Commonwealth of Learning

Executive MBA/MPA

E13 International Marketing

Course Tutor Guide

To Accompany
Global Marketing Management,
Seventh Edition

by

Warren J. Keegan
Prentice-Hall, Inc.
Course Author: Dwight R. Thomas, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus, Centre for Innovative Management
Athabasca University, Alberta (Canada)
Email: dwight@athabascau.ca

Copyright © Commonwealth of Learning, 2003

All rights reserved. No part of this course may be reproduced in any form by any means without
prior permission in writing from:

The Commonwealth of Learning

1285 West Broadway
Suite 600
Vancouver, BC V6H 3X8
CANADA
e-mail: info@col.org
Table of Contents

Introduction .............................................................................................................. 1

Organisation of the Course Manual ....................................................................... 2

Case Study Assignment Option ............................................................................. 5

International Marketing Plan Assignment ............................................................. 7

Supplementary International Marketing Plan Resource Web Sites..................... 9

Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 10
Introduction
This instructional guide has been designed to accompany the courseware for the International
Marketing course (Course E13) in the Commonwealth of Learning CEMBA/CEMPA
program. As such it is intended to serve as a complement to the Global Marketing
Management, Seventh Edition text authored by Warren J. Keegan. It assumes that instructors
or course facilitator's also have obtained copies of the Global Marketing Management
Instructor's Manual and the Test Item File, both of which are available to textbook adopters
from the publisher, Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Faculty are also invited to access the online web resources that are provided by the publisher
and which can be found at:
http://www.prenhall.com/divisions/bp/app/keegan/bp_keegan_gmm_7/

This website includes a downloadable copy of the official Instructor's Manual, access to a
detailed set of PowerPoint slides that can be viewed via computer screen or video projection
(or be converted into overhead slides) by the faculty member for use in a classroom setting.
In addition, a list of teaching notes respecting most of the cases posted in the textbook is also
included and these can be downloaded on a case-by-case basis.

Please note that you will need to contact the Prentice-Hall sales representative or office
responsible for marketing in your region or country in advance to obtain an ID and password
as this site is restricted access to bonafide instructors only.

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Organisation of the Course Manual
Each of the five modular Blocks in the course manual for International Marketing (Course
E13) has been organized in the following manner:

1. For each Block, a brief description of the contents of that Block is included in bullet
form.
2. A statement of Learning Outcomes or Objectives for the Block follows this.
3. The student is then directed through the course material through a series of Lesson
Notes which are comprised of narrative commentary designed to supplement the text
material and to focus the student on the major issues within each chapter,
4. Case studies are included in each of the five Blocks and teaching notes covering the
content and objectives of each case are provided by the publisher and these can be
downloaded from the course website previously identified at:
http://www.prenhall.com/divisions/bp/app/keegan/bp_keegan_gmm_7/

Regretfully, there are some serious inconsistencies in the amount of information provided to
the instructor in respect to each of the case studies - only one or two pages of discussion notes
accompany some cases, whilst others are complemented with much more information. As a
different author prepared each case, there are bound to be some inconsistencies however, the
following suggestions may be of assistance to the instructor in facilitating the use of these
case studies.

a. It has been the author's experience that the student can best evaluate all
marketing-oriented cases by first encouraging them to first develop a SWOT
analysis based upon the information contained in the case. There will be
areas, which are either poorly documented or in some instances, completely
ignored, but the practice of doing a SWOT analysis usually highlights those
areas, which are information rich and those, which are poorly documented.
In some cases reasonable assumptions may need to be taken in analysing the
case.
b. The case studies included in the five course Blocks of this course ask specific
questions to which the student is expected to respond. There are, however, as
most of us are aware, many case studies which do not formally state
questions for consideration but rather leave the study or course participant to
'figure these out for themselves". Of course, completing the SWOT analysis
outlined in A. above usually provides a sound starting point for problem
identification and analysis.
c. Some case studies appear to indicate that there is a simple and
straightforward issue or problem central to the case. This may be so.
However, students should be cautioned that the "problem" that they discover
whether working individually or in a group or syndicate to which they have
been assigned, may not be as simple as it seems at first glance. It may well be
that the observed problem or issue that "stands out" may essentially be
symptomatic of a more far reaching or serious set of problems and issues and

