Marketing is concerned with the central purpose for which organisations exist, namely to understand, create, communicate and deliver customer value and satisfaction at a profit. Marketing is a business orientation and philosophy, a management process and a set of practices, which enables the organisation to meet the expectations of existing and prospective customers, to create and deliver customer value, thus achieving competitive advantage.
This module provides a comprehensive introduction to the subject and practice of marketing today, in addition to examining future trends. It provides the learner with a detailed foundation of marketing theory, principles and practice. This theoretical and practical framework is further developed in Commercialisation module, which examines the new product development process, market launch and commercialisation strategies for technology-intensive products and processes. On completion of this module, the learner will have gained a comprehensive understanding and appreciation of the role of marketing (and sales) in the successful operation of the enterprise and in particular a critical understanding of its role in relation to the enterprise’s successful management of technology and innovation in the internal and external environments in which it operates.
Introduction to Marketing
Defining marketing.
Marketing concepts – the production concept, the product concept, the selling concept, the customer concept, the societal marketing concept, the role and scope of marketing in the organisation.
Market orientation and R&D.
Marketing in the new economy – digitalisation and connectivity, disintermediation and reintermediation, customisation and customerisation, industry convergence.
Entrepreneurial and small business marketing v corporate marketing
Market Opportunity Analysis
Micro Environmental Analysis – company, suppliers, marketing intermediaries, customers, competitors and other publics.
Macro Environmental Analysis - the nature of competition, demographics and other socio cultural issues, the economic environment, political, legal and technological issues.
Understanding and analysing business and consumer markets and organisational and consumer buyer behaviour, forecasting future trends and their impact on current or future market offerings.
Understanding technology customers and the technology adoption life cycle.
Market research tools in technology markets.
Responding to the marketing environment
Measuring market opportunities - Market information and intelligence systems, forecasting, concepts and uses of market research.
Effective market segmentation, bases for segmenting consumer and business markets, evaluating and selecting target markets.
Positioning for competitive advantage.
Designing a Customer Driven Strategy and Marketing Mix:
Product Decisions
Classifying Products and Services and their characteristics.
Positioning and differentiating the market offering throughout the product life cycle.
Shortening life expectancy of the market offering.
New product and service development.
Product development, management and support issues in technology markets.
Components of a brand and branding strategy, implications of brands for buyers and sellers, branding online, co-branding.
Pricing Decisions
External and internal influences on the pricing decision.
Developing pricing objectives, strategies and programmes.
Setting prices, using price as promotional tool, price changes.
Pricing approaches and methods for technology products.
Marketing Channels
The nature of marketing channels.
Designing and managing value networks and marketing channels. from distribution channels to supply chains.
Channel dynamics and organisations.
Retailing and wholesaling of goods, services and technology products and management strategies.
Non-store retailing and emerging channels.
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Integrated Communication Decisions
Developing and managing the marketing communications mix.
The role and definition of market communication tools: sales promotion, advertising, personal selling and public relations.
Impact of technology on mix elements, online marketing and e-business, trends and developments
Integrated marketing communications.
The Role of Marketing in developing successful business strategies
The marketing management process – the value delivery sequence.
Developing competitive marketing strategies – market leader, market challenger, marketing follower, market nicher.
Measuring and delivering marketing performance and superior customer service, customer relationship management.
Relationship Marketing: Partnerships and Alliances.
Combination of lectures, workshops and guest lectures.
| Module Content & Assessment | |
|---|---|
| Assessment Breakdown | % |
| Formal Examination | 50 |
| Other Assessment(s) | 50 |