The aim of the course is to teach students the methods, principles, and theories of modern marketing research and to apply these to practical business settings. You will learn the concepts and terminology used by marketers and marketing researchers and master methodological tools to obtain a competitive advantage in the business world.

The specific objectives of the course are:

1. To understand that marketing problems require information and how this information is obtained and delivered.
2. To learn how to set up a research design.
3. To know and understand the different methods of data collection.
4. To know and understand the different methods of data analysis.
5. To train you to apply methods of data collection and analysis to solve marketing problems.
6. To train you to analyze real life marketing problems.
7. To improve your business writing and presentation skills
8. To gain more experience working in teams

This version will only be available at the COOP for a reduced price.

This course is taught on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The theory is discussed in lectures (Tuesdays and Thursdays) and applied in computer lab sessions (Mod Labs on Thursdays). The Mod Lab sessions are not optional review sessions but are an integral part of the course. You are required to participate!

You will benefit from reading the assigned chapters in the textbook before the lectures. Preparation of each case is essential before you come to the case discussion. The case discussions depend on your active participation and class participation is an important part of your grade.

Course Website

All relevant material related to the course, including last minute announcements, will be posted on the course website:

http://coursewebs.mccombs.utexas.edu/MKT460/
password: opensesame

Schedules, class notes, team projects, cases, lab sessions, and all other information will be made available at the time they are needed. Please check the website regularly. You will also be able to check your grades on the website (through the online grading application), sign up for a marketing research team, provide feedback on the course.
 

Basis for Final Grade

1. Exams.
The purpose of the exams is to encourage you to study the material included in the textbook and discussed in class. Your ability to apply concepts is assessed through class discussion, team projects, and case discussions. You do not have to take comprehensive midterm and final exams. Instead we will have five smaller exams throughout the semester. This will help you to keep up with the material and improve your ability to work on projects and cases.

Notes:
a. For each exam a detailed list of questions/issues is provided. A selection of these and only these questions/issues returns on the exam.
b. We will follow the structure of the (customized) textbook. However, some exam questions are related to material that is only discussed in lectures, not in the textbook. Always take your class notes as a starting point when studying for the exams! The textbook serves a supporting role.
c. You can take any four of the five exams listed in the syllabus. If you decide to take all five, the four highest grades will count towards your final grade.
 

2. Team projects.
You and your team will apply marketing research principles and techniques to a number of practical business situations. It will improve your ability to apply and to gain a better understanding of these techniques and principles. It will also improve your professional skills of presentation and writing and give you experience working in a team. You can sign up for a team through a form on the course website. We will use peer evaluations (also administered through a form on the website) to avoid ‘free rides’. Note that you may drop the lowest grade on the team projects.
 

3. Short business cases.
The short business cases will improve your professional skills of concise business writing and presentation. The instructor’s role during a case discussion is that of a moderator. When the cases are discussed, we are less concerned with “right” or “wrong” answers than we are with thoughtful contributions which follow the discussion and either add to the debate or move it in a new direction. There is both individual and team work involved with these cases. Each team will present one out of ten cases and you will write at least three individual case briefs during the semester. You can choose any three out of ten cases.

Notes:

a) Briefs are due at the start of the class in which the case is discussed. Late work cannot be accepted because that would give others a disadvantage.
Submit your case brief in Word or PDF format online through the course website (limit 2mb). If you want you can submit a hardcopy as long as you also submit an online copy.
Always keep an extra copy of your brief!

b) You can only appeal a grade if there is a clear misreading of what you wrote. Write a memo explaining your disagreement, keep a Xerox copy of your brief and the original and re-submit.
 

4. Class attendance and participation.
Class presence and participation points are given to encourage your active class participation and discussion. You will be rewarded with a perfect score as long as you come to class and actively contribute to the class discussion. Please sign the attendance sheet when you come to class. If you find it uncomfortable to speak up in class, I encourage you to visit me during office hours and work on this skill.

Feedback

It is my goal to make this an excellent course. If at any time you feel that the course is not meeting your expectations or you want to provide feedback on how the course is progressing for you, please contact me or submit your feedback online via the course web page.