1 MARKETING FUNDAMENTALS BUAD-307, Fall 2015, SECTION 14847D INSTRUCTOR Professor Stephanie Tully, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Marketing OFFICE Hoffman Hall (HOH) 621 EMAIL [email protected]BASIC CLASS INFO Monday and Wednesday 4:00pm - 5:50pm Location: HOH 421 OFFICE HOURS Mondays & Wednesdays 1:00 – 3:00 PM and by appointment It is best to let me know in advance when you are coming to office hours and what your needs are by email. Office hours are typically limited to 15 minute sessions. This ensures adequate time for other students who may need it. If the set hours are not convenient, please email me to set up an appointment. I am happy to meet with you outside the regular appointment hours. TA Janhavi Kulkarni [email protected]Office hours are by appointment COURSE WEBSITE The site is available through Blackboard at https://blackboard.usc.edu/. Closer to the time of each class, the site will contain useful material including: Announcements, powerPoint slides from class lectures, syllabus, assignments, etc. COURSE PACK You will need a course pack that is available from the USC bookstore. The course pack contains four notes and five cases. BOOK Dhruv Grewal and Michael Levy (2014), M: Marketing with ConnectPlus, 4th ed., McGraw-Hill Irwin, ISBN-13: 9781259613708. Prior editions will supply most of the needed information.
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When working on your case write-up please follow these guidelines: - The questions that the case write-ups should answer and guidelines on length and formatting will be posted on
the class site at a later date.
- It is important in business to write clearly, directly, and concisely. In addition to the content, written assignments
will be graded on writing quality. Use headings to organize your thinking and help orient the reader. The overall
impression is also very important. Spelling errors, sloppy formats, poor grammar, etc., give the impression of
sloppy thinking, carelessness, and lack of regard for your ideas and the assignment.
- The case write-up should provide a recommendation, not a restatement of the situation. Your recommendation
should be based on solid quantitative and qualitative analysis. This means that you should support your
recommendation by demonstrating why your chosen course of action is the best alternative (e.g., lowest risk,
least expensive, best strategic fit, etc.) and why it is good to discount other options. Do not feel that you must use
one of the recommendations presented in the case. You can be creative as long as you are also realistic and
tempered by your analysis.
3. Exam – 20%
There will be a midterm covering material from the class sessions and textbook. This exam is
closed-book and closed notes. You will be allowed one 81/2 X 11 “cheat sheet”. You must turn this
sheet in with your exam. The midterm will consist of multiple choice and short answer type
questions. The midterm counts for 20% of your final grade and will cover all the topics covered up
to that point.
The in-class exam dates have been set and appear in the course schedule. Inform me in writing (i.e.
via e-mail) of any legitimate conflicts with the exam date at least two weeks in advance. If I do not
receive written notice at least two weeks before the quiz or exam, you will not be given the
opportunity to take it at another time. If you miss the exam due to illness or injury, a make-up will
not be scheduled for you unless I receive a letter from your doctor (on letterhead) indicating the date
and time of the medical problem that prevented you from taking the test. If you are unable to take a
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make-up exam before the next class session, your doctor’s letter must also indicate the date through
which your medical incapacity extended. If you have a letter from your doctor, I may choose to give
you a substitute test or I may assign greater weight to another assignment.
4. Quiz – 10%
This quiz will primarily cover the concepts we will go over in the second half of the course and will
give you a chance to use basic quantitative analysis in Marketing to analyze a firm’s operations.
Quantitative concepts are important in marketing, and also are the basic “language” used to analyze
a firm’s revenues and marketing expenditures.
5. Marketing Research Assignment – 5%
The Marketing Department has mandated that participation in two research studies be part of the
requirements for this course. The philosophy is that there is some educational value in getting a
feeling for what marketing experiments are like and, further, that since marketing knowledge is
heavily based on research, those who study marketing will be asked to help "give back" to the
discipline and future students by helping expand this knowledge.
Participation in the Subject Pool is easy and usually enjoyable for most students. All you have to do
is show up for the studies and follow instructions. While the studies are usually fun, they are also
serious. Therefore, you should take them seriously and provide honest and careful responses to all
questions you are comfortable answering. If you choose this option, you will need to register
online at http://marshall-mkt.sona-systems.com. Detailed instructions on how to sign up and
participate are provided in a handout posted on Blackboard.
