MKT 425 Syllabus

MKT 425 – Marketing in a Digital World

Syllabus – Spring 2017

Professor: Gil Appel

Office: HOH 328

Office Phone: 213-821-9890

Office Hours: Thursday 2:30PM – 3:30PM

E-mail: gappel@marshall.usc.edu

Course Description In the changing world of digital marketing, Internet marketing has evolved to encompass

a variety of domains. From the desktop to mobile to the Internet of Things (IoT), consumers are more connected than ever. In this class students will gain an in-depth understanding of digital marketing strategy and of the consumer in the digital world. The organization of the course is the following:

1) Understanding the customer journey in the digital world

Here we will study various aspects of online consumer behavior. We cover topics such as customer analytics, segmentation, customer acquisition, development and retention. We will be using Excel software (students will learn how to do more advanced Excel techniques such as risk analysis and estimating profit distributions). We will cover all the tools needed to do the data analysis in class (no previous data analysis experience is necessary).

2) Digital Marketing Strategy In this module we will talk about technology fundamentals, digital strategy, online and mobile business models, pricing and content marketing. We will discuss several business cases related to these topics.

3) Social Media Strategy We will study how a company can build its social media strategy. We will cover topics such as why people talk and the structure of social networks. Finally, we will study how the firm can listen, engage and promote to customers using social media

This course is very hands-on – there will be lots of in-class discussion and experiential exercises. This course is appropriate for more advanced students (ideally, juniors or seniors). However, since all of the concepts and frameworks will be covered in class, and the topic is of general interest, this class is appropriate of students of all majors who are interested in digital marketing.

Learning Objectives

Students will gain factual, conceptual, and procedural knowledge of digital marketing strategy.

Students will understand current technology (various social platforms, mobile advertising and audience insight tools) as it applies to digital marketing.

Students will apply theories, models, and frameworks introduced in class to analyze how firms can optimize their digital marketing strategy.

Students will gather, categorize, analyze, interpret, and evaluate relevant qualitative and

MKT 425 Syllabus

quantitative information through case discussions, assignments and final projects.

Students will critically question problems, competing priorities and points of view in situations characterized by ambiguity and/or uncertainty.

Students will learn advanced Excel commands that will enable them to perform statistical marketing campaign ROI analysis.

Students will demonstrate the ability to be creative and innovative in seeking solutions to online marketing business dilemmas.

Students will demonstrate the ability to communicate their ideas clearly and precisely through frequent in-class case discussions and group project presentation.

Required Materials The course packet includes all relevant cases and most supplementary readings. Assignments and slides will be posted on Blackboard. Prerequisites and/or Recommended Preparation: A recommended preparation for this course is Marketing Fundamentals (BUAD 307) or Marketing of Creative Disruption and Innovation (MKT 385). Course Notes: Please check the course postings on the Blackboard regularly for class lectures, announcements and instructions (http://blackboard.usc.edu). You should always check the postings here before coming to class. Grading Policies: Final grades represent how you perform in the class relative to other students. Your grade will not be based on a mandated target, but on your performance. Historically, the average grade for this class is about 3.3 (between B and B+). Grades for individual student contributions to team projects are assigned by me, based on my observations of the team’s working dynamics, my assessment of the team’s project quality, and thoughtful consideration of the information provided through your peer evaluations. Three items are considered when assigning final grades:

Your average weighted score as a percentage of the available points for all assignments (the points you receive divided by the number of points possible).

The overall average percentage score within the class.

Your ranking among all students in the class.

MKT 425 Syllabus

Assignments and Grading Detail

Assignments Points % of Grade IN-CLASS CASE DISCUSSION PARTICIPATION 50 12.5% CASES AND ASSIGNMENTS

Case group assignments (SP groups) 50 12.5% Digital Marketing ROI (SP groups) 50 12.5% App creation (RA groups) 50 12.5% Netlytic (RA groups) 50 12.5% Guest lectures summary (Individual) 50 12.5%

GROUP PROJECT (SP groups) 100 25% TOTAL 400 100.0%

Group team partitioning The students will partition into two types of groups for the assignments in class. The case assignments, Hubspot analytics and the group project will be submitted by self-partitioned groups (SP groups). The group teams partition deadline is by the end of the fourth session. The app creation and Netlytic assignments will be submitted by Random assigned groups (RA groups). These groups will be assigned by the 12th session.

