Browse all lessons

Foundations of Marketing

Share

About Course

A university-module-style introduction to marketing, structured around the core topics taught in UK “Principles of Marketing” degree and college modules. 11 modules and quizzes from the marketing concept through to planning and strategy.

Level
Written at Level 4. The topics are the ones UK universities teach in first-year Principles of Marketing modules. We checked them against sixteen published module specifications from twelve UK institutions, and this course covers the core of that curriculum — environmental analysis, consumer behaviour, segmentation, the marketing mix, branding, and ethics and sustainability. Assessment here is a quiz rather than a university assignment, and the course carries no academic credit. See how we checked.
What this course covers

Written at Level 4. Every topic below was checked against sixteen published UK university marketing module specifications, from twelve institutions across Levels 4, 5 and 6. The columns show how many of those modules teach each topic, and at which level.

Topic Taught in Yr 1 Yr 2 Yr 3
Environmental analysis — PESTEL, SWOT 12 of 16 4 4 4
Marketing strategy and the planning process 11 of 16 4 3 4
Ethics and sustainability 11 of 16 4 4 3
Branding and brand equity 10 of 16 4 3 3
Segmentation, targeting and positioning 9 of 16 3 3 3
The marketing mix — 4Ps and 7Ps 8 of 16 4 3 1
The marketing concept and market orientation 7 of 16 4 3 –
Marketing research 6 of 16 2 2 2
Consumer and buyer behaviour 5 of 16 4 1 –
Pricing 4 of 16 1 1 2
Place and distribution channels 3 of 16 1 1 1
Product and service decisions 3 of 16 2 – 1
Promotion and integrated communications 3 of 16 2 – 1

Taken together, this course covers the complete topic set of two first-year Principles of Marketing modules in the sample — and of one second-year module.

Coverage means the topics taught, checked against published module specifications. It does not mean equivalence. A university module is 100 to 200 hours of study with a reading list, seminars and a marked assignment. This course is ten hours and is assessed by quiz. It carries no academic credit.

Read the research, with every source.

Show More

What Will You Learn?

  • Explain the marketing concept and how it differs from selling
  • Analyse a business's marketing environment using PESTEL and SWOT
  • Explain what drives consumer and B2B buyer behaviour, including the five-stage buyer decision process
  • Segment a market and choose a target and a position using segmentation, targeting and positioning (STP)
  • Apply the marketing mix — Product, Price, Place, Promotion — and the extended 7Ps for services
  • Build a brand and understand brand equity, brand extension and brand positioning
  • Plan an integrated marketing communications campaign and track customers up the loyalty ladder
  • Turn a SWOT analysis into strategic options using TOWS and Ansoff's Matrix
  • Consider ethics, sustainability and responsible marketing in real business decisions

Course Content

Module 1: What is Marketing?
The marketing concept, market orientation, and marketing vs selling.

  • What is Marketing? The Marketing Concept
  • Needs, Wants, Demands and the Exchange Process
  • From Production to Market Orientation: How Marketing Thinking Evolved
  • Module 1 Quiz: What is Marketing?

Module 2: The Marketing Environment
Internal, micro and macro environment, and the PESTEL framework.

Module 3: Marketing Research & the Marketing Audit
Primary and secondary research, and the SWOT framework.

Module 4: Consumer & Buyer Behaviour
What drives buyer behaviour, and the five-stage buyer decision process.

Module 5: Segmentation, Targeting & Positioning (STP)
Dividing markets into segments, choosing a target, and building a position.

Module 6: The Marketing Mix I — Product, Price
The marketing mix, the three levels of a product, and pricing strategies.

Module 7: The Marketing Mix II — Place, Promotion
Distribution channels, and the promotions mix.

Module 8: The Extended Mix (7Ps) — People, Process, Physical Evidence
Extending the marketing mix for services: People, Process and Physical Evidence.

Module 9: Branding & Positioning
What a brand is, brand equity, and brand extension strategy.

Module 10: Marketing Communications & Integrated Campaigns
Integrated marketing communications, and the loyalty ladder.

Module 11: Marketing Planning & Strategy
SWOT/TOWS and Ansoff for planning; plus ethics, sustainability and responsible marketing.