Each market research session will not last more than 60 minutes.
Different studies covering different marketing topics will occur throughout the semester.
Students may select the session that fits their schedule.
Available times and dates will be announced in class, via e-mail, or online. Sign-up
procedures will be explained in class.
Students not honoring their reserved seat for a research study will not be penalized for their
first “no-show.” Each subsequent “no-show” earns a 5 point deduction. A “no-show” occurs
when a student cancels less than 24 hours before the study or simply does not attend.
The guidelines provide that those who object to participate in the research, or are not eligible, may
complete substitute assignments to attempt to obtain the points available. If you would like to take
this route, you may, for each of these two experiment requirements, complete the following
assignment:
1. Please choose a marketing topic of your choice. You may choose freely from any topics
covered in the course at any time. Then read
a) The textbook chapter(s) relevant to a marketing topic(s)
b) At least three articles from trade or business publications that are relevant to the
implications of the topics for a firm of your choice. These articles must come from
legitimate periodicals—web sites are generally not acceptable.
2. Write a paper—usually ranging from 4-6 pages double spaced pages—discussing
implications of the textbook chapter(s) and articles you have read for the firm you have
chosen. You must cite each article and the textbook at least once.
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Your options, then, are to: 1. Participate in two experiments 2. Write two papers 3. Participate in
one experiment and write one paper.
Please note that full credit for papers is contingent on quality and is not guaranteed. Those electing
to write one or two papers should turn these in no later than the last day of class.
6. Final project – 20%
The objective for the final project is for you to integrate the concepts and language of the course
into a comprehensive analysis. By looking at companies and products offered in the marketplace,
the hope is that this project will enable you to look at the marketplace and promotions from an
enlightened perspective.
Guidelines:
This will be a group project. Groups will be assigned by the second week of class. There will be 4-5
group members per group. In this project, you have to:
(i) Choose a product/service/idea that is offered by more than one company. Choose 2
companies that could fulfill similar needs, but use very different STP in their approach to
marketing.
(ii) Describe the current state of the product, with regards to the three Cs (max 1 page per
company).
(iii) Use their current marketing mix (the 4 Ps) to show how they are using STP and what their
strategy currently is. Provide pictures and/or summaries of advertisements you discuss
(max 2 pages per company).
(iv) Evaluate the differences of their strategies and provide some rationale as to why these
companies may be using such different approaches. Evaluate the strengths/weaknesses
of the different approaches and offer any applicable recommendations (max 3 pages
total).
Deadlines:
1. 11/13 – Have met with Stephanie Tully to go over progress on the project, asked questions,
etc.
2. 11/30 – Final presentation of projects to the class (20 minutes)
3. 12/14 – Final paper due
Grading:
1. Ambitiousness – you will be graded on the ambitiousness of the product and companies you
choose. Ambitious projects will have the greatest similarity in terms of the products/service
they offer and their potential market, yet choose very different STP.
2. Thoroughness - you will be evaluated on the thoroughness of your analysis. A thorough
analysis will have considered the company from multiple points of view, from a narrow and
wide perspective, and will have looked at all forms of communication the company has with
their potential consumers.
3. Analysis – The analysis will be evaluated in terms of its thoughtfulness and its ability to
incorporate course concepts into meaningful insights and recommendations.
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4. Communication style – Assume that this is a report you are turning into a potential
employer. As a result, answers that are thorough and succinct will be graded higher than
those that include unnecessary or superfluous information.
5. Presentation – the presentation will be evaluated by its content (see grading guidelines 1-4)
and its engagement. Assume that the audience is a potential client/employer. Additionally,
all group members need to present a portion of the work.
6. Finally, grades will be evaluated relative to peer groups.
Please adhere to the following format for the written portion of the project - if you do not do so you
will not be eligible to receive full credit.
- 12 point font (Times New Roman) - double spaced
- Eight pages MAX (not including appendices with ads/pictures) - One inch margins
POLICIES
Exams
Inform me in writing (e-mail is fine) of any legitimate conflicts at least two weeks in advance.
(All dates have been set and appear in the course outline). If I do not receive written notice at least
two weeks before the exam, you will not be given an opportunity to take it at another time.
If you miss an exam due to illness or injury, a make up will not be scheduled for you unless I
receive a letter from your doctor (on letterhead) indicating the date and time of the medical problem
that prevented you from taking the test. You are responsible for contacting me concerning the
missed exam as soon as possible, preferably before the exam. If you are unable to take a make up
exam before the next class session, your doctor’s letter must also indicate the date through which
your medical incapacity extended. If you have a letter from your doctor, I will give you a substitute
exam that is as similar in scope and difficulty level to the original exam as possible.
Cases and Projects
Instructions for cases and projects are typically given with advance direction. Given this extended
timeframe, issues that may arise on the due date (illness, emergencies) should not preclude students
from turning in assignments on time. Extensions for cases and projects will not be given for an
illness or injury unless a doctor’s note explicitly dictates that the student was unable to do work
during the entire (or majority of) time given for completing the assignment. Thus, students should
work proactively to ensure last minute difficulties do not affect their ability to complete
assignments on time.
Grade Rebuttals
If you feel that a calculation error has been made in the grading of a quiz or the exam, please write a
note describing the error/circle the question and give it to me when returning your exam. If it’s a
judgment issue, you should be prepared to support your response with written documentation in
support of your opinion (e.g. a photocopied page from the textbook with the relevant information
highlighted) via email. I will go through your quiz or exam and re-assess your response. Note that
if you request that I regrade a response, I reserve the right to regrade the entire exam. I will
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either email you a response or set up an appointment to speak with you if I feel more discussion is
necessary. Students have one week from the date an assignment/exam is returned to submit a grade
rebuttal—after one week, no rebuttals will be accepted.
IMPORTANT: I will not discuss or consider changing the grade on any assignment that has not
first been set up by appointment. There are absolutely no exceptions to this policy.
Add/Drop Process
The last day to add or drop classes without a grade of "W" can be founded on our university website
at http://www.usc.edu/admission/fa/dates.html.
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
Please let me know immediately if you have any problem that is preventing you from performing
satisfactorily in this class. Any student requesting academic accommodation based on a disability is
required to register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of
verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the letter is
delivered to me by the second week of class. DSP is located in STU 301 and is open 8:30 a.m. –
5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Their phone number is (213) 740-0776. Please note that it is the
student’s responsibility to manage the scheduling process with the DSP. Failure to meet any DSP
scheduling deadlines will likely mean you will not have special accommodations.
Emergency Preparedness/Course Continuity
In case of a declared emergency if travel to campus is not feasible, USC executive leadership will
announce an electronic way for instructors to teach students in their residence halls or homes using
a combination of Blackboard, teleconferencing, and other technologies. Please activate your course
in Blackboard with access to the course syllabus. USC's Blackboard learning management system
and support information is available at http://blackboard.usc.edu
Working in Groups
Some of the coursework for this class will be done in groups. These groups will be assigned and
will change for each assignment. Therefore, a particularly good or bad group dynamic will not
overly impact any person’s grade.
The following guidelines were developed by marketing faculty to help students working on group
projects. If you follow them, these guidelines will help your group do the best it can, and save time
and possible conflict.
Business activities involve group effort. Consequently, learning how to work effectively in a group
is a critical part of your business education. When working in a group, every member is expected to
carry an equal share of the group’s workload. Your professor will not supervise the process any
more closely than a manager would in similar circumstances. In the infrequent case where you
believe that a group member is not carrying out his or her fair share of work, you are urged not to
allow or permit problems to develop to a point where they become serious. Try to first address these
problems among yourselves. It is recommended that your group establish your own problem-
solving process for handling conflicts at the beginning of your work together. If you cannot resolve
conflicts internally after your best efforts, they should be brought to the attention of your professor
who will work with you to find a resolution.
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You will be asked to complete a peer evaluation form to evaluate the contribution of each of your
group members (including your own contribution) at the conclusion of each project. If there is
consensus that a group member did not contribute a fair share of work to the project, the professor
will consider this feedback during grading.
