BUS 3500

The final week of actual class time found us discussing pricing and how best to establish the right price for your products. I never realized there were so many different pricing strategies. I also found out just how big of a job this really can be. It's not an easy thing to research pricing strategies. It's such a difficult task that only 15% of companies do serious pricing research. That stat was probably the most shocking of the entire semester.

BUS 3500

We learned some of the basics of sales promotions in Chapter 16. Sales promotions play a huge role in the marketing mix. Often times, sales promotions are used for the simple purpose of getting customers into the store.

We talked about coupons and how they are used. Some people like to take the time searching for and collecting coupons. Others get very annoyed when they have to stand in line behind someone who is using coupons. I guess I have never really paid much attention to coupons and their affect on businesses and customers alike.

BUS 3500

We had another week off for E-week and then came back to class the following week to learn more about advertising and public relations. Prof. Allen pointed out that advertising was most likely the one thing most of us had imagined a marketing class to be all about. I believe he was right.

These two areas definitely are a huge part of marketing. No company will ever amount to any real success without implementing both of these ideas successfully.

It's really hard to imagine the advertising dollars that get spent each year. Forty-one companies spend over $1 billion each year on advertising budgets, and that is for the U.S. alone. Over $1 billion every year.

BUS 3500

This time we learned about the role that promoting goods and services plays in a marketing strategy. I learned there are several promotional mix strategies that are necessary for success. Most of these were already apparent including advertising, public relations, and sales promotions.

This lesson also discussed steps in the communication process and how they are interrelated. The most brilliant message can only be as successful as it is decoded successfully.

BUS 3500

In week 10 we learned about marketing channels and how many organizations work together to get the flow of goods from raw materials to the consumer. Different players doing entirely different types of work are necessary to help this flow. Production steps, communication between companies and consumers, and financing are just a few players in this game.

One of the best quotes from the book said "supply chain management is both a communicator of customer demands...and a physical flow process." You need to understand the wants and needs of your customers before you can supply them with what they want or need.