GRA 6420 Pricing Strategies: Measuring, Capturing and Retaining Value

GRA 6420 Pricing Strategies: Measuring, Capturing and Retaining Value

Course code: 
GRA 6420
Department: 
Marketing
Credits: 
6
Course coordinator: 
Nina Veflen
Course name in Norwegian: 
Pricing Strategies: Measuring, Capturing and Retaining Value
Product category: 
Master
Portfolio: 
MSc in Strategic Marketing Management
Semester: 
2017 Autumn
Active status: 
Active
Level of study: 
Master
Teaching language: 
English
Course type: 
One semester
Introduction

The fastest and most effective way for a company to realize its maximum profit is to get it’s pricing right. However, pricing is managers’ biggest marketing headache. It'’s where they feel the most pressure to perform and the least certain that they are doing a good job. Yet getting closer to the ‘right’ price can have a tremendous impact, and slight improvements can yield significant results. The purpose is therefore to gain control over the pricing function.

Learning outcomes - Knowledge

After the course the student have to:

  • demonstrate knowledge of the different concepts, models, theories and tools covered by the course
  • demonstrate knowledge of the assumptions on which the concepts, models and theories are based
  • demonstrate a good understanding of the consequences of choosing a particular pricing approach to a specific problem
  • demonstrate an ability to identify, evaluate and propose solutions to different pricing problems based on information about customer, competitors, and the general market situation
Learning outcomes - Skills

On successful completion of the course, the students will be able to:

  • evaluate a company's existing pricing policies
  • analyse the role of costs, customer behavior, and competition in price setting
  • identify the relevant analytical tools necessary to make profitable pricing decisions
  • identify and evaluate optimal solutions to specific pricing problems
Learning Outcome - Reflection

On successful completion of the course, the students will be able to reflect on the importance of including ethical considerations for development of a sustainable pricing strategy.  

Course content

The objective of this course in pricing strategies and tactics is to systematically present factors that have to be considered when setting price, and to show how pricing alternatives can be developed and analyzed. The course is designed to provide the students with an integrative framework for making pricing decisions.

The course covers economic aspects of pricing, strategy and tactics of market based pricing, in addition to psychological aspects of price sensitivity and decisions under incomplete information. Together these factors form a basis for analyzing pricing alternatives within legal, organizational, and competitive constraints.

Learning process and requirements to students

Class time will include lectures, group discussion of problems, and general class discussion. The lectures will further be supplemented with guest lecturers form the industry.

Please note that while attendance is not compulsory in all courses, it is the student’s own responsibility to obtain any information provided in class that is not included on itslearning or text book.

This is a course with continuous assessment (several exam components) and one final exam code. Each exam component is graded by using points on a scale from 0-100. The components will be weighted together according to the information in the course description in order to calculate the final letter grade for the examination code (course). Students who fail to participate in one/some/all exam elements will get a lower grade or may fail the course. You will find detailed information about the point system and the cut off points with reference to the letter grades when the course start.

At resit, all exam components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course.

Software tools
No specified computer-based tools are required.
Qualifications

All courses in the Masters programme will assume that students have fulfilled the admission requirements for the programme. In addition, courses in second, third and/or fourth semester can have specific prerequisites and will assume that students have followed normal study progression. For double degree and exchange students, please note that equivalent courses are accepted.

Assessments
Assessments
Exam category: 
Submission
Form of assessment: 
Written submission
Weight: 
45
Grouping: 
Group (2 - 3)
Duration: 
2 Month(s)
Exam code: 
GRA64201
Grading scale: 
Point scale leading to ECTS letter grade
Resit: 
All components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course
Exam category: 
Submission
Form of assessment: 
Written submission
Weight: 
45
Grouping: 
Individual
Duration: 
2 Month(s)
Exam code: 
GRA64201
Grading scale: 
Point scale leading to ECTS letter grade
Resit: 
All components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course
Exam category: 
Activity
Form of assessment: 
Class participation
Weight: 
10
Grouping: 
Individual
Exam code: 
GRA64201
Grading scale: 
Point scale leading to ECTS letter grade
Resit: 
All components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course
Exam organisation: 
Continuous assessment
Grading scale: 
ECTS
Total weight: 
100
Sum workload: 
0

A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore a course of 6 ECTS credits corresponds to a workload of at least 160 hours.