Guidelines for Effective Group Work
Research on groups shows that outcomes do not depend on group members liking each other
personally, but they do depend on effective group processes. Here are some guidelines:
Focus on achieving the best results rather than worrying about interpersonal relationships
Become aware of and respect differences among each other
Meet as soon as possible to:
o Agree on your group’s rules (basic assumed rules are provided on the next page)
o Decide on the process of collaboration: when you will brainstorm ideas/approaches,
collect data, analyze data, prepare the group project paper
o Assign tasks and identify specific deliverables for each meeting and each person
o Schedule subsequent meeting times
o Agree on how you will exchange work and by which dates
o Determine how your group mates will review the combined project and approve it
It is in your interest to be involved in all aspects of the project. Even if you divide the work rather
than work on each piece together, you are still responsible for each part. The group project will be
graded as a whole: its different components will not be graded separately. Your exams may contain
questions that are based on aspects of your group projects.
Assumed Rules for Group Participation
To work well as a group, you need to decide on some ground rules that will facilitate your joint
work. Below is a list of common rules related to group work that you should assume are in effect
unless your group decides to change them. Discuss each rule and decide whether you want to adopt
it as a group. Make sure each member commits to the rules you adopt. You are also free to adopt
your own rules.
Each member will perform a fair share of the group’s work. Free-riding is not acceptable.
Telephone numbers and email addresses will be exchanged promptly.
All members should attend scheduled meetings unless it has been previously arranged that a
member cannot make a specific meeting or there are unavoidable circumstances such as illness
(hangovers don’t normally qualify as a valid form of illness).
To encourage attendance at all meetings, arranging for a combination of face-to-face and online
meetings can help alleviate the strain of scheduling issues.
All members should be prepared for all meetings (read the assignment in advance and develop some
ideas on your own).
Meetings will commence no later than six minutes after the agreed start time and everyone should
arrive by that time.
Roles such as chair of a meeting and note-taker should be clearly allocated and should rotate around
the group so that responsibilities are shared.
Anyone can initiate and redirect discussion.
Decisions will be made democratically. In the absence of a clear consensus there will be a vote.
Aggressive and dominating behavior is not acceptable.
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Sexist and racist remarks are not acceptable.
Members should try to encourage contributions– to discussions and decisions – from everyone, and
to assess the value of all contributions.
Members should practice active listening: listen to each other’s ideas, summarize them, ask
questions, and show respect for the other person’s opinion before challenging it.
Tasks that individuals agree to undertake should be completed by the agreed deadline. If it looks as
though there will be a problem meeting a deadline that member should seek help from other
members of the group in time to avoid a delay.
If a group mate asks for help, everyone should try to assist him/her.
If a conflict is emerging, it should be discussed in a group meeting and attempts should be made to
resolve it within the group; if this is unsuccessful, it should be brought to the attention of the
professor.
Each person has the right to point out when these rules are being broken.
All group mates should have responsibility for implementing an effective group process.
All rules can be changed by consensus.
Free-riding: It is extremely important that every person contributes to group assignments. In
the real world, group tasks are common. A person that “free-rides” is likely to face
repercussions. I will not “fire” or “admonish” any group members for lack of participation.
However, to encourage group cooperation, each member of the group will need to turn in a
confidential breakdown of the participation of the other group members for each group
project. Students should NOT include themselves, but distribute 100 “points” of
participation amongst their other group members. If you plan on allotting a group member
less than equal points, you must have attempted to talk with and work with this group member
prior to point allotment. If you feel you need additional assistance with a particularly difficult
group member, I will be available. It is best to try to work issues out amongst yourself before
involving me. Note: the actual points will not be used explicitly, but will be used to identify
and penalize group members who are free-riding.
STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
USC seeks to maintain an optimal learning environment. General principles of academic honesty
include the concept of respect for the intellectual property of others, the expectation that individual
work will be submitted unless otherwise allowed by an instructor, and the obligations both to
protect one’s own academic work from misuse by others as well as to avoid using another’s work as
one’s own. All students are expected to understand and abide by these principles. SCampus, the
Student Guidebook, (http://www.usc.edu/scampus or http://scampus.usc.edu) contains the
University Student Conduct Code (see University Governance, Section 11.00), while the
recommended sanctions are located in Appendix A.
Students will be referred to the Office of Student Judicial Affairs and Community Standards for
further review, should there be any suspicion of academic dishonesty. The Review process can be
found at: http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/SJACS/. Failure to adhere to the academic conduct
standards set forth by these guidelines and our programs will not be tolerated by the USC Marshall
community and can lead to dismissal.