1) In-Class Case Discussion Participation In-class participation is a large part of the course grade. This course includes multiple business cases. In order to achieve a high participation score, the students are expected to do the following:

a. Come to class prepared to discuss the day’s case b. Contribute meaningfully to the class discussion (I expect all students to make at

least one comment or observation per class) c. Be ready to answer the professor’s question if called on in class d. In addition to the regular case discussion, all groups will be assigned to prepare

one case over the course of the class. That will involve making slides, as well as making a brief in-class presentation. (See Appendix I).

2) Case group assignments (See Appendix I for more detail). a. All of the cases are accompanied by write-up questions (see Appendix I). These

brief 2-page write-ups do NOT need to be handed in. However, these questions should prepare you for the discussions in class.

b. Each group will be assigned one of the question in one of the cases to prepare a short presentation (up to two slides) with their answer.

3) Digital Marketing ROI Assignment We will use an excel add on, risk kit, to analyze the profitability of various digital marketing campaigns. Further information on the assignment will be given closer to the submission date.

MKT 425 Syllabus

4) App Creation Assignment The students will be assigned to build an app for a small business, we will be using an app building platform such as Appypie.com or similar. Further information on the assignment will be given closer to the submission date.

5) Netlytic Assignment In this assignment, the students will analyze the competitive landscape of the firm using text mined from different social media platform via the Netlytic web page. Further information on the assignment will be given closer to the submission date.

6) Guest lectures summary For each guest lecture, the students will submit a short summary – one or two paragraphs that will describe a key insight they learned from that guest lecture. The grading is done on the following scale: 2 (exceeds expectation), 1 (meets expectation), 0 (does not meet expectations). Each submission has an equal weight in this assignment’s grade.

7) Group Project (See Appendix II and Blackboard for more detail). a. The course involves a hands-on group project in teams of four. Each group will be

asked to either develop a new Internet business idea or to analyze the digital marketing strategy of an existing product.

b. The projects are meant to serve as ways for students to try out new ideas that they learn in class.

c. The deliverables are the following: i. Early in the semester, students will make a brief presentation to pitch

their ideas to the class. ii. The in-class project presentations are on the last two days of class.

iii. The final project report is due (electronically) on the day of the scheduled final exam.

iv. Feedback on projects will be given throughout the course of the semester.

Assignment Submission Policy: Assignments must be turned in on the due date (submitted electronically). Any assignment turned in late will receive a grade deduction (for example, if your work is a B+ grade, you will be given a C+ grade). If your internet breaks down on the due date, you must deliver a hard copy at the beginning of class on that day. Late or not, however, you must complete all required assignments to pass this course. Evaluation of Your Work: You may regard each of your submissions as an “exam” in which you apply what you’ve learned according to the assignment. I will do my best to make my expectations for the various assignments clear and to evaluate them as fairly and objectively as I can. If you feel that an error has occurred in the grading of any assignment, you may, within one week of the date the assignment is returned to you, write me a memo in which you request that I re-evaluate the assignment. Attach the original assignment to the memo and explain fully and carefully why you think the assignment should be re-graded. Be aware that the re-evaluation process can result in three types of grade adjustments: positive, none, or negative.

MKT 425 Syllabus

No recording and copyright notice: It is a violation of USC’s Academic Integrity Policies to share course materials with others without permission. No student may record any lecture, class discussion or meeting with me without my prior express written permission. The word ‘record’ or the act of recording includes, but is not limited to, any and all means by which sound or visual images can be stored, duplicated or retransmitted whether by an electro-mechanical, analog, digital, wire, electronic or other device or any other means of signal encoding. I reserve all rights, including copyright, to my lectures, course syllabi and related materials, including summaries, PowerPoints, prior exams, answer keys, and all supplementary course materials available to the students enrolled in my class whether posted on Blackboard or otherwise. They may not be reproduced, distributed, copied, or disseminated in any media or in any form, including but not limited to all course note-sharing websites.

