

Non-personal
Non-personal
channels
channels

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Receiver/decoding factors
 The receiver is the person or persons with whom
the sender wishes to communicate.
 Decoding is the process used to understand the
message.

 Communication is heavily influenced by the
receiver’s frame of reference.
 Advertisers spend many millions of dollars
investigating the audience’s reference frames.
 Pre-testing advertisements also provide insights
into how messages may be received.

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4-15


Experiential overlap
Different frames of reference

Sender
Sender
experience
experience

Receiver
Receiver
experience
experience

Moderate commonality

Sender
Sender

experience
experience

Receiver
Receiver
experience
experience

High commonality

Receiver
Receiver
Sender
Experience
Sender
Experience
experience
experience
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Receiver
experience

4-16


Noise factors
Noise refers to any unplanned distortion to the
message.


Sources
Sources of
of noise
noise

White
White noise
noise
(signal
(signal transmission)
transmission)

Situational
Situational factors
factors
(distractions)
(distractions)

Clutter
Clutter
(competitive
(competitive messages)
messages)

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Response/feedback
 The set of receiver’s reactions after receiving a
message is known as the response.
 Response may include both non-observable
and observable actions.
 Feedback closes the loop and allows
marketers to monitor message effectiveness.
 Advertisers spend many millions of dollars
investigating the audience’s reference frames.
 Pre-testing advertisements also provide
insights into how messages may be received.

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4-18


Feedback
 Feedback refers to the receiver’s set of
reactions after being exposed to an
advertising message.
 Receiver’s responses can be observable or
non-observable
 Observable feedback
 sales, purchasing or shopping behaviour

 Non-observable feedback
 advertising/brand awareness; advertising/brand

attitude

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Feedback (cont.)
 Receiver’s responses
Observable
Observable
feedback
feedback
NonNonobservable
observable
feedback
feedback

Purchasing behaviours
Sales/enquiries
Coupon redemptions
Research-based measures
Recall/awareness
Message comprehension

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4-20



Analysing the receiver
 The marketing communication process begins
when the marketer identifies the audience that will
be the focus of the message.
 Marketing communication may be directed at
different audience levels:
 advertising—mass markets
 personal sales—individual customers
 direct response—receptive groups.

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4-21


Levels of audience aggregation

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4-22


Brand touch points
 Brand touch points refer to those occasions when
a customer (or potential customer) comes into
contact with the brand.

 Touch points planning recognises that consumers
may assume responsibility for initiating the flow of
communications.
 Mapping consumer touch-points allows marketers
to determine when and where to communicate
with the customer in an integrated manner.
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4-23


Consumer-initiated marketing
communications

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4-24


Who
What

Cognitive
response

Communication Response
process


How

How they
work

Whom

Traditional
models

Innovation
AIDA
adoption

Elaboration
likelihood

Response
hierarchies

Alternative
models

Information
processing

Standard
learning

Central or

peripheral

Hierarchy of FX

Dissonance
attribution

Copyright 2012 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd
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Low
involvement

4-25