This course provides an introduction to marketing science as a branch of business administration. It highlights the role of marketing as an important business function, which can give an organization a significant competitive advantage.

The course begins with an outline of different approaches and business philosophies, with emphasis placed on marketing orientation. The need for and usefulness of marketing in contemporary economies and societies is subsequently underlined.

As an introductory course, it presents the concepts of consumer behaviour and marketing research, which are, however, separate fields. The basic pillars of strategic marketing are also discussed, namely, segmentation of markets, targeting of relevant segments and positioning of a business product in the market and in consumers’ minds.

The final area covered by the course is marketing mix (product, price, place, and promotion) which is a basic tool for the implementation of marketing policy in a business.

On successful completion of this core course in the Business Administration curriculum, students will be able to:

• precisely define the meaning and content of the marketing function in a business;
• understand the application of marketing in different markets: product and services, profit-making and non-profit making, consumer and industrial, domestic and export markets;
• identify the steps of strategy marketing; and
• recognize the content of marketing mix and understand its role in the success of a business.