MARSHALL GUIDELINES Add/Drop Process If you are absent six or more times prior to April 1, 2017 (the last day to withdraw from a course with a grade of “W”), I may ask you to withdraw from the class by that date. These policies maintain professionalism and ensure a system that is fair to all students. Students who do not attend the first two class sessions may be dropped from the course. Retention of Graded Coursework Final exams and all other graded work which affected the course grade will be retained for one year after the end of the course if the graded work has not been returned to the student (i.e., if I returned a graded paper to you, it is your responsibility to file it, not mine). Technology Policy Laptop and Internet usage is not permitted during academic or professional sessions unless otherwise stated by the respective professor and/or staff. Use of other personal communication devices, such as cell phones or smartwatches, is considered unprofessional and is not permitted during academic or professional sessions. ANY e-devices (cell phones, PDAs, I-Phones, Blackberries, other texting devices, laptops, I-pods) must be completely turned off during class time. Upon request, you must comply and put your device on the table in off mode and FACE DOWN. You might also be asked to deposit your devices in a designated area in the classroom. Videotaping faculty lectures is not permitted due to copyright infringement regulations. Audiotaping may be permitted if approved by the professor. Use of any recorded or distributed material is reserved exclusively for the USC students registered in this class. Statement on Academic Conduct USC seeks to maintain an optimal learning environment. General principles of academic honesty include the concept of respect for the intellectual property of others, the expectation that individual work will be submitted unless otherwise allowed by an instructor, and the obligations both to protect one’s own academic work from misuse by others as well as to avoid using another’s work as one’s own (plagiarism). Plagiarism – presenting someone else’s ideas as your own, either verbatim or recast in your own words – is a serious academic offense with serious consequences. All students are expected to understand and abide by the principles discussed in the SCampus, the Student Guidebook (www.usc.edu/scampus or http://scampus.usc.edu). A discussion of plagiarism appears in the University Student Conduct Code (section 11.00 and Appendix A).

MKT 425 Syllabus

Students will be referred to the Office of Student Judicial Affairs and Community Standards for further review, should there be any suspicion of academic dishonesty. The Review process can be found at: http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/SJACS/ . Failure to adhere to the academic conduct standards set forth by these guidelines and our programs will not be tolerated by the USC Marshall community and can lead to dismissal. Discrimination, sexual assault, and harassment are not tolerated by the university. You are encouraged to report any incidents to the Office of Equity and Diversity http://equity.usc.edu/ or to the Department of Public Safety http://dps.usc.edu/contact/report/. This is important for the safety of the whole USC community. Another member of the university community – such as a friend, classmate, advisor, or faculty member – can help initiate the report or can initiate the report on behalf of another person. Relationship and Sexual Violence Prevention and Services (RSVP) https://engemannshc.usc.edu/rsvp/ provides 24/7 confidential support, and the sexual assault resource center webpage https://sarc.usc.edu/reporting-options/ describes reporting options and other resources. Support Systems Students whose primary language is not English should check with the American Language Institute http://dornsife.usc.edu/ali, which sponsors courses and workshops specifically for international graduate students. The Office of Disability Services and Programs (www.usc.edu/disability) provides certification for students with disabilities and helps arrange the relevant accommodations. If an officially declared emergency makes travel to campus infeasible, USC Emergency Information (http://emergency.usc.edu/) will provide safety and other updates, including ways in which instruction will be continued by means of blackboard, teleconferencing, and other technology. Students with Disabilities The Office of Disability Services and Programs (www.usc.edu/disability) provides certification for students with disabilities and helps arrange the relevant accommodations. Any student requesting academic accommodations based on a disability is required to register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the letter is delivered to me (or to your TA) as early in the semester as possible. DSP is located in GFS (Grace Ford Salvatori Hall) 120 and is open 8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The phone number for DSP is (213) 740-0776. Email: ability@usc.edu. Emergency Preparedness/Course Continuity In case of a declared emergency if travel to campus is not feasible, the USC Emergency Information web site (http://emergency.usc.edu/) will provide safety and other information, including electronic means by which instructors will conduct class using a combination of Blackboard, teleconferencing, and other technologies. Please make sure you can access this course in Blackboard and retrieve the course syllabus and other course materials electronically. You should check Blackboard regularly for announcements and new materials. In the event of an emergency, the ability to access Blackboard will be crucial. USC's Blackboard learning management system and support information is available at blackboard.usc.edu

