Introduction to Marketing and Branding – ClearTax

This course builds the foundations for marketing a digital brand. The course begins with classic marketing principles such as features and benefits, the 3 concept of Cs, segmenting and defining a target market, building a brand positioning and marketing using the 4 Ps. The later portions of the course investigate how branding is managed in today’s internet age. Throughout, the course provides several authentic examples to illustrate key marketing and branding concepts.

Faculty

Prof. Suzanne Shu

Prof. Suzanne Shu

Professor

Suzanne Shu’s research investigates how individuals form judgments and make decisions in uncertain environments. She is especially interested in judgments and decisions that occur over long timeframes. The types of decisions analyzed in her research include consumer self-control problems and consumption timing issues, with important implications for both negative behaviors (such as procrastination) and positive behaviors (such as saving).

Professor Shu received a PhD from the University of Chicago in 2004, where her studies included behavioral economics, decision sciences, and marketing. She also holds a degree in Electrical Engineering and Masters in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University.

In addition to her work in academia, Professor Shu has worked as a product line manager, an IT project manager, and as a management consultant in sales force design. She also consults for financial services companies and insurance providers on behavioral influences on consumers’ financial decisions. Before arriving at UCLA, Professor Shu taught marketing and decision making courses to MBA students at the University of Chicago, Southern Methodist University, and INSEAD.

 

Prof. Sanjay Sood

Prof. Sanjay Sood

Professor

Sanjay Sood’s research and teaching expertise lies in the area of brand equity and consumer decision making. Using psychological principles, Sanjay examines how firms can best build, manage, and leverage strong brand names. This includes investigating what brand names mean to consumers, how to manage brand portfolios, how to use brand naming strategies to launch new products, and how to protect brand names from becoming diluted over time and across geographical boundaries. His research has been published in leading marketing and psychology journals including the Journal of Consumer ResearchJournal of Marketing, and Cognitive Psychology.

Dr. Sood is an associate editor at the Journal of Marketing, and he is on the editorial review boards of the Journal of Consumer ResearchJournal of Consumer Psychology and the Journal of Marketing Research.

Dr. Sood obtained his PhD in marketing from the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University. His MBA degree is from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University, in marketing and strategy. He gained industry experience in product marketing at Centel Corporation, now a division of Sprint. Before joining Centel, he completed a BS degree in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Dr. Sood has won several awards for excellence in teaching and student mentoring, including the Neidorf Decade Teaching Award at UCLA. Actively involved with industry, Sanjay has worked with several leading marketing companies, including Intel, Starbucks, Disney, Levi-Strauss, Microsoft, and Kaiser Permanente.

Education

Ph.D. in marketing, Graduate School of Business, 1999, Stanford University
M.B.A. in marketing and strategy, Kellogg Graduate School of Management, 1992, Northwestern University
B.S. in electrical engineering with honors, 1987, University of Illinois

Interests

Marketing management, brand management, advertising, consumer behavior

Course Learning Objectives:

  • Distinguish between a product’s features and its benefits to customers.
  • Conduct the first part of a situational analysis for a particular product, including the first two Cs, company and competition.
  • Describe in detail the third C, customers, who together form a target market for a new product, given some general facts about the product.
  • Write a positioning statement that includes the target summary, product offer, competitive alternatives, and support.
  • Analyze the “4 Ps” of a marketing plan – product, price, promotion, and place – to accurately describe each element.
  • Research the size of potential, addressable, and target markets for a particular product.
  • Analyze an existing brand to identify its brand promise; its products, as distinct from the attributes of its brand; and the responses that allow its customers to make an emotional connection with the brand.
  • For a new brand, create a statement of brand meaning, a statement of brand positioning, and a brand mantra.
  • Analyze a statement of brand meaning, brand positioning, and brand mantra to determine its brand ideal and associated fundamental human value.
  • Apply lessons about branding drawn from Apple to a developing brand.
  • Propose choices for each element of the marketing mix — product, place, price, and promotion – that reflect a brand’s stated message, or mantra.
  • Create and rank-order a list of five potential brand extensions, based on a core product, providing a rationale for the ranking.

Syllabus

Learning Objectives:
  • Distinguish between a product’s features and its benefits to customers.
  • Conduct the first part of a situational analysis for a particular product, including the first two Cs, company and competition.
  • Describe in detail the third C, customers, who together form a target market for a new product, given some general facts about the product.
Module Components:

Video Lectures:

  • Introduction to Marketing and Key Frameworks
  • Situation Analysis
  • Marketing Segmentation & Targeting

Readings:

  • SWOT Analysis
  • Importance of Segmentation & Targeting in Marketing

Case Study:

  • Drastic Publishing – Marketing Strategy (Part 1)

Quiz:

  • Building a Marketing Strategy (Part 1)

 

Learning Objectives:
  • Write a positioning statement that includes the target summary, product offer, competitive alternatives, and support.
  • Analyze the “4 Ps” of a marketing plan – product, price, promotion, and place – to accurately describe each element.
  • Research the size of potential, addressable, and target markets for a particular product.
Module Components:

Video Lectures:

  • Brand Positioning
  • Product Branding and Distribution Channels
  • Pricing and Promotion

Case Study:

  • Drastic Publishing – Marketing Strategy (Part 2)

Quiz:

  • Building a Marketing Strategy (Part 2)

 

Learning Objectives:
  • Analyze an existing brand to identify its brand promise; its products, as distinct from the attributes of its brand; and the responses that allow its customers to make an emotional connection with the brand.
  • For a new brand, create a statement of brand meaning, a statement of brand positioning, and a brand mantra.
  • Analyze a statement of brand meaning, brand positioning, and brand mantra to determine its brand ideal and associated fundamental human value.
Module Components:

Video Lectures:

  • Building a Global Brand
  • Conducting thorough Brand Analysis
  • Creating Lasting Brand Ideals

Readings:

  • Three Steps to Creating Your Branding Message
  • Impactful Branding Strategies
  • Defining a Brand

Case Study:

  • Simpler Shoes – Branding Strategy

Quiz:

  • Building a Branding Strategy

 

Learning Objectives:
  • Apply lessons about branding drawn from Apple to a developing brand.
  • Propose choices for each element of the marketing mix — product, place, price, and promotion – that reflect a brand’s stated message, or mantra.
  • Create and rank-order a list of five potential brand extensions, based on a core product, providing a rationale for the ranking.
Module Components:

Video Lectures:

  • Building a Strong Brand – an Example
  • Brand Building through the Marketing Mix
  • Developing Successful Brand Extensions
  • Creating a loved brand by telling a story: Tether

 Readings:

  • Developing Brands and Brand Lines

Case Study:

  • Simpler Shoes – Branding Implementation

Quiz:

  • Implementing a Branding Strategy

 

Support

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