Principles of Marketing (EB-160)

Syllabus for Spring Semester, 2007

VL 204, Tuesday/Thursday, 8:00-9:50AM

Facilitator: Prof. Carter Crockett

(805) 565-6182

Office:Deane Hall, #102

Available Hours:(Subject to variation, contact in advance to confirm)

Mon: 3-5PM; Tues. 4:15-5:30PM;Wed: 2:45-5PM andby appointment

Brief Descriptor:An exploration of the principles, concepts, strategy and tactics of marketing. This course provides an overview of marketing, understood as the empathetic art of building relationships between products and services and their intended consumers, businesses and markets. Abstract theory and concepts are brought to life by case studies, examples, guest speakers, a corporate visit and a major student-run auction event at the end of the semester. In these ways, this class will serve as a proving ground for thinking critically about marketing, the creation and execution of ideas, and grappling with the current trends, ethics and controversies of modern marketing.

Objectives:

  • To develop a solid grasp of what marketing is, and the important ways it is changing
  • To critically consider, and reasonably respond, to the marketing we are unavoidably exposed to
  • To nurture the capacity to translate marketing ideas and concepts into marketing materials
  • To take in, evaluate and articulately engage in individual and group discussions and projects
  • To foster the empathy and the capacity to listen that is required in order to understand a target audience
  • To sensitively navigate the emotional, moral and social controversies that are increasingly important in contemporary marketing
  • To try one’s hand at the art of marketing in the context of pricing, positioning and promoting products and services at an auction event

Course Overview

It is estimated that, every day, US consumers typically encounter over 60,000 visual impressions, sound bytes, and commercially-driven messages. These messages can manipulate or educate. They tell us of things we need, don’t need, want, don’t want, and didn’t even know we wanted. Marketing is pervasive in Western culture, and the role of marketing is a growing subject of debate for a number of reasons (e.g. increasingly dynamic and global markets, new technology and forms of communication, ethical concerns, etc.). This course aims to introduce many of the concepts, skills and techniques that marketers use to navigate these pressing issues and concerns. Furthermore, the classroom will provide students the opportunity to begin to craft their own marketing preferences and creative style, in the context of evaluating case studies and working to execute their own initiatives. In this way, students will begin to grapple with marketing issues and discern if they have what it takes to excel in the empathetic art of marketing.

Course Format

This course is a blend of lecture and dialogue. As such, it anticipates regular attendance and full engagement in all individual and group activities. The lectures will be used to frame, build on and extend the subject matter covered in the readings from the text (Boone & Kurtz, 2006). While this portion of the format is fairly straight-forward, the form in which dialogue and discussion is meant to take place warrants further explanation:

Dialogue

This class is designed to feel like an ongoing group discussion, one in which you will be asked to engage in discussion and presentations that will require you to evaluate competing perspectives and defend your own views. In this vein, your voice will be a necessary part of bettering your own expression as well as a tool for helping others in the class to evaluate their own perspectives (vis-à-vis your own). This means that failing to participate will not only negatively impact you, but potentially everyone else in the room that stands to benefit from your perspective. One of the primary opportunities you will be given to engage will be in the context of case study discussions. For this reason, reading of the cases and chapters assigned before class will be essential for enabling you to meaningfully contribute. As you complete the readings, write down any questions, disagreements or ideas that it sparks. A personal journal can be helpful in this regard. One additional requirement for facilitating openness and the productive classroom dialogue that this class requires is respect for others.

So, engagement and respect are key qualities that will be required if you hope to excel in this class. We should expect nothing less of each other.

Writing Intensive Designation

“Writing Intensive” courses encourage students to develop their abilities to articulate information, ideas and convictions both in written and oral discourse (from The Purpose of General Education at Westmont). As a result, students should expect that writing competencies will be a central focus of the course. There are a number of required papers and essays (16+ pages of writing) assigned in order to hone this critical management skill.