No form of cheating or plagiarism is acceptable. Since students in other sections of this course may
have the same or highly similar assignments and exams, it will be considered a violation of
academic dishonesty if a student from one section that has completed an assignment or exam shares
information with a student in another section that has not yet completed that assignment or exam.
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Further, if a student has knowledge of or observed a violation of academic dishonesty, he or she is
obligated to report the incident to the instructor.
REMINDER! In papers and assignments, if you take more than three consecutive words from a
source, these must be put in quotes or indented as an extended quotation. You must also cite any
source you use even if you do not quote directly.
ALIGNMENT OF COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES WITH MARSHALL’S SIX UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM LEARNING GOALS
Goal Marshall Program Learning Goal Description Covered in this Course
(Goals 1-6, and relevant selected sub-goals) Emphasis/ Relation
to Course Objectives
Relevant Course Topics
1 Our graduates will understand types of markets and key business areas and their interaction to effectively manage different types of enterprises 1.1 Students will demonstrate foundational knowledge of core business disciplines, including business analytics and business economics 1.2 Students will understand the interrelationships between functional areas of business so as to develop a general perspective on business management 1.3 Students will apply theories, models, and frameworks to analyze relevant markets (e.g. product, capital, commodity, factor and labor markets) 1.4 Students will show the ability to utilize technologies (e.g., spreadsheets, databases, software) relevant to contemporary business practices
2 Our graduates will develop a global business perspective. They will understand how local, regional, and international markets, and economic, social and cultural issues impact business decisions so as to anticipate new opportunities in any marketplace 2.1 Students will understand how local, regional and global markets interact and are impacted by economic, social and cultural factors. 2.2 Students will understand that stakeholders, stakeholder interests, business environments (legal, regulatory, competitor) and business practices vary across regions of the world
Moderate International marketing, consumer behavior, ethics, segmentation and target marketing
3 Our graduates will demonstrate critical thinking skills so as to become future-oriented decision makers, problem solvers and innovators 3.1 Students will understand the concepts of critical thinking, entrepreneurial thinking and creative thinking as drivers of innovative ideas 3.2 Students will critically analyze concepts, theories and processes by stating them in their own words, understanding key components, identifying assumptions, indicating how they are similar to and different from others and translating them to the real world 3.3 Students will be effective at gathering, storing, and using qualitative and quantitative data and at using analytical tools and frameworks to understand and solve business problems 3.4 Students will demonstrate the ability to anticipate, identify and solve business problems. They will be able to identify and assess central problems, identify and evaluate potential solutions, and translate a chosen solution to an implementation plan that considers future contingencies 3.5 Students will demonstrate the ability to be accurate, clear, expansive (thorough, detailed) and fair-minded in their thinking
Strong The entire course
4 Our graduates will develop people and leadership skills to promote their effectiveness as business managers and leaders.
Moderate The entire course
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Goal Marshall Program Learning Goal Description Covered in this Course (Goals 1-6, and relevant selected sub-goals)
Emphasis/ Relation
to Course Objectives
Relevant Course Topics
4.1 Students will recognize, understand, and analyze the motivations and behaviors of stakeholders inside and outside organizations (e.g., teams, departments, consumers, investors, auditors) 4.2 Students will recognize, understand and analyze the roles, responsibilities and behaviors of effective managers and leaders in diverse business contexts e.g., marketing, finance, accounting, 4.3 Students will understand factors that contribute to effective teamwork
5 Our graduates will demonstrate ethical reasoning skills, understand social, civic, and professional responsibilities and aspire to add value to society 5.1 Students will understand professional codes of conduct 5.2 Students will recognize ethical challenges in business situations and assess appropriate courses of action
Moderate Ethics, strategy, new product development
6 Our graduates will be effective communicators to facilitate information flow in organizational, social, and intercultural contexts. 6.1 Students will identify and assess diverse personal and organizational communication goals and audience information needs 6.2 Students will understand individual and group communications patterns and dynamics in organizations and other professional contexts 6.3 Students will demonstrate an ability to gather and disseminate information and communicate it clearly, logically, and persuasively in professional contexts
Moderate All projects and case assignments
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PERSONAL INFORMATION FORM: MARKETING FUNDAMENTALS, BAUD 307