BBA Program

Fall 2020

Course Syllabus for: MKT 201 Principles of Marketing

(3 Credits, Prerequisite: BUS 101: Introduction to Business)
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I. CLASS AND INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

● Class Time and Location : Zoom Live stream, Pre recorded Lectures

● Instructor : Asheka Mahboob, Rahma Akhter

Office Location : Online
Email : asheka.mahboob@bracu.ac.bd, rahma.akhter@bracu.ac.bd
Consultation/Office Hours : As per section wise class schedule

II. COURSE DESCRIPTION

A survey course of the basic principles of marketing with emphasis upon understanding customers’
needs and wants in order to deliver value to the customers, determine which target market the
organization can serve the best, and decide upon appropriate product strategy, channel and
distribution, pricing and promotional strategies to serve the market most effectively.

III. LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. To introduce the concept of marketing and its importance for businesses.

2. To define consumer and business markets and explain the differences of buying behaviours
of these two markets.
3. To describe the steps of developing customer value driven marketing strategy: market
segmentation, targeting and positioning.
4. To define the various elements of marketing mix and explain how these elements interact
to create superior customer value.
5. To introduce the new customer relationship-building tools—from the internet,
smartphones, and tablets to online, mobile, and social media—for engaging customers.

IV. INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES

On completion of the course, students will be able to

1. Define marketing and assess its’ importance in business decision making.
2. Understand consumer behaviour, market segmentation, targeting and product positioning
processes.
3. Develop marketing strategies considering product, price, distribution and promotion
decisions.
4. Identify how to blend traditional media with new digital and social media tools to create
more targeted, personal, and engaging customer relationships.
5. Apply the knowledge to real world marketing situations to explain the marketing strategies
of different organizations to gain competitive advantage.
V. LEARNING RESOURCES

● Core / Required Reading: Philip Kotler, Gary Armstrong & Prafulla Agnihotri Principles of
Marketing, 17th Edition, Pearson 2018
● Others: Additional resources include relevant cases, articles and video clips

VI. COURSE FORMAT

Each lecture will be segmented into short video segments on small topics and will be associated
with short online quizzes or some other form of mini class assessments. The quizzes will be
placed between the short video segments. The quiz will include questions about the topics of
the lecture. Students are expected to follow the textbook to get a thorough understanding of
the theories discussed in the lecture and will try to relate the theories to the real life situations.
Case analysis and video presentations will be held on a regular basis as part of your learning.
There will be recommended and supplemental readings as per requirement for lectures which
will help to expand your knowledge of the topics. Short assignments will be provided in every
one to two weeks. Students are encouraged to attend live-streamed office hours as per
schedule given in the course outline.

VII. GRADING

1. Homework/Assignments (10%):

Assignments and activities include case studies and video presentations, article review,
marketing by the numbers, short questions or report on digital marketplace observation.
Cases and articles will be provided earlier for preparation of discussion and presentation.

2. Quiz (20%)

There will be two announced quizzes and both marks will be counted. The syllabus will be
announced earlier and you need to take preparation as per instruction.

3. Mini class assessment (10%)

Each lecture will be associated with a short quiz or some other mini assessment. You are
required to attend all of them. This will stimulate you to be on the same pace with the lecture
and it is also an excellent way to evaluate your learning.

4. Midterm (20%)

Midterm exam will be held during the specified midterm week. The syllabus includes the topics
and cases covered before the midterm week. The exact format of the exam will be informed to
the students on due time. There will be no makeup for midterm unless there is a valid reason
and that again is at the discretion of the registrar’s office
 5. Project (10%)

The objective of this project is to provide the students with experience in applying the
concepts and methods of marketing to a real-world marketing opportunity. An outline of the
project and project presentation will be provided for your guidance.

6. Final Exam (30%)

The final examination will be comprehensive and will include topics discussed throughout the
semester. In general, the syllabus will cover relevant chapters from the textbook, case studies
and articles provided in the class and lessons learned from classroom discussion. All
examinees must abide by the ‘Regulations of Students Conduct’ of BRAC University.

Activities % of the Total

Assessment
Homework / Assignment 10%
Quiz 20%
Mini class assessment 10%
Mid-term Exam 20%
Project 10%
Final Exam 30%
Total 100%

Letter grades for the course will be based on the following scale - as specified in BRACU catalog.

Range of Marks  Grade  GPA Remarks

80   to  100  A  4.0 Excellent
73 to  <80  B+ 3.3 Good
63  to  <73  B  3.0 “
58  to  <63  C+  2.3 Fair
50  to  <58 C 2.0 Poor
<50    F  0.0 Failure
VIII. TOPIC AND ACTIVITY SCHEDULE

Week Topics Activities& Readings

Assignments

Week 1 Course Overview Practice Quiz 1 R1: Customer

Experience
Chapter 1: Marketing: Creating
Customer Value and Engagement Mini assessment1
R2: Customer
Key Concepts Happiness
Mini assessment 2
• Definition of Marketing and the
steps in the marketing process
• Understanding the Marketplace
and Customer Needs
• Designing a Customer Value -
Driven Marketing Strategy and
Plan
• Managing Customer
Relationships and Capturing
Customer Value
• The Changing Marketing
Landscape

