MKT20020

The primary objective of this course is to introduce students to the key concepts, analytical tools, and activities that comprise marketing management. Students will also be provided practice in assessing and solving important marketing problems. This course is a foundation for advanced courses in marketing, which is designed to help students equip themselves with strong theoretical and practical foundations.

People often think about marketing as advertising – a highly visible activity by which organizations try to persuade customers to buy products and services. Marketing, however, is much more than advertising alone; advertising itself cannot single-handedly make customers buy things that they don’t want. Rather, marketing involves a wide range of activities that can be broadly categorized into two: (1) having a comprehensive understanding of the market and (2) developing a marketing strategy as a value creation process.

With this in mind, I have organized the course into two modules. The first module covers the principles of marketing which are the bases for marketing strategies, such as identification of market needs and problems. The second module will focus on specific marketing practices and tactics as vehicles of value creation. These marketing decisions comprise the marketing mix, which should be designed based on a rigorous analysis of market situations.

“What is marketing and how are marketing problems analyzed?”

* The definition and scope of marketing
* Marketing as a value-creation process
* A wide range of analytical frameworks
* The objective, process, and importance of marketing research
* Consumer behavior and decision making process based on the latest findings from consumer psychology

Module 2: Strategic Marketing Management

“How are marketing strategies developed and implemented?”

* Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning: How to assess market potential and choose the right positioning
* Branding: How to develop, measure, and capitalize on brand equity
* Product: How to develop products that maximize customer lifetime value
* Pricing: How to set prices that capitalize on value to customer and capture value for the firm
* Distribution: Marketing across geographic boundaries

The entire business sector is at a phase in the adoption cycle of Artificial Intelligence (AI). It is crucial to understand how AI can reshape consumer behavior and marketing operations so that students are ready for the new world with AI. Our understanding of AI, however, is limited despite lots of research in progress. Therefore, a significant proportion of class hours will be allocated on the role of AI in marketing based on the most recent academic research findings and reliable industry reports.