E13 International Marketing Page 2

 that the "obvious" problem may simply be representative of the "tip of the
iceberg" and that caution should prevail.
d. In our experience, written responses to case studies are best organised in a
structured fashion or form for both the student and instructor's benefit. From
the student's perspective, unless otherwise instructed by the faculty member,
a brief statement of the nature of the organisation, its product/market
orientation and its current market situation can make for a sound introduction
to a case study analysis. This can be followed by a discussion of the
opportunities and issues confronting the organisation and this can be
abstracted from the information included in the case study itself and the
conduct of a more formal SWOT analysis, which may or may not be
formally included as a part of the case analysis. Options for resolving the
problems discovered within the case can then conclude the case study
presentation
e. One issue that we continually experience with our students is that some need
to be reminded that the case study must be analysed in the time frame in
which events took place. Often, through additional research, students are able
to "discover" actually what happened in the organisation after the case study
was prepared. Needless to say that we might wish to remind our course
participants that the "actual outcome" when known after the fact does not
necessarily reflect the optimum solution that might have been recommended
at the time the case study portrays!
f. Most course participants will likely have had previous experience in
analysing case studies in either marketing or other management subjects that
they have previously studied. However, it is recommended that each
instructor begin the course with an introductory case study as a "trial run".
This can be conducted on an individual or group/syndicate basis depending
upon the class format and it will provide an opportunity for all course
participants to develop a comfort level in working with marketing -oriented
cases. It will also provide the instructor with the opportunity to include
advice and suggestions based upon their own past experience.

5. For each of the five Blocks, Block Activities have also been included. These are
intended to encourage students or course participants to become familiar with
business journals and periodicals that focus on international (marketing-related)
issues. The relationship of Block topics to "real world" examples is placed in the
forefront and the subject of the papers prepared for each Block (Activity 1) is
intended to lead to more interesting "in class" discussion between students and the
instructor whether in a classroom or online context.
6. Although it is not intended that these individual Block Activities be formally graded,
it should be emphasised to class participants that they form a required portion of the
course and must be completed.
7. Each Block concludes with the inclusion of a series of self-test oriented discussion
questions, which are drawn directly from the Keegan text material. These may be
viewed as a summary of the major issues to be found within each Block but should
not be considered as all-inclusive. Accordingly, individual instructors may wish to
add or amend the posted questions or to supplement the discussion questions with
their own summary materials etc.

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 8. A limited number of suggested additional web sites have been referenced. Clearly,
this is also an area where both instructors and students are encouraged to enrich and
share their knowledge of added web sites of interest and relevance to the topics at
hand. While it is recognised that web access may be restricted in some locations, it is
hoped that students will be able to complement their learning experience in this
course with reasonable access to the Internet. Also, it is important that web sites be
checked regularly as there are sometimes changes to web access to some sites. Also,
as with other forms of media, caution should be exercised in assessing the credibility
of the source of the web information provided.
9. Each Block concludes with the notification that there will be a test covering the
material contained in that Block. The format of each test is, of course, left to the
discretion of the instructor and the format of the course delivery. The Test Item File
(authored by Dorothy Minkus-McKenna) is available without cost from the
publishers, Prentice-Hall, Inc. to all adopters of the Keegan text. This publication
includes true and false, multiple choices, and essay format questions for all chapters
and may be used as a basis for structuring class tests.
10. In addition, the author provides two additional suggestions in the sections that follow
in this guide for evaluation of student performance over the duration of the class.
These include the development of an original case study on an organisation of
interest to the student or group that is indigenous to their own country or region or
the development of an individual (or group) international marketing plan. Both of
these projects could either be considered in lieu of a formal final written examination
or be considered instead of utilizing some of the Block case study assignments at the
instructor's option.

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Case Study Assignment Option
The development of an original case study either on an individual or group (or syndicate)
basis may appeal to some instructors in this course. This evaluation option provides several
unique advantages to both the course participant and the instructor:

The development of original case studies will encourage the creation of indigenous
course materials that not only challenge the student or group but also provides a bank
of local /regional course materials that may be used in subsequent courses and by
succeeding groups of students.
Assuming that students can gain the access to (and the cooperation of) interested
organisations with which they are familiar or whose products and services have
existing or potential international market appeal, they may well be able to provide an
arm's length perspective to the organisation and provide it with advice that may be
helpful to management.
The opportunity to work with a "real organisation" from our experience tends to
stimulate enthusiasm and to encourage the individual or group to do " the best that
they can" in both communicating and understanding the nature of the problems or
challenges that they discover. Since each student or group case study requires both
the development of the case as well as a "teaching note", students are challenged over
the course of the project.
We encourage the presentation of the case study to the class as a whole at the
conclusion of the term or semester and also welcome the subject organisation to also
attend the presentation whenever possible.
If this form of assignment is seen to be appropriate, it is suggested that the following
may be used as a starting point for form:

1. An introduction to the organisation being studied (and specifically to the

division, department or strategic business unit (sbu) being studied.
2. A brief overview of the industry and general economic environment in the
market being considered.
3. Cases involve problems or issues and these should be included in one form or
another
4. A list of options or alternatives may be appropriate for analysis in some
cases; in others, some form or "sense of direction" as to what is required to
"resolve" the issues should be included. In other circumstances, the facts may
be reported but there may be no specific direction provided, other than the
fact that there are challenges, problems or issues related to marketing
internationally...
5. The length of the final case study should be approximately 8-10 pages plus
appendices.
6. Quantitative information should be presented in tabular or matrix form as
appropriate; any excessive data are to be separately included as appendices.
7. All cases should be written in the past tense.

