Course Syllabus
Welcome to BUS502: Strategic Marketing
Specific information about this course and its requirements can be found below. For more general information about taking Saylor Academy courses, including information about Community and Academic Codes of Conduct, please read the Student Handbook.
Course Description
Examine the marketing planning process and key steps to develop a strategic marketing plan to meet business goals, from understanding the marketing environment and consumers to determining brand and communications strategies.
Course Introduction
In this course, you will learn about key elements of the marketing planning process. This process results in a strategic marketing plan, which guides organizations to connect with the consumer, so both parties realize value. This course will build upon the knowledge you acquired in BUS203: Principles of Marketing. You will explore the critical tools, analyses, and marketing-related strategies to capture the attention and loyalty of the consumer.
In the course, we will cover marketing basics such as segmentation, targeting, position, and the 4 Ps of marketing. We will also cover marketing research, consumer behavior, and brand management. The course will end with a review of digital marketing communications options and strategies. Throughout the course, you will see how all marketing efforts focus on the consumer. As a marketer, you must be proactive with strategic activities to make connections while complying with legal guidelines and socially responsible practices.
This course includes the following units:
- Unit 1: Marketing Planning Process
- Unit 2: Marketing Research
- Unit 3: Consumer Behavior
- Unit 4: Brand Strategy
- Unit 5: Marketing Communications
Course Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to:
- explain the fundamentals of marketing research;
- apply key consumer behavior principles to marketing decisions;
- summarize the relevance of brand management strategies to the overall marketing process;
- apply digital marketing and communications strategies to achieve business objectives;
- assess the impact of internal and external environmental factors on the marketing planning process;
- use the marketing planning process to meet business goals; and
- justify a focus on legal, ethical, and social responsibility matters in marketing decisions.
Throughout this course, you will also see learning outcomes in each unit. You can use those learning outcomes to help organize your studies and gauge your progress.
Course Materials
This course's primary learning materials are articles, lectures, and videos.
All course materials are free to access and can be found in each unit of the course. Pay close attention to the notes that accompany these course materials, as they will tell you what to focus on in each resource and will help you understand how the learning materials fit into the course as a whole. You can also see a list of all the learning materials in this course by clicking on Resources in the navigation bar.
Evaluation and Minimum Passing Score
Only the final exam is considered when awarding you a grade for this course. To pass this course, you will need to earn a grade of 70% or higher on the final exam. Your score on the exam will be calculated as soon as you complete it. If you do not pass the exam on your first try, you may take it again as many times as you want, with a 7-day waiting period between each attempt. Once you have successfully passed the final exam, you will be awarded a free Course Completion Certificate.
There are also end-of-unit assessments in this course. These are designed to help you study and do not factor into your final course grade. You can take these as many times as you want until you understand the concepts and material covered. You can see all of these assessments by clicking on Quizzes in the course's navigation bar.
Tips for Success
BUS502: Strategic Marketing is a self-paced course, which means that you can decide when you will start and when you will complete the course. There is no instructor or an assigned schedule to follow. We estimate that the "average" student will take 47 hours to complete this course. We recommend that you work through the course at a comfortable pace that allows you to make regular progress. It's also a good idea to schedule your study time in advance and try to stick to that schedule as best as you can.
Learning new material can be challenging, so we've compiled a few study strategies to help you succeed:
- Take notes on the various terms, practices, and theories that you come across. This can help you put each concept into context and will create a refresher that you can use as you study later on.
- As you work through the materials, take some time to test yourself on what you remember and how well you understand the concepts. Reflecting on what you've learned is important for your long-term memory and will make you more likely to retain information over time.
Suggested Prerequisites
To take this course, you should have completed:
- BUS203: Principles of Marketing
Technical Requirements
This course is delivered entirely online. You will be required to have access to a computer or web-capable mobile device and have consistent access to the internet to either view or download the necessary course resources and attempt any auto-graded course assessments and the final exam.
- To access the full course, including assessments and the final exam, you will need to log in to your Saylor Academy account and enroll in the course. If you do not already have an account, you may create one for free here. Although you can access the course materials without logging in to your account, you should log in to maximize your course experience. For example, you cannot take assessments or track your progress unless you are logged in.
For additional guidance, check out Saylor Academy's FAQ.
Fees
This course is entirely free to enroll in and access. Everything linked in the course, including textbooks, videos, webpages, and activities, is available for no charge. This course also contains a free final exam and course completion certificate.