MKT42310

The most innovative biotech breakthrough means nothing if it never makes it to market. Of the more than 1,800 U.S. biotechnology companies founded since 1980, less than 200 are generating revenues and only 6 are net positive. With that in mind, the more we can weigh the odds of success in our favour, the better. Marketing is ultimately about creating, defining and delivering value to the customer. The customer can be an individual, an organization, an investor, a nation-state or any other entity. Marketers specialize in understanding customers – and acting on this knowledge to engage them in a profitable and sustainable relationship.

We are all exposed to elements of the marketing mix on a daily basis – advertising on television, social media, billboards and radio; selling in multiple and varied contexts and locations; promotions online and at traffic lights. This may lead us to believe that any one of these elements is what marketing is all about. In fact, marketing is the sum of a set of tools, a process of value creation and capture that takes place at both strategic and operational levels. Understanding the marketplace and the customer enables an organization to design a compelling marketing strategy, construct an effective marketing programme to deliver on that strategy, build customer relationships and ultimately capture value to create profit.

The purpose of this course is to develop an understanding of, and appreciation for, the role of marketing and apply this knowledge to the biotechnology organization. It will equip students with some of the tools of the marketer’s trade in terms of understanding customers, differentiating and positioning the company, pricing products and services. Students will also gain exposure to marketing communication channels including advertising, public relations, sales and digital media.