Course Details
| Program Name | PGP | Batch | 26 |
| Term | 6 | Year | 2022 PGP 26 |
| Course Code & Course Title | Product Policy and Brand Management | ||
| Course type | Elective | Course Credit | 3 |
| Total no. of sessions | 24 | Session Duration | 75 minute |
| Sections (if any) | A & B | Consultation Hours | By appointment |
| Contact Details | joshyjoseph@iimk.ac.in | ||
| Office | Faculty Office F1, IIMK Kochi Campus | ||
| Pre-requisites (if any) | |||
Instructors
| Faculty Name |
| Joshy Joseph |
Introduction
People are captivated by brands. Apple, Harley-Davidson, Amul... the list goes on and on. What makes individuals fall in love with brands? What factors contribute to the success of these brands? What strategies do companies use to create memorable brand experiences? Such issues will be addressed in this course on Product Policy and Brand Management. This course is designed to assist students improve their marketing abilities and raise their understanding of marketing topics from the perspective of brands. The course is divided into two parts: product management and brand management
Learning Objective / Course Outcome
| CLO No | CLO |
| CLO1 | To expose the fundamental principles and challenges of product and brand management |
| CLO2 | To understand the process of new product development and diffusion of innovations. |
| CLO3 | Develop an understanding and competence in brand positioning. |
| CLO4 | Encourage critical thinking and analytical abilities on management and sustenance of brands |
Textbooks and Learning Materials (if any)
Strategic Brand Management, 5/e. Kevin Lane Keller, Vanitha Swaminathan, Ambi MG Parameshwaran and Isaac C Jacob, Pearson Education |
Pedagogy/Learning Process
The course would use a mix of lectures, case and article discussions, assignments and a fieldproject. A set of readings/cases are assigned for most of the classes. Students are expected to read them before the class. The seminar approach is found most suited for an elective course that examines in greater depth a functional area of marketing. Also, group working suits well for these forms of learning. Ten groups of 6 members (approx) will select any topic and the respective cases/articles for in-depth study and class presentation.
Evaluation Components/Assessment of Student Learning
| Assessment Tool | Weight | Remarks | PLO Tested (give the PLO No) | Description |
| Assignment 1 | 10% | This component is required to check the students’ understanding of concepts in the area. |
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| End term Exam | 30% | This component is required to assess the depth and breadth of students’ understanding of key concepts and their applications. |
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| Class Presentations (Case Analysis, Article Presentations & Class Exercises) | 15% | This component would provide students with opportunities to explore diverse perspectives for business problems. |
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| Field Project | 40% | This facilitates students to demonstrate the ability to integrate the information and the skills accumulated in their course with the applied research in the respective areas. This also gives them a chance to show their skills in oral and written communication |
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| CP / Attendance | 5% | This component would provide students with opportunities to engage in active learning through reflection, debates, and peer knowledge sharing. |
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Session Plan
| Session No | Module | Topic Covered | Reading Material | |
| 1 -2 | Introduction to the course | Introduction |
Philip, Lijee (2010), “How Tata Nano Hit a Big Bump in India”, The Economic Times, December 4. HBS Module note: Principles of Product Policy Rozin, R.S. (2002), “The Branding Iron: From Cowboys to Corporations”, Journal of Brand Management. Vol.10 No.1, pp.4-7. |
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| 3-4 | Portfolio Models and Product Life Cycles | Chapter 4, Lehmann & Winer |
Case: Procter & Gamble India: Gap in the Product Portfolio? Note: Market Selection and Direction: Role of Product Portfolio Planning Levitt, Theodore (1965), “Exploit the Product Life Cycle”. Harvard Business Review, Vol. 43(6), pp. 81-94. Dhalla, Nariman K, and Sonia Yuspeh. (1976), “Forget the Product Life Cycle Concept”, Harvard Business Review, Vol.54 (1), pp.102-112 |
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| 5 -6 | Product Positioning | Chapter 8, Lehmann & Winer |
Case: Tata Motors: The Tata Ace Aaker, David A, and J Gary Shansby (1982), “Positioning Your Product”, Business Horizons, Vol. 25(3), pp. 56-62. MacMillan, Ian C., and Rita Gunther McGrath (1997) “Discovering New Points of Differentiation”, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 75(4), pp. 133-145. |
