APPLIES TO ACADEMIC YEAR 2015/2016 Norwegian version

ELE 3746 Tactical Marketing

Responsible for the course
Ragnhild Silkoset

Department
Department of Marketing

Term
According to study plan

ECTS Credits
7,5

Language of instruction
English

Introduction
Tactical marketing trains the student to make market decisions with the purpose to develop an organization that grows and survive in a demanding market. The students will be trained in evaluating market conditions, set up a competitive strategy and make tactical marketing decisions.

Tactical marketing differs from other courses in that it is build around a practical and realistic simulation game.

The students is put into position to run a marketing department in a large international IT company. The company experiences tough competition, demanding customers, and aggressive competitors. Through the simulation game the students is guided through different phases of work tasks. This consist of making decisions regarding product attributes and -variation, price strategy, availability, human resource management and career development, budgets, in addition to financial planning. Through the game the students develops their ability to analyze situations, understand consequences of decisions before they makes the decision, plus develop an understanding of how the marketing decisions affect the whole organisations, conflicts, tradeoffs and potential outcomes.

A demofilm of the simulation can be seen at this link: http://www.marketplace-live.com/demo/general-preview.php

Learning outcome
Acquired knowledge
After finishing the course the students will be able to understand the important concepts, principles and strategies in marketing which are relevant in any managerial post.

Acquired skills
After finishing the course the students will be able to

• develop their marketing management skills by giving them an integrated perspective of the entire marketing operation.
• develop their strategic planning and execution skills within a rapidly changing environment
• analyze and follow their company’s market share and various other performance metrics
• analyze competitors, read and understand what is happening in the marketplace and plan preemptive moves against competitors’ decisions
• promote better decision-making by helping team-mates see how their decisions can affect the performance of others and organization as a whole.
• develop teamwork across functions, and open up new communication links
• internalize how important it is to use market data and competitive signals to adjust the strategic plan and more tightly focus marketing tactics
• instill a bottom line focus and the simultaneous need to deliver customer value.
• crystallize the linkages between marketing decisions and financial performance.

Prerequisites
Marketing management or other corresponding courses

Compulsory reading
Books:
Best, Roger J.. 2013. Market-based management : strategies for growing customer value and profitability. 6th ed., Int. ed.. Pearson

Recommended reading

Course outline

• Analyze market research data;
• Design brands to appeal to different market segments;
• Devise advertising campaigns, sales force incentives, and price option;
• Allocate scarce funds to R&D, advertising, and distribution;
• Select and prioritize R&D projects, leading to new product features;
• Plan and roll out a marketing campaign;
• Manage cash;
• Compete head-to-head with other business teams;
• Adjust strategy and tactics in response to financial performance, competitive tactics, and customer needs.

Recommended workload in hours: