Introduction
Purpose of the Manual
Below you will find the instructor’s manual for delivering Introduction to Marketing in an online course format. This manual is not intended to give you an overview of the content; in fact we will be referencing the work of the open education resource, Principles of Marketing (https://open.lib.umn.edu/principlesmarketing/). This manual is intended to provide you guidance on how to manage your time and present the content of Principles of Marketing. Further, it will give assignment ideas and rubrics which can be used throughout the course.
The assignments and exams presented have been created to be distributed in a cumulative approach. At the end of the semester, students will have a webpage that they can add to their graduate portfolios and have developed a number of online skills. Students will also develop a high competency of critical thinking skills as they consider small entrepreneurial ventures. This course can be partnered with an Entrepreneurship class if delivered in the same semester.
In-Class Learning Activities
The course is set up to be delivered in an online format. Although some courses are taught in scheduled courses weekly online, this course is intended to be rolled out asynchronously. The instructor should prepare a video for each week and a module that describes the important learning topics, discuss the topic, and show students what is expected to move forward.
Learning activities in this course will be notes for the instructor to speak to within their videos. These notes are based upon the feedback and experience from instructors who have used this course content in the past. Instructors should also provide a welcome email introducing students to the learning management system, showing students where they can find their open education resources, and discussing the course from a high-level.
Further, the instructor should be prepared to spend the time with small groups of students regularly providing feedback for their assignments and reviewing work. The course is application based and requires students to develop and use problem solving skills, the instructor should insist on ensuring the content requirements are met.
Assumptions Made for Delivery of Course
Although any of the information or assignments may be used or changed while you develop your course work, the language of this package does read as if some key assumptions have been made. They are:
- 1) The course will be delivered online. The instructor will be having in person video classes but the format does support pre taping videos for the students to watch on their own time.
- 2) The course is hosted on a learning management system platform (LMS) such as Brightspace, Moodle, or Blackboard. The language of this document will be generic so instructors using any platform can use the work but you may choose to edit the language before using. An example would be “submit the document to the assignment submission folder”, which may have a different title in the LMS used but will be intuitive for the students to understand.
- 3) The course is based upon a 15 week, 45 hour delivery of the content. The content in this manual should be divided and given with two weeks per module and instructors should consider this while scheduling due dates, class times, etc. If the course is being taught in a condensed or self-paced format, the course can be condensed as well.
Learning Outcomes
The learning outcomes of this course are based upon the Coast Mountain College course Introduction to Marketing. The following are the learning outcomes for that articulated course:
Upon successful completion of this course, the student should be able to:
- Describe fundamental principles of marketing, terms and definitions, as well as the role of the marketing manager.
- Explain the 4 Ps of marketing.
- Develop an understanding of the decisions involved in the marketing function of organizations.
- Analyze complex marketing problems and generate appropriate recommendations for implementation.
- Recognize corporate social responsibility concerns related to marketing (e.g. sustainability, cultural appropriation, green-washing).
- Design a Marketing Plan using the group problem solving method.
Topics
The topics covered in this manual are as follows:
- Marketing principles: People, price, place, promotion (4 Ps)
- Environmental scanning for market opportunities
- Market research and analysis
- Market segmentation
- Consumer behaviour
- Business to business marketing
- Customer relationships and satisfaction
- Branding and marketing communications
- Advertising and sales
- Pricing strategies
- Retail and distribution strategy
- Supply chain management
- Marketing plans; strategy and implementation
- Evaluation of marketing activities
- Global/international marketing
Contents of the Manual
The contents of this manual will be divided in the following modules at 2-weeks per module and 1 week for midterm 1:
Module 1: Course Introduction
- Lesson Plan & Instructor Notes
- Assignment 1 Outline & Rubric
Topics: Marketing plans; strategy and implementation
Module 2: Strategic Planning
- Lesson Plan & Instructor Notes
- Assignment 2 Outline & Rubric
Topics: Market research and analysis
Environmental scanning for market opportunities
Module 3: Market Segmentation and Target Marketing
- Lesson Plan & Instructor Notes
- Assignment 3 Outline & Rubric
Topics: Market segmentation
Consumer behavior
Business to business marketing
Module 4: The 4P’s of marketing – Product, Price, Place
- Lesson Plan & Instructor Notes
- Assignment 4 Outline & Rubric
Topics: Pricing strategies
Retail and distribution strategy
Supply chain management
Midterm
Module 5: The 4 Ps of marketing – Promotion
- Lesson Plan & Instructor Notes
- Assignment 5 Outline & Rubric
Topics: Branding and marketing communications
Advertising and sales
Global/international marketing
Module 6: Implementation
- Lesson Plan & Instructor Notes
- Assignment 5 Outline & Rubric
Topics: Marketing plans; strategy and implementation
Final Exam
Topics: Evaluation of marketing activities
Assignment and Exam Descriptions
| Assignment 1 – Choosing your Business
Throughout this course we will be working on a business idea that you will generate based upon your interests. This assignment will allow you to choose a business that falls within some basic criteria that you can emulate throughout the course. |
10% |
| Assignment 2 – Strategic Planning
Before planning the marketing activities for your business you must research your industry and review your business model. This assignment will allow you to cement your business ideas and set goals for what the business would accomplish. |
10% |
| Assignment 2 – Market Segmentation
Who should we spend our small and important marketing budget trying to reach? Trying to be everything to everyone will get you nowhere. This assignment will allow you to research and determine the target market for your business and define how to reach that group. |
10% |
| Assignment 3 – The 4P’s of marketing – Product, Price, Place
The marketing program will follow the 4 P’s of marketing Product Strategy, Price Strategy, Promotion Strategy, Place (Distribution) Strategy. This assignment outlines the product or service, its variants, its prices, and how you intend to sell them. We save promotion for the next module. |
20% |
| Assignment 4 – The 4P’s of marketing – Promotion
A promotion strategy is defined by the plan and tactics you implement in your marketing plan, in order to increase the demand for your product or service. In other words, how do you communicate and advertise to your customers. This assignment will have students creating their promotion campaign for their small business with a budget to match the size of the business. |
20% |
| Midterm 1 – Review and Adjust
|
10% |
| Assignment 5 – Implementation
After the strategic decision making for the marketing plan, we need to ask the questions how much it will cost and when we are doing it. A basic budget and an implementation plan will be created to answer these questions. |
10% |
| Final Exam – Review and Update
|
10% |