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| 7-8 | New Product Development | Chapter 9, Lehmann & Winer |
Case: Sweetwater Cooper, Robert G. and Elko J. Kleinschmidt (1986), “An Investigation into the New Product Process”, Journal of Product Innovation Management Vol.3 (2), pp. 71-85. Wheelwright, S. C., & Sasser, J. E. (1989), “The New Product Development Map”, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 67(3), 112-125 Supplementary reading: Chapter 12, Keller Haensel Vladimir (1995), “Lucky Alva”. Research Technology Management, Vol. 38 (4), pp. 28. [exciting read, don’t miss it] |
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| 9-10 | New Product Strategy Diffusion of Innovations | NPD |
Case: Sony AIBO Case: Peanut Safe Syringe [as add-on case] O’Meara Jr., John T. (1961), “Selecting Profitable Products”, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 39(1) pp. 83-89. Note on Innovation Diffusion: Roger’s Five factors Note: Why Consumers Don’t Buy: The Psychology of New Product Adoption. |
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| 11 | Project Proposal Presentations | Proposals |
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| 12 | Introduction to Branding | Chapter 1, Keller |
Case: Branding Yoga Morris, Betsy (1996), “The Brand’s the Thing”, Fortune [serial online], Vol. 133 (4), March 4, pp. 72-86. Discussion Note: Brands and Branding Discussion Note: Understanding Brands |
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| 13-14 | Brand Equity Brand Elements for building brand equity | Chapter 2, 4 Keller |
Case: Dove: Evolution of a Brand Case: Naming the Edsel (condensed) [as add-on case] |
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| 15-16 | Brand Positioning |
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Case: Bajaj RE60: The branding challenge of Disruptive Innovation Christensen, C. M., Raynor, M., & McDonald, R. (2015). “What is Disruptive Innovation?” Harvard Business Review, 93(12), 44-53. Rafii, F., & Kampas, P. J. (2002), “How to Identify Your Enemies Before They Destroy You”, Harvard Business Review, 80(11), 115-123. Case: Uber: Changing the Way the World Moves (to be used as a supplementary reading – not for class discussion) |
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| 17-18 | IMC and Secondary Brand Associations | Chapter 5, 6 Keller |
Case: The Pepsi Refresh Project: A Thirst for Change Fournier, Susan, and Jill Avery (2011), “The uninvited brand”, Business Horizons Vol. 54(3), pp.193-207. Aaker, David (1990), “Brand extensions: The good, the bad, and the ugly”. Sloan Management Review, Vol. 31(4), pp. 47-56. |
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| 19 | Measuring Brand Equity Special Topic: Marketing of Celebrities | Chapter 9, 10, 11 Keller |
Case: Maria Sharapova: Marketing a Champion Bhat, Harish (2009), “Brands and their fallen heroes”, The Hindu Business Line, December 17. |
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| 20 | Sustaining Brand Equity | Chapter 12, Keller |
Case: Altius Golf and the Fighter brand Ritson, Mark (2009), “Should You Launch a Fighter Brand?” Harvard Business Review, Vol. 87(10), pp.86-94. Thomas, Sunil, and Chiranjeev Kohli (2009), “A brand is forever! A framework for revitalizing declining and dead brands”, Business Horizons, Vol.52 (4), pp. 377-386. |
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| 21-22 | Brand Positioning exercise | Brand Positioning |
In-class exercise on brand positioning |
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| 23-24 | Project Presentations | Project Presentations |
Additional Instructions (If any)
Assignment: Write an essay on ANY of the following three topics
- Brand building in B2B markets
- Masstige Brands: Prestige brands for the masses
- Counterfeit Branding
Field Project
Please form groups of approximately 6 students (the idea is to get 10 groups from the class). Please ensure that there is a reasonable level of heterogeneity in the groups.
You are required to do a field project by using primary data, related to any product/brand management issue. Please take care to follow the research principles you have learned in your Market Research classes. If you use a survey research, the minimum sample size will be the number of group members multiplied by 25. However, this is the minimum; the more the merrier!
Deliverables:
- A Project Proposal Presentation in class: Session 11 (approximately 5-7 min per group).
- A final presentation in the class: Sessions 22 - 24 (approximately 20 min per group).
- A Project Report (hard copy) containing all the essential elements of a thesis: You may submit the project report on the day after session 24.