As it relates to writing forbusiness, please refer to the following guidelines whereby I have attempted to distill some solid principles to keep in mind:

The key differences between academic writing and business writing:

  • diverse audience (experts and laypeople)
  • practical application of ideas, decisions and actions
  • demonstration of thinking skills that include common sense and intuition
  • clear words and smooth sentences conveyed in plain, conversational English
  • use of a design and format that fits unique purpose of given communication

Dr. Crockett’s 2-part criteria for business writing: it must have impact and precision (e.g. the message must be effective even if read by a busy executive with limited understanding of the relevant issues)

  • 3-part model for any written communication: begin by attempting to identify and customize your message according to… 1) purpose, 2) audience and 3) format
  • 4-stage process: 1) pre-write, brainstorm and organize ideas, 2) draft document, 3) revise and redraft document (consider using 3rd party proof-reader) and 4) refine and finalize document Have enough pride in your work that you refuse to hand in a “draft” paper in the hope it will pass as “final”.

Serving Society, Enacting Justice Designation

This course counts for the Serving Society, Enacting Justice designation in the General Education requirements, due in large part to the charity auction that the class organizes and hosts at the end of the semester. The chosen charity depends upon student consensus, but the first two charities chosen are: Make a Wish Foundation and Bridges of Hope, South Africa.

As it relates to assessment, the way the auction has been structured, each of class member is assessed based upon: a) initiative, b) follow-thru, and c) results. “Initiative” typically entails how much effort the student put into finding auction items. “Follow-thru” entails their presentation and pricing of that item. Finally, “results” measures if that item sold and if so, for what quantity above the asking price. Above and beyond the individual procurement and marketing of each item, each student also has an administrative role (finance manager, reception, catering, etc.) that also provides them with the potential to boost their scores in each of these three categories. All told, the entire class spends about 8 hours on the day of the event “working” at the auction, and many spend five times that in preparation for the auction.

Direct Application to Westmont College’s Student Learning Standards

Through individual, team and community projects, a key objective of this class is to nurture the student’s ability to:

a)Seek out, gather and synthesize data (per the research and technology standard)

b)Creatively produce, critically evaluate, and empathetically execute marketing elements (per the critical interdisciplinary thinking and written & oral communication standards)

c)Acknowledge and sensitively accommodate the modern challenges and complexities of contemporary marketing communication (per active societal & intellectual engagement and diversity standards)

d)Engage the creative art of marketing as a whole person in possession of a unique set of values, convictions, perspectives and motives (per Christian orientation and, once again, the critical interdisciplinary thinking and active societal & intellectual engagement standards)

Core Texts

  • Boone, Louis & Kurtz, David. (2006) Contemporary Marketing, South-Western/Thomson.
  • Godin, Seth. (2005) All Marketers are Liars: The Power of Telling Authentic Stories in a Low-Trust World, Portfolio.

Grading

Participation (attendance + respectful engagement)10%

Mini-case 5%

Storytelling Essay & related writing20%

First Exam10%

Second Exam10%

Auction Participation (initiative + follow-thru + results)20%

Reflective Essay10%

Final Exam15%

Caution: Avoid Christian Jargon

We will approach our topic from a Christian worldview, and explore it as such in class, in whatever language is edifying and appropriate to the class. However, the realm of business is generally governed by secular language and perspectives. As such, all students are asked to restrict their use of Christian jargon where possible and particularly on written essays and exams, unless clearly solicited. The one place where this does not apply is in your personal “Reflective Essay”. In all other essays and exams, write as you would in a secular business context (i.e.- avoid words like ‘calling’, ‘blessed’, ‘prayerfully’or ‘feeling led’ to do something). To the extent that these concepts are important to you (and I hope they are), you will need to express them using terminology that holds meaning in a secular context. This will require you to demonstrate a sensitivity to those unfamiliar with such concepts and a capacity to put important terms in their language, hopefully while still conveying the intended meaning. It can be difficult to exercise this skill in a business environment, and as such, this classroom hopes to offer a training ground for practicing and developing this skill.

