Units and learning outcomes

Module 1: Marketing & Consumer Behaviour

This unit aims to provide you with the skills and knowledge necessary in managing marketing communications and brand support activities.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

Explain the role of the marketing plan and communications plan within the context of the organisation's strategy and culture
Understand the marketing planning process and the links between each stage of the process
Explain the role of marketing communications and how the tools of the communications mix can be coordinated effectively
Develop marketing communication and brand support activities based on an understanding of the salient characteristics of the target audience
Explain the importance of developing long term relationships with customers, channel members, agencies and other stakeholders and transfer such knowledge to the development of marketing communication activities
Suggest suitable methods to influence the relationships an organisation has with its customers, any marketing channel partners and other stakeholders, using marketing communications

Module 2: Public Relations

This unit aims to provide you with an awareness of the role of public relations in relation to the many different publics with which an organisation is concerned.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

Define the nature of public relations within a range of organisational frameworks
Explain and work within the legal and self-regulatory constraints under which public relations operates
Use the various techniques and skills required for effective public relations, including their characteristics, advantages, disadvantages, and costs
Explain the media channels employed in public relations in different contexts
Analyse situations and identify whether PR is the most appropriate tool to use
Analyse situations and suggest appropriate plans of PR action to specific publics within cost and time parameters

Module 3: Direct Marketing & Sales Promotion

This unit aims to provide you with an understanding of the disciplines and techniques of direct marketing and sales promotion at an operational level.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

Describe the relationship of direct marketing with other marketing communications tools
Explain the role of sales promotion, merchandising, point of sale and field marketing in the context of various sectors and in terms of consumer, trade and salesforce/employee promotions
Develop, manage and maintain a marketing database
Devise, implement and control appropriate direct marketing and sales promotion campaigns to meet defined objectives
Apply the principles of testing and measurement and financial controls which support direct marketing and sales promotion campaigns
Explain the ethical, legal and self-regulatory environment around the disciplines of direct marketing and sales promotion
Justify and manage budgets for individual campaigns

Module 4: Advertising

This unit aims to ensure knowledge and understanding of the process of advertising, advertising planning and measuring effectiveness.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

Explain the role and structure of advertising in the marketing mix, the communications mix and society
Explain the structure of the advertising industry and be able to identify the relationships between the advertiser, advertising agencies, suppliers (e.g. research, production) and media owners
Set appropriate advertising objectives, strategies and budgets
Understand how to plan strategies for creative and media execution
Describe the controls on advertising; social acceptability, legal controls & voluntary constraints, and be able to apply them to given advertisements
Select appropriate methods for measuring the effectiveness of advertising

Module 5: Integrated Media

This unit aims to provide you with a knowledge and understanding of the function of various media within the marketing mix and communications mix.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

Explain the role of different media in the marketing mix and the communications mix
Identify the relationships between the advertiser, advertising agencies,media buying and media planning agencies and media owners
Set appropriate objectives and strategies and allocate budgets for different media
Present an overview of media available and their characteristics,including electronic media, and methods of planning and selection
Select appropriate methods for measuring the effectiveness of communications media

Download Prospectus