MKT 425 Syllabus

(Tentative) COURSE CALENDAR/READINGS/CLASS SESSIONS

Topic Prepare for Class Assignments Due in Class

Understanding the customer journey in the digital world

1 Tue 1/10 Intro

2 Thu 1/12 Marketing has changed

Amazon in 2016

3 Tue 1/17 Guest Speaker: planned

4 Thu 1/19 Customer value SP group project teams due

5 Tue 1/24 Value to the customer

6 Thu 1/26 Churn in the digital world

7 Tue 1/31 Risk Kit workshop Bring laptop to class

8 Thu 2/02 Growth in digital goods I

group project ideas due

9 Tue 2/07 Growth in digital goods II

10 Thu 2/09 Digital Marketing ROI Hubspot Bring laptop to class

Digital ROI assignment due

11 Tue 2/14 Group Project In-Class Pitches (5 mins)

Digital Marketing Strategy

12 Thu 2/16 Guest Speaker: Aaron Wahle (Sony)

Guest speaker – Aaron Wahle – Senior VP International Digital Marketing at Sony

RA group allocation

13 Tue 2/21 Digital Marketing Strategy

Beyoncé The Personal and the personalized

14 Thu 2/23 Platforms Airbnb, Etsy and Uber Pipelines, Platforms, and the New Rules of Strategy

15 Tue 2/28 Pricing I NY Times Paywall Case Flexible figures

16 Thu 3/02 Pricing II Freemium Pricing at Dropbox

Social Media Strategy

17 Tue 3/07 Online Communities

18 Thu 3/09 Guest Speaker: Andrea Rodriquez (tentative)

Guest Speaker - Andrea Rodriquez – Digital Marketing Associate at Mindshare

Tue 3/14 Spring Recess

Thu 3/16 Spring Recess

19 Tue 3/21 Social Media Strategy I Dove

MKT 425 Syllabus

20 Thu 3/23 Social Media Strategy II

Maersk

21 Tue 3/28 Social Networks

22 Thu 3/30 Digital insights (in-class lab)

Bring laptop to class App assignment due

23 Tue 4/04 Digital insights (wrap-up)

Bring laptop to class

24 Thu 4/06 Guest Speaker: planned

25 Tue 4/11 Class cancelled

26 Thu 4/13 Why do People Talk (WOM)?

Netlytic assignment due

27 Tue 4/18 Class cancelled

28 Thu 4/20 Guest Speaker: planned

29 Tue 4/25 In-Class Group Project Presentations (15 mins)

Record insights/ideas/follow-ups

In-Class Group Project Presentations (15 mins)

30 Thu 4/27 In-Class Group Project Presentations (15 mins)

Record insights/ideas/follow-ups

In-Class Group Project Presentations (15 mins)

31 Exam Date TBD

Group project summary and feedback session

Group project report due

Please note: The date/time of the Final Exam is determined by the University. For the date and time of the final for this class, consult the USC Schedule of Classes at www.usc.edu/soc. Select the corresponding semester to view and click on the “Final Examinations Schedule” link on the left side of the screen.

MKT 425 Syllabus

Appendix I (Case Write-Up Questions and Case Team Group Assignments) Please limit your write-up responses to 2 pages (max). Whenever possible, cite specific evidence from the case to support your argument. There are no right or wrong answers, but the quality of your write-up will be determined by how well-argued and well-supported your answers are. The grading is done on the following scale: 2 (exceeds expectation), 1 (meets expectation), < 1 (does not meet expectations). The team assignment presentations are expected to be brief – 5-7 minutes. Each team will choose one of the questions below, on a first come, first choose basis and will prepare and present 2 slides in response to the question. 1) Amazon in 2016

Write-Up Questions 1) What business is Amazon in? Describe the evolution of Amazon’s business over time.

Is Amazon spreading itself too thin?

2) Who are Amazon’s competitors? In Amazon’s long term view - who do they compete with?

2) Hubspot

Write-Up Questions 1) What is “inbound marketing” (as described in the case)? explain and provide

examples

2) The case describes the CHI index that became an important management index in the

company. What are the main advantages and disadvantages of using this index as a

measure to help manage consumer relations?

3) Beyoncé

Write-Up Questions 1) What were the three launch criteria of the visual album release? What were their

advantages and disadvantages?

2) How did digital distribution affect the traditional marketing channels?

