Revisiting Integrated Marketing Comunication (IMC)Assessment of IMC and Performance in Higher Education (HE)

Resumen

Integrated marketing communication (IMC) is a construct that embraces all the different types of communication and marketing of an organization as a whole and in a consistent way. It is currently considered a holistic concept by many authors and in many studies. IMC has attracted the interest of marketing and management scholars since it was first introduced. A theoretical debate on definitional and measurement issues has also been growing. However, thanks to the benefits that IMC can offer organizations, it is interesting to study it with regards to the higher education (HE) environment since higher education institutions (HEIs) have been focusing on the potential of different and new ways of communication and their integration. The purpose of this dissertation is threefold. Firstly, it contributes to the IMC’s theoretical body of knowledge by exploring the concept of integrated marketing communication (IMC) in higher education (HE) and marketization of HE. Certainly, HE sector is a quite undiscovered sector in the IMC landscape. Secondly, the current dissertation provides adapted measurement tools to assess the IMC level and performances in the context of HE, in HEIs from UNIJES association. Indeed, in a non-English speaking country, in another language other than English (Spanish) and considering different perceptions, academics’ and practitioners’ in the same organization. Lastly, it measures if IMC is positively associated with business performance. IMC is measured at the university level and business performance at three levels, at the university as a whole, at the faculty level and at master’s degree level. Results show that IMC and performance are positively associated in the context of HE. Consequently, it is interesting to obtain the highest IMC level as possible in HEIs, as when this is higher, performance levels in HE will increase too.