Purpose -This research paper aims to examine the theoretical and practical applicability of integrated marketing communications. Design/methodology/approach -Presents the findings from a two-country qualitative study concerning the phenomenon. The research used survey methodology to assess the views of advertising agency members of the Institute of Advertising Practitioners (UK) and the Communications Agencies Association of New Zealand (CAANZ) Findings -The findings show that practitioners appear to be constructing and applying IMC concepts that are situation-specific. Nonetheless, a search for a single empirically testable theory of IMC ignores evidence that practitioners are committed to IMC concepts while at the same time resisting the development of "rigid rules". Additionally, external factors may be forcing reconsideration of marketing communications and accountability.Research limitations/implications -The research is limited to a study of ad agency perceptions in two countries. While implications of the findings for other countries are discussed, a major direction for the future is the need for research to be conducted in organisations themselves, not necessarily the agencies which service their needs. Practical implications -Practical implications include variability in terms of the application of IMC principles. This leads to the idea of differential application with -as stated above -some rejection of "rigid rules" in this dynamic area. Originality/value -The value of the paper lies in its use of a comparative approach using members of clearly identifiable and relevant samples in two countries in relation to IMC. The notion of differentiation in relation to IMC application, the perceived rejection of rigid rules, and the need for further research to be focused in-company (rather than in-agency) assist in moving this emergent paradigm forward in an academic and practitioner sense.

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Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) is a fast growing health care service warranting further research to understand its place in modern healthcare. This study investigated what consumers of CAM value from their healthcare experiences. The research adopted an interpretive approach using in-depth interviews with 12 CAM consumers. Seven consumer value components were identified 1) quality of care, 2) treatment efficiency, 3) physical environment, 4) social (esteem) value, 5) spiritual value, 6) ethics (natural aspect), 7) play (relaxation, leisure activities). Findings indicate that CAM consumers evaluate the value of their healthcare experience primarily on quality of care (which revolved around an empowering partnership) and treatment efficiency (such as treatment results and treatment ease of use and customisation) with the physical environment playing a small role. It was through valuing these experiences that the CAM consumer then began to value the other consumer value components – spiritual value, social value, ethics and play. We propose a consumer value model that is relevant to the CAM health care setting, and conclude that the key aspects that CAM consumers value has managerial implications for both CAM and mainstream health providers.

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Purpose Consumer experiences of healthcare services are challenging for researchers to study because of the complex, intangible and temporal nature of service provision. The purpose of this paper is to introduce a novel longitudinal three-phase research protocol, which combines iterative interviewing with visual techniques. This approach is utilised to study consumer service experiences, dimensions of consumer value and consumer value co-creation in a transformational service setting: complementary and alternative medicine healthcare. Design/methodology/approach This research employed a three-phase qualitative longitudinal research protocol, which incorporated: an initial in-depth interview, implementation of the visual elicitation technique Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique and a final interview to gain participant feedback on the analysis of data collected in the first two phases. Findings Four key benefits derived from using the three-phase protocol are reported: confirmation and elaboration of consumer value themes, emergence of underreported themes, evidence of transformation and refinement of themes, ensuring dependability of data and subsequent theory development. Originality/value The study provides evidence that a longitudinal multi-method approach using in-depth interviews and visual methods is a powerful tool that service researchers should consider, particularly for transformative service research settings with sensitive contexts, such as healthcare, and when studying difficult to articulate concepts, such as consumer value and value co-creation.