Week 2 Chapter 5: Consumer markets and buyer Practice Quiz 2 R3: Starbucks: A
behaviour Technology Pioneer
Case 1
 Key Concepts
• Model of Consumer Behavior
• Characteristics Affecting Mini assessment 3
Consumer Behavior
• Types of Buying Decision
Behavior Mini Assessment 4
• The Buyer Decision Process
• The Buyer Decision Process for
New Products

Week 3 Chapter 6: Business Markets and Business Practice Quiz 3 R5: Boeing: Selling
Buyer Behavior to Businesses—The
Case 2 Stakes Are Much,
Much Higher
Key Concepts
• Definition of business market and
how business markets differ from
consumer markets
• The key factors that influence
business buyer behavior
• The steps in the business buying
decision process
• The buying practices of
institutional and government
organizations

Week 4 Chapter 7: Customer-Driven Marketing Practice Quiz 4

Strategy: Creating Value for Target
Customers Mini assessment 5

Key Concepts
Mini assessment 6
● Market Segmentation, targeting,
differentiation and positioning
● Major bases for segmenting
consumer and business markets Assignment

● Market targeting strategies

Week 5 Chapter 8: Products, Services and Brands Practice Quiz 5

 Key Concepts Mini assessment 7
● Definition of product, service &
experience
● Levels of product & services

● Product & service classification

● Product & service decision

● Person , Place & Social marketing

Week 6 Chapter 8: Products, Services and Brands Practice Quiz 6

Key Concepts Mini assessment 8

● Service marketing: Nature &
characteristics
● Branding strategies: Building a
strong brand Practice Quiz 7

● Brand positioning Mini assessment 9

● Brand name selection

Chapter 9: New-Product Development

Strategies & Product Life Cycle Strategies

Key Concepts
● New product development
strategy
● New product development
process
● Managing new product
development

Week 7 Chapter 9: New-Product Development Midterm

Strategies & Product Life Cycle Strategies
Practice Quiz 10
Key Concepts
Mini assessment 10
● Product Life-Cycle Strategies

● Style, fashion & fad

● Additional product & service

 consideration
● Product decision and social
responsibility
● International product & service
challenges

Week 8 Marketing Plan Guideline Practice Quiz 11 R: Indigo Airlines –

Flying High Value
Mini assessment 11 and Low Price
Chapter 10 & 11: Pricing & Pricing
Strategies

Key Concepts
● Pricing

● Major Pricing Strategies

● Considerations in setting price

● New product, Product Mix, Price

adjustment strategies

Week 9 Chapter 12: Marketing Channels: Practice Quiz 12

Delivering Customer Value
Assignment:
Key Concepts Observing an
Online Marketplace
● Supply Chains and the Value
Delivery Network
● Functions of Channel Members

● Number of channel Levels

● Channel Behaviour and

Organization
● Channel Design Decisions

● Marketing Logistics and Supply

Chain Management

Retailing and Wholesaling

Week 10 Chapter 14: Communicating Customer Practice Quiz 13

Value: Integrated Marketing
Communications Strategy
 Mini assessment 12
Key Concepts

● The Promotion Mix

Case 3
● Integrated Marketing
Communications
● The Communications Process

● Steps in Developing Effective

Marketing Communication
Program.
● Promotion Mix Strategies

Week 11 Review & Final Exam

IX. COURSE POLICIES

1. Instructor’s Expectations of Students:

Students are encouraged to strive for excellence in acquiring knowledge – through
attending all vdo lectures and online consultations from start to end; participating actively
in online discussions; spending at least two hours for each lecture, self-study, completion of
assigned tasks and preparation for quiz, exam, presentation, etc.; and completing and
submitting required tasks on-time.

Students are also expected to be regular, be respectful of others’ opinions and be

completely honest by implementing the highest ethical standards. It is also expected that
students will uphold this principle in all their future endeavours, including their career
activities.

2. Academic Integrity:
Although group-study is encouraged strongly, all students/groups are expected to complete
all assignments individually. As such, one may not share, lend or borrow another student’s
(group’s) work in any manner - either on paper, by computer or by word of mouth. Any
cheating, plagiarism and other forms of scholastic dishonesty or misconduct will result in
the strictest disciplinary action - according to the BRACU regulations.

3. Make-Up:
No make-up exam will be administered and no late homework, assignment, case or project
will be accepted except for conflicts with official university business or extreme
emergencies. In the former case, please notify the instructor (at least) one week in advance;
in the latter case, please inform prior to the exam or immediately after. Under both
situations, students are expected to provide appropriate and authentic documentation.

4. “I” and “W” Grades:

 A grade of “I“ (Incomplete) will be granted only as a result of most extreme circumstances -
beyond a student’s control and only after stringent verification of the circumstance and
approval. A grade of “I” is not given in lieu of an “F” or any other passing grade. Any
student who who does not officially drop the course/ withdraw from the university, will
receive a grade of “F”.

5. Disability:
Any student who has a disability that prevents the fullest statement of his/her abilities
should contact the instructor personally. All efforts will be made to devise the appropriate
accommodation in order to facilitate student’s successful completion of the course.

X. DISCLAIMER
Every effort will be made to ensure that the information contained in this document is
adhered to, however, it is subject to change. Changes will be notified in advance. Students are
encouraged to check with the instructor if there are any doubts. It is the student’s
responsibility to be informed.