Contents

Basics of Marketing

The philosophy and fundamental aims of marketing. Contrasting different marketing fields (e.g. business-to-consumer versus business-to-business marketing). The process of marketing planning, implementation and controlling

Strategic Marketing Planning

How to find profit opportunities? How to develop cooperation, internationalization, timing, differentiation and cost leadership  strategies?

Market-oriented Design of products and services

How can companies get valuable customer input on product design and development? What is a service? How can companies design innovative services supporting the products?

Pricing

What are the underlying determinants of pricing decision? Which pricing strategies should companies choose over the life cycle of products? What are special forms of pricing on business-to-business markets (e.g. competitive bidding, auctions)?

Marketing Communication

What is the role of communication and advertising in business-to-business markets? Why advertise? How can companies manage communication over advertisement, exhibitions and public relations?

Sales and Distribution

How to build customer relationship? What are the major requirements of industrial selling? What is a distribution channel? How to design and manage a channel strategy on business-to-business markets?

Knowledge

Students will gain an introduction and good overview of

• Specific challenges in the marketing of innovative goods and services
• Key strategic areas in strategic marketing planning (cooperation, internationalization, timing)
• Tools for information gathering about future customer needs and requirements
• Fundamental pricing theories and pricing methods
• Main communication instruments
• Marketing channels and main organizational issues in sales management
• Basic approaches for managing customer relationship

Skills

Based on the acquired knowledge students will be able to:

• Design market timing decisions
• Make decisions for marketing-related cooperation and internationalization activities
• Manage the challenges of market-oriented development of new products and services
• Translate customer needs into concepts, prototypes and marketable offers
• Determine the perceived quality of an existing product or service using advanced elicitation and measurement techniques that fit the given situation
• Analyze the pricing alternatives for products and services
• Make strategic sales decisions for products and services (i.e. selection of sales channels)
• Analyze the value of customers and apply customer relationship management tools

Social Competence

The students will be able to

• have fruitful discussions and exchange arguments
• present results in a clear and concise way
• carry out respectful team work

Self-reliance

The students will be able to

• Acquire knowledge independently in the specific context and to map this knowledge on other new complex problem fields.
• Consider proposed business actions in the field of marketing and reflect on them.