Marketing professionals rely on clearly defined goals to determine the course of action when placing a product in the market. Leveraging research to learn more about your target audience is the main subject of this third online course in the Marketing Strategy certificate program. In this course you will learn how to be an intelligent consumer of information when it comes to marketing research and analysis, so you can become a more effective decision maker. You will first look at marketing research, including the purpose and goals of research, how to balance the ideal with reality in doing research, and how to apply the six stages of research to a marketing situation.
Next you will examine different ways to analyze the data acquired through marketing research. Using formulas to determine how cannibalization affects the profitability of new products and the value of a long-term customer, you will perform a basic sensitivity analysis to assess the robustness of your results.
This course is designed for professionals in any business or functional area that require a top-level understanding of marketing in order to make informed strategic business decisions for their companies. This includes people involved in making decisions about products and services, pricing, promotion and placement; those who need to interact with the marketing function and its managers; or those working in small organizations or business units without a formal marketing team. Entrepreneurs and executives who need strategic marketing knowledge to inform product planning and positioning will also benefit from this course.