Module BUSI4G515: BUSINESS TO BUSINESS MARKETING

Department: Business School (Business)

BUSI4G515: BUSINESS TO BUSINESS MARKETING

Prerequisites

• None

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• The module is designed to raise students' awareness and critical understanding of the significance of B2B marketing. It aims to re-dress the common imbalance of typical marketing programmes, which tend to over-emphasise the importance of business-to-consumer (B2C) marketing. The module provides a comprehensive and critical introduction to the main theoretical and managerial issues in the area of B2B marketing. From the outset it is stressed that for every consumer (or end-user) market there are typically several upstream organizations which must deal with each other in products and services before anything is ultimately consumed. The module aims to show that B2B marketing is about trying to manage the complex network of buying and selling relationships between these organizations.

Content

• The Significance of B2B Marketing
• Organisational Buying Behaviour
• Inter-Organizational Relationships
• Marketing Channels & Supply Chains
• Industrial Networks
• B2B Planning & Strategy
• Business Products & Services
• Value & Pricing in Business Markets
• Marketing Communications & Personal Selling

Learning Outcomes

• By the end of the module students will have an advanced knowledge and understanding of:
• the significance of B2B marketing in the global economy
• the in-depth characteristics of business/organisational markets
• the extent to which they differ from consumer markets
• the critical importance of inter-organisational relationships within industrial networks

• By the end of the module students should be able to:
• analyse the key processes involved in supply chain management
• explain the key influences on industrial purchasing decisions
• recognise the elements of successful customer relationship management in business markets
• debate how ethical issues in business marketing and purchasing can affect members of the supply chain
• appreciate how the metaphor of channels/chains in business markets can be extended to one of networks
• empathise with the roles of the industrial marketing and purchasing managers

• effective written communication skills
• planning, organising and time management skills
• problem solving and analytical skills
• the ability to use initiative
• advanced computer literacy skills

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• The module will be taught in 3-hour blocks to allow a greater level of engagement with students and to enable a flexibility of approach as appropriate. The teaching blocks will comprise a balanced mix of lecture-type teaching, group work, case studies, discussion and seminar style working such as will enable the learning outcomes to be met.
• The summative assignment is designed to test students’ acquisition of subject specific knowledge and skills through their application to a specific case study.
• The exam will enable students to show their grasp of the more theoretical elements of the syllabus in addition to applying these concepts to case contexts. The exam will also develop an understanding of the nature of business markets with regards to the business marketing environment including business marketing strategies and key theoretical concepts.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Seminar exercises will be used to give students an opportunity to explore, discuss, critique and apply the key decisions in practice. The main aim of the formative assessment is to begin to understand the application of the material, to consolidate your knowledge and further develop relevant skills for academic work. Participation in seminar elements provides an opportunity for formative feedback throughout the module.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University