In-Course Honors

Because this is course attempts to provide an overview of all things marketing, it must, by design, avoid going too deep into any particular theory, concept or facet of marketing. For those that wish to accept the opportunity to pursue their interests and/or learn more about one of the facets of marketing in greater depth, you will be provided the opportunity to do so and earn an admirable mark on your transcript for the effort. To a great extent, the chosen books and articles you will be asked to read and report on will reflect the particular area of interest you have chosen. The report will need to be completed one week before the final exam date. See Dr. Crockett if this option to hone your individual interests, research and writing skills is appealing.
Term Schedule

The following is subject to change. Updates and changes will be announced in class as necessary.

Date / Reading/Assignment Due
Jan.9 /
  • No Reading Due

Jan.11 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 1- Creating Satisfaction through Relationships
  • Begin reading: All Marketers are Liars

Jan.16 / Martin Luther King Holiday -- No Class (Monday Class instead)
Jan.18 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 2- Strategic Planning and the Marketing process

Jan.23 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 3- Creating an Effective Marketing Plan

Jan.25 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 4- E-Commerce: Marketing in the Digital Age

Jan. 30 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 5- Consumer Behavior

Feb. 1 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 6-B2B Marketing

Feb. 4 / (Optional) SuperBowl Party - 3PM Sunday- Location TBA
Feb. 6 / Sr. Seminar trip to World Vision- No Class
Feb. 8 / First Exam
Feb. 13 /
  • Guest Speaker: Joe Haley, Donor Advertising (Mazda- Zoom, Zoom!)
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 7-Serving Global Markets

Feb. 15 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 8- Marketing Research, Support Systems & Sales Forecasting
  • Finish reading:All Marketers are Liars

Feb. 20 / Presidents Day Holiday – No Class
Feb. 22 /
  • “Storytelling” Paper Plan Due (1 page max.)
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 9- Market Segmentation, Targeting & Positioning

Feb. 27 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 10- Relationship Marketing, CRM & One-to-One

Mar. 1 /
  • DECKERS Tour
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 11- Product & Service Strategies

Mar. 6 / Second Exam
Mar. 8 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 12- Category & Brand Management; New Product Dev.

Mar. 13-15 / Spring Recess – No Class
Mar. 20 /
  • Guest Speaker: Ken Raasch, Creative Brands Group
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 13- Marketing Channels and Supply Chain Management

Mar. 22 /
  • “Storytelling” Draft Paper Due, with reviewer comments, (7 pages)
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 14- Direct Marketing and Resellers: Retail & Wholesale

Mar. 27 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 15- Integrated Marketing Communications

Mar. 29 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 16- Advertising and Public Relations
  • “Storytelling” Final Paper Due (5 pages)

Apr. 3 / Dr. Crockett @ Parents’ Council Retreat- No Class
Apr. 5 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 17- Personal Selling and Sales Promotion
  • Class Debate: Is “Evangelism” Marketing?

Apr.6-9 / Easter Break- No classes missed
Apr. 10 /
  • Auction item class presentations

Apr. 12 / Auction?
Apr. 17 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 18/19- Price Concepts, Approaches & Strategies

Apr. 19 /
  • Guest Speaker: Bill Fasig, Ex-CMO Verisign

Apr. 24 /
  • Contemporary Marketing: Ch. 19- Pricing Strategies

Apr. 26 /
  • Reflective Essay Due (10 pages)

May. 3 / Thursday, 8AM- Final Exam

Marketing Mini-Cases

During the course of this semester, each student is required to create at least one marketing mini-case for class discussion. This can be any message you’ve read or heard in any place, channel or media that is in some intentional way meant to help market a product or service. When you find something interesting that you think the rest of us can learn from: 1) Introduce it to the class, 2) Be prepared to field some questions from your classmates, and 3) Write a mini-case analysis (max 3 pages) of the message. You will be allotted approximately 10 minutes of class time.

