Great Ideas for Teaching Marketing
Ideas and resources for teaching marketing
For this exercise, which is based on a recent media release, you will review Sports Direct (a major UK sports retailer) and the impact of its attractive staff bonus on sales and profitability. But while profits are up, your task is to identify any concerns that they need to manage?
ACTIVITY/TASK
SportsDirect.com is a large sporting goods retailer based … See the full activity...
In this task, students review the results of a recent online market research survey undertaken by a firm. Given the survey was conducted online and was optional, your task in this exercise is to determine how valid the results are likely to be.
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For this exercise, let’s assume that a bank wanted to conduct a customer satisfaction survey … See the full activity...
In this video-based mini-case, you will review the repositioning efforts of Coca-Cola in Australia with their energy drink branded “Mother Energy”. But was this the right choice: should they have moved to introduce a new brand instead?
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Coca-Cola launched their new Mother Energy brand into the Australian market in 2006. The firm was struggling to compete in the … See the full activity...
In this mini-case, you will review the efforts of the J.C. Penney department store to more efficiently compete on price, primarily underpinned by a cost-cutting program. But is this the best approach?
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The J.C. Penney department store chain is currently through a major cost-cutting program, associated with its transformation strategy. The firm’s goal is to cut expenses by … See the full activity...
From Bricks and Mortar to Online Retailing
In this exercise, you need to review the key findings from recognized industry forecasting firm regarding the potential impact of online retailing on traditional shopping centers and retailers. The challenge is to determine the best way forward for these traditional retailers.
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Traditional shopping centers (shopping malls) are under significant pressure to adapt … See the full activity...
This mini case study profiles the successful launch of Winkiwoo, a new division of a photo printing firm, which has successfully tapped into the new internet and digital world, with an innovated Facebook related photo product.
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A company from regional Australia (called Winkiwoo) has experienced tremendous success with their innovative Facebook photo books product. Surprisingly, the new-to-the-world product, which … See the full activity...
The following points are Apple’s own description of aspects of their corporate strategy, as presented in one of their public documents. Review the points in order to identify the role of their strategic capabilities.
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Aspects of Apple’s corporate strategy, in their own words:
A travel agency, with more than 100 outlets throughout Australia, views a direct and/or online marketing approach as a great opportunity to hold more clients, win new business and increase overall sales. However, they cannot agree on which particular tools to use – refer to excerpts of their manager’s meeting below – can you help them decide?
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Justin:
Gillette has long been the leader in the razor market. However, to maintain their position they have had to make some tough decisions along the way. Review the following situation – if you were the CEO, would you have made the same decision?
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Gillette has always prided their firm on razor technology innovation. Therefore, it was no surprise two … See the full activity...
When Proctor & Gamble entered China, around 25 years ago, they adopted a glocal strategy, whereas their major competitors adopted a multinational strategy. This approach has proven to be quite successful in the long-term, but was this the best approach?
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Procter & Gamble is one of the largest businesses in America. Their major brands include: Gillette, Duracell, Olay, Oral-B, … See the full activity...
In recent years, a number of Australian universities have expanded into international markets (particularly in South-East Asia), usually utilizing a strategic alliance with an existing local college. But strategic alliances are designed to provide mutual benefits, is this the case here?
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Australian universities are faced with a mature education market in Australia. While there are changes in preferences for … See the full activity...
The following exercise contains is a list of questions facing particular industries, where there is increasing expectations on them to move to a more socially responsible position. Identify the arguments for and against – what would you recommend in each case?
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The following is a broad summary of the successful McHappy Day promotion used by McDonald’s in Australia, which is a good example of a large company using its brand and customer base to raise funds for charity. This activity requires you to determine whether this is really example of responsible marketing or just another day on their marketing campaign calendar?… See the full activity...
The following example highlights some possible franchising practices. As we know, franchising provides much greater chance of business success. Review the following situations – are they ethical or is it a simply a case of ‘buyer beware’ where the potential franchisee should do their due diligence.
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Does marketing promote consumption for its own sake? Certainly there are some people who gain status from their possessions. But is this the fault of marketing or just a general trend of the changing environment? To assist you, listed below are some comments from a recent focus group on this particular issue.
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This firm relies on heavy promotional tactics in order to generate their sales, which some people might term ‘high-pressure’ selling. Review the following case; are they effective marketers or are they engaging in unethical practices that need to change?
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Massage chairs are products that are sometimes promoted in shopping malls. However, this particular case concerns the approach of … See the full activity...
For this activity, assume that you have just been appointed as a salesperson for a company that distributes ‘accounting software’ (that is, targeted at small to medium sized companies). On your first day in the role, your new sales manager tells you that he wants you ‘on-the-road’ selling in four weeks time. That means you now have a month to … See the full activity...
Consumer’s perceptions of salespeople vary significantly, usually depending upon typical stereotypes and people’s personal experiences. In this activity, you simply need to select the five attributes (from the list below) that you most associate with a salesperson.
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Possible Attributes of a salesperson
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Good communicator |
Honest |
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Good listener |
Aggressive |
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Concerned for customer |
Pushy |
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Tricky |
Two-faced (can’t be trusted) |
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Too slick |
Many firms target their sales promotions at wholesalers and retailers in an attempt to generate greater support and sales. Sometimes these trade promotions are designed to get preferential treatment from the retailer (e.g. better store/shelf placement) and sometimes they are simply designed to pass through to the end-consumer (such as a discount).
Listed below are some possible trade promotion tools. … See the full activity...
Loyalty programs have become increasingly popular in recent years. In this exercise, you just need to decide whether a large (and fictitious) retail chain should implement a similar program. To help you decide, below is an excerpt from one of their manager’s meetings discussing the proposal.
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Larry:
I think that it’s important that we introduce a major loyalty program, … See the full activity...
