Online Master of Science in Marketing Analytics and Strategy (MSMAS)

This course examines analytical and managerial techniques that apply to marketing functions with an emphasis on the development of a conceptual framework necessary to plan, organize, direct, and control the product and strategies needed for promotion, distribution, and pricing of a firm’s products. The course also considers the relationship of marketing to other units within a firm. Previously MK 0400.

This course will provide students with the understanding of the role of marketing in the modern corporation. The course integrates the fundamental concepts of marketing with the newest trends in digital and social media marketing. Emphasis will be placed on how firms execute marketing strategy utilizing the latest digital tools. Open to MS Management students only. Previously MK 0410.

This course examines the concept of customer value with the goal of understanding how it can be used to achieve customer satisfaction, which in turn generates loyalty and, ultimately, a long-term customer-firm relationship. Topics include the nature of the costs and benefits associated with the notion of customer value, measuring and analyzing customer value and satisfaction, and understanding the associated concepts of customer loyalty and customer relationship management. The class consists of a mix of lectures, case analyses, in-depth qualitative research projects, and opportunities for practical applications, such as a marketing simulation. Previously MK 0500.

Storytelling with data is an essential part of marketing communication. This course will allow students to use data for effective brand-customer storytelling within an overarching brand strategy framework. Students will learn to apply the critical elements, techniques, including story angles and hooks in effectively communicating a brand-customer story backed with data. Students will work on an in-class project that entails research design, data collection and analysis to not only create a powerful data-oriented, brand-customer story but also to implement this story on at least one promotional mix platform.

This course offers an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the behavior of consumers in the marketplace, covering concepts from the fields of economics, psychology, social psychology, sociology, and psychoanalysis. Topics include motivation, perception, attitudes, consumer search, and post-transactional behavior. Previously MK 0510.

This course provides an overview of the risks associated with marketing decisions and emphasizes developing skills for conducting basic market research. Topics include problem formulation, research design, data collection instruments, sampling and field operations, validity, data analysis, and presentation of results. Previously MK 0520.

Customer experience (CX) occurs every time a customer interacts with a company via any channel, at any time, for any purpose. Creating word-class, end-to-end customer experiences has become an innovative way to gain sustainable competitive advantage, but it requires a deep understanding of both the customers and how they interact, as well as a commitment to change business processes based on that understanding. In this course, students will learn how to create compelling customer experiences along the whole process of customer touch-points, from prospect to purchase. Topics to be covered include pre-purchase profiling and segmentation of prospects, persona development, experience mapping, and the role of technology platforms and artificial intelligence that drive advanced customer journeys. The class consists of a mix of lectures, case analyses, and a project that includes designing, planning, and executing a complete Customer Experience for a selected brand/organization.

This course focuses on the theory and conceptual tools used to develop and implement product and service branding strategies, as means for insuring brand awareness, acceptance, and success, or “equity,” in the marketplace. The course highlights the importance and impact of the brand in the marketplace, identifies various decisions involved in creating successful brands, provides an overview of different means for measuring brand effectiveness, and explores the existence of customer-brand relationships. The course incorporates three general modules: Module 1: Identifying/Developing Brand Equity; Module 2: Measuring Brand Equity; Module 3: Managing Brand Equity. Previously MK 0535.

This course provides a comprehensive overview of advertising and promotional processes, and develops strategies facilitating managerial decisions in the areas of advertising, public relations, sales promotion, and direct marketing. This course analyzes the importance and influence of advertising in the changing marketplace; provides students with an integrated approach for analyzing marketing communication opportunities; develops the capability for designing, implementing, and evaluating advertising campaigns; and promotes an understanding of the different methods of measuring advertising effectiveness. Previously MK 0540.

The course will focus on the importance of an effective marketing strategy in order for businesses to make key marketing decisions and be successful. In this course, students will learn to strategically analyze and solve marketing problems from a decision maker’s perspective. Students will focus on solving four fundamental marketing problems known as the “First Principles of marketing strategy” that firms face when designing and implementing marketing strategies. In order to develop an effective marketing strategy, most critical decisions must address that 1) All customers differ; 2) All customers change; 3) All competitors react and 4) All resources are limited. Application of the principles will cover all elements of the marketing mix including topics such as research and development, demographic targeting and segmentation, pricing, product forecasting, marketing channels, sales force distribution and media allocation.

In this course, students will learn how retailers and manufacturers engage in a collaborative process to manage a product category at retail for the purpose of optimizing shopper satisfaction to increase revenues and profits. The course imparts students with hands on training on how to analyze retail POS (Point of Sales) data (syndicated scanner data). An emphasis will be given to data interpretation and implication on strategic and tactical decision making related to product assortment, shelf set, promotion, and pricing decisions for the purpose of generating store traffic, improving shopper loyalty, and ultimately increasing revenues and profitability. Students will learn how to leverage insights through a combination of case studies, workshops and by creating compelling, fact-based presentations. Previously MK 0565.

The aim of this course is to provide students with a strategic understanding of the scope and dynamics of digital marketing, as well as its impact on businesses and consumers. The course also imparts tactical knowledge regarding the current, industry-relevant, digital marketing tools and practices. In addition to learning how to plan and integrate marketing objectives across multiple digital platforms (including website, search, social media, email, and mobile), students will learn how to measure their impact through analytics. The course will also discuss ethical concerns surrounding digital consumer targeting, and provide students with best-practices for formulating a successful digital brand. Previously MK 0570.

With unprecedented growth in data availability, companies are increasingly focusing on data driven decision making in marketing. As most of this data is multivariate, an understanding of statistical techniques used to analyze it gains paramount importance. The objective of this course is to develop skills with a range of procedures for multivariate data analysis involving dimension reduction, pattern recognition, classification, and prediction. Students will engage in experiential exercises that require utilizing statistical software to organize and analyze data, interpreting the results, and presenting actionable conclusions for decision making. Previously MK 0580.

Pricing is the only element of the marketing mix that generates revenue. The other marketing instruments typically drive cost in the process of creating customer value, which is recaptured through effective pricing. This course establishes a foundation for effective pricing decisions by teaching key economic, analytical, and behavioral concepts associated with costs, customer behavior, and competition; introduces students to advanced pricing techniques that aim to create additional value, including dynamic pricing, segmented pricing, pricing structures, and promotions; and highlights practical applications of these approaches within specific industry contexts. Through a mixture of lectures, case studies, and analytical techniques, the course will prepare students to address strategic and tactical issues related to pricing.

Experiments are widely used in marketing research to investigate cause and effect relationships, such as the impact of a price change on sales, or the impact of a new promotional campaign on brand awareness, or the impact of a change in the ingredients of a product on brand acceptance. This course is intended to acquaint the student with the basic topics of experimental design and analysis. It is intended to provide an understanding of the components of an experiment, the various types of experimental designs, the analysis of experimental results, and when experiments are indicated as a research option. Previously MK 0590.

This course examines recent practitioner and academic literature in various areas of marketing, incorporating guest speakers as appropriate. Topics vary each semester to fit the interests of the seminar participants. Previously MK 0585.