4) AirBnb, Etsy and Uber

Write-Up Questions 1) Describe the challenges facing Uber at launch, how did they face them? What would

you have done differently?

2) Describe the challenges facing Airbnb at launch, how did they face them? What would

you have done differently?

MKT 425 Syllabus

5) NY Times Paywall

Write-Up Questions 1) Is the Paywall working?

2) How would you evaluate the current Paywall with the two prior ones? How does it

compare to the Wall Street Journal in terms of design?

3) Is the Paywall going to provide the NY Times with a solution to its current difficulties?

Does it seem like a good strategy?

6) Freemium Pricing at Dropbox

Write-Up Questions

1) Does Freemium model make sense for Dropbox?

2) Should Dropbox change its pricing scheme to increase the number of paying

customers?

3) Would a free, limited trial do the same job as freemium?

7) Dove

Write-Up Questions 1) Spend some time searching blogs (or communities) to get a sense of what people are

saying about Dove today. How can you measure what you are finding? That is, how

can you summarize and present your findings quantitatively?

8) Maersk

Write-Up Questions

1) Why do you think Maersk was so successful in social media? What was Maersk’s main

social media strategy?

2) Jonathan Wichmann calculated an 1500% ROI for the Facebook campaign, do you find

this reasonable? How would you consider estimating the success of this campaign?

MKT 425 Syllabus

Appendix II – Group Projects

The project should be done in a team of four students (your SP groups). There are two broad options: 1) either develop a new Internet business idea or 2) propose a digital marketing strategy for an existing product. If you have other exciting ideas, there is always option 3) “other.” The content of your project will depend on what exactly you plan to do. I always prefer depth over breadth. 1. General Project Guidelines The deliverables (see syllabus for exact timing) are:

A 5-minute idea pitch presentation

A 15-minute final presentation

A 6-page report (1.5-line space, not including appendices) – due the day when the final exam is scheduled

This is a research report. You should be referencing sources throughout the report. 1) Secondary data sources (to describe the market, competition etc.) e.g.:

a. Newspapers/Trade journals

i. NY Times (http://www.nytimes.com)

ii. Wall Street Journal (http://online.wsj.com/home-page)

iii. Ad Age (http://adage.com/)

iv. Ad Week (http://www.adweek.com/)

b. Market Research

i. Pew Internet Project - http://www.pewinternet.org/

ii. Newspapers – Wall Street Journal, Business Week, NY Times, etc.

iii. Marketing Research association - http://www.marketingresearch.org/

iv. Keller Fay Group - http://www.kellerfay.com/category/blog/

v. Nielsen - http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/newswire.html

vi. comScore research -

http://www.comscore.com/Insights/?tag=Marketing%20Research

vii. eMarketer - http://www.emarketer.com/newsroom/

c. Blogs (have good links to research)

1. Brand Autopsy - http://www.brandautopsy.com/blog

2. David Berkowitz Marketing Blog - http://www.marketersstudio.com/

2) Primary data sources (data that you collect, may be used to describe your product or your

competitor)

Social Media Footprint

i. What are the customers saying about the competition?

ii. How would you characterize the product’s potential customers?

Are there different segments? Is there a dominant segment?

(What is the evidence for this on Twitter, etc.?)

iii. What is the primary competition?

MKT 425 Syllabus

iv. What are some of the strengths and the weaknesses of the

competition?

Original interviews (optional)

i. Do your friends like your idea?

ii. Any other info you can get from these conversations?

Here is a proposed outline for your project, depending on the exact options you want to pursue. More detail will be provided in class.

1. Background and introduction – describe the business idea or marketing opportunity (for

an existing business) and how digital marketing relates to it. 2. Describe the outline of the proposed strategy. 3. Analyze the pros and cons of your proposed strategy compared to other strategies that

could have been used (e.g., using an offline campaign, or classic advertising). 4. Provide a more detailed explanation of the strategy, including action points (what should

the firm do). There is no need to go into depth in calculating ROI (as that was covered in previous assignment), but discuss how the strategy should affect each of the customer equity components as discussed in the fourth and fifth meetings.

5. Describe how you believe the strategy will develop according to the theory discussed in class.

6. Propose measures for the relative success of the strategy, how would you define a success of the strategy?