Suggested Format:

Introduction:

Introduce company, product/service, and featured marketing element

Analysis:

Who is the intended audience?

Primary:

Secondary:

Other/unintended:

What is the intended message?

Primary:

Secondary:

Other/unintended:

What is the chosen delivery mechanism/channel?

Primary:

Secondary:

Other/unintended:

What results or achievements are likely hoped for?

Primary:

Secondary:

Other/unintended:

(During oral presentation only) Poll the class: Is this marketing element a Hit or a Miss?

HitMiss

Conclusion:

In your opinion, what would make this marketing element better? (e.g. different intentional (or unintentional) audience, message, delivery or result)

What is your basis/support/research for making such a conclusion?

Important Note: Integrate at least one or two theories or relevant concepts from this class where useful in explaining this marketing initiative (e.g. –Which step of Maslow’s needs hierarchy is the message targeting? What is the message using as a key differentiating strategy? Which stage of Godin’s/Moore’s adoption curve is the product/service currently in? Could it have passed Godin’s 2-part test (p.108)?)

Marketing as Storytelling- Essay

“Storytelling works when the story actually makes the product or service better.”

– Godin, All Marketers are Liars, p.96

This assignment is meant to give you the opportunity to practice the increasingly important marketing task of storytelling. This is an allusive craft, or art, that can best be developed by trying your hand at it. This assignment comes in three parts, as specified in the syllabus. First, you will need to turn in and receive feedback from me on the “Storytelling” paper plan (1 page max), delineating what marketing element you intend to focus on and how you intend to analyze it. Before handing in the first draft (7 pages max.), you are required to have someone else from the class critically evaluate your essay first in order to ferret out any writing errors, encourage clarity of thought and evaluate the authenticity of the story you intend to tell. Feel free to use images, graphs, formatting or charts that you feel help to convey these steps or the story they are meant to tell. The final draft should be a maximum of 5 pages in length. You will also receive detailed comments from me on this final paper.

Step 1: Pick a product or service

You can use the same product/service that was featured in your marketing mini-case, find a new product/service that can be used to tell a more compelling “story”, or (for the truly ambitious!) create your own product/service idea. You cannot use any of the examples detailed in Godin’s book or Joe Haley’s Mazda presentation. This assignment requires your own creativity, so while you may use existing marketing information for inspiration and comparison, each of the following “steps” should feature your original work. For purposes of this essay, it will be easier if you can use a product/service targeted at an audience that you can identify and ask for feedback (e.g. college-aged students, professors, local business people or parents).

Step 2: Write the story

Think about your target market(s). What worldview do they have? How can you “frame” your story so that they can hear and believe it? Convey your story in no more than 5 sentences. For an example of what is expected in the way of tone and format, see Cold Stone Creamery (on p. 118).

Step 3: Define the “essence” or DNA of the story

Use no more than 5 words. For an example of what is expected, recall the following DNA for Mazda:

  • Stylish
  • Insightful
  • Spirited

Step 4: Define the “positioning”, or guiding internal statement, of the story

Use no more than one short sentence (10 words or less). For an example of what is expected, recall the following Mazda positioning:

“Always the soul of the sports car”

Step 5: Define the “tagline”, or customer-facing information, for conveying the story

Again, think about your target market(s). Use no more than one short sentence (10 words or less). For an example of what is expected, recall the following Mazda tagline, meant to convey ‘joy of motion’, ‘self-expression’ and ‘youthfulness’:

“Zoom-Zoom”

Step 6: Evaluate your story

Is it authentic? Does it pass the 2-part test (p.108)? Don’t worry if it isn’t…authentic stories are hard to find. Still you must explain why it does/doesn’t qualify. Attempt to share this story with someone from the target market(s). What comments, suggestions for change or questions did they raise? How would you change your story to accommodate such feedback?