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 8. It is strongly recommended that case study assignments be undertaken as a
group or syndicate rather than an individual project given the amount of
effort required; for evaluation purposes, participants are usually afforded the
same grade but it is also the responsibility of group members to clearly
identify each person's contribution to the project and the instructor reserves
the right to alter grades for those students whose performance was
exceptional to the group as a whole (either positively or negatively).
9. Apart from the preparation of the case study, each individual or group will
also be required to develop a "teaching note" in which they identify the
objective(s) of the case study, any suggestions for "teaching the case" as well
as providing a sample solution and a bibliography or references for further
reading.
10. As this is a substantial assignment, it is suggested that it should be weighted
as forming at least 30-40% of the value of the assessment for the class.

E13 International Marketing Page 6

International Marketing Plan Assignment
A second option that the author recommends for consideration in this course is to require all
course participants, either individually or in groups or syndicates (preferable due to the
complexity of the assignment), to develop an international marketing plan for a product or
service of their choosing (from their own country or region) that is targeted to a potential
market outside of their own country or trading group. The product or service chosen may be
an existing product or service, which is presently on the local or domestic market that the
manufacturer or producer wishes to market internationally, or it could be a new product or
service. However, in either case, the project must be seen to be a serious effort with the
outcome of a viable and potentially operational marketing plan!

The international marketing plan, as with the case study previously described, will take some
time to pull together. Accordingly, it is recommended that the project be extended over the
course of the term or semester commencing with the selection of the product or service and
the identification of the organisation for which the plan is being developed before the end of
Block 1.

Due to the complexity of this assignment, it is recommended that this assignment be broken
into three separate component elements or sections and, collectively, that these components
should be weighted to represent at least 50% of the assessment value in the course.

Although details concerning the specific organisation of this major marketing plan
assignment are left entirely to the discretion of the instructor or course facilitator, the author
recommends that the format be adapted to the pedagogical (classroom vs. online or distance-
based) model being utilized.

Thus, for a classroom-based course, course participants should be expected to provide oral
reports to the class on a timely basis throughout the semester or term of study. This could
include a brief discussion toward the beginning of the course as to the specific
product/market and organisation chosen (rationale or justification for same) as well as a brief
description of the organisation and intended international market being targeted.

Later in the course (perhaps at the midpoint) a follow-up session could be held in which the
course participants or groups then provide a description of the product/market as well as an
assessment of the existing sate of competition in that country or region.

A final session toward the conclusion of the course would include an overview of the market
entry strategy that has been developed for the intended target market leaving time for
questions and class discussion of each presentation.

Concurrent with each of the foregoing three sessions, the course participants would be
required to file the appropriate written portion of the international marketing plan that they
developed for the section concerned.

E13 International Marketing Page 7

 If the course were offered in an online or distance-based format, a similar process could be
followed but reliance would need to be placed upon the use of video or audio
teleconferencing or Internet-based discussions appropriate to the delivery modality supported.

An interesting and detailed example of an expanded format of the proposed international

marketing plan can be found in the Cateora and Graham International Marketing text
published by McGraw-Hill. The section to explore is an Appendix entitled The Country
Notebook and it can be found in both the current (11th edition) and previous versions of this
text.

There are a variety of other sources of information that can be recommended to the course
participants to assist them in developing their own international marketing plans. Of course,
many instructors or course facilitators may have their own format or preferences that they
will communicate to their class members. In addition, the author has searched the Internet
and located a number of web sites that may be of interest and assistance to course participants
in researching and developing their own international marketing plans.

It should be emphasised that each of these sites was accessible at the time of preparation of
this instructional guide but the author advises that web sites may change, be moved to another
site or be discontinued. Also, although care and attention has been paid to providing a diverse
range of suggested web sites, there is no particular order or prominence that should be
afforded one site over another.

E13 International Marketing Page 8

Supplementary International Marketing Plan
Resource Web Sites
http://www.swcollege.com/marketing/gitm/gitm4e07-05.html
http://www.cbsc.org/manitoba/index.cfm?name=mktgplan
http://faculty.washington.edu/jwh/349lec10.htm
http://cibs.tamu.edu/syllabi/ulaga20/sld001.htm
http://www.knowthis.com/general/marketplan.htm
http://www.sba.gov/oit/info/Guide-To-Exporting/trad6.html
http://www.swcollege.com/marketing/gitm/gitm.html
http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/resources/business_plans/marketing_planning_guide.html?f=
5.8.2
http://exportsource.gc.ca/sitemap_e.cfm
http://www.ded.state.mo.us/business/businesscenter/marketing.shtml
http://www.austrade.gov.au/generic_template/0,,ContentGroup%253Dexpandinginvestment2
526ContentType%253Dmarketentry%2526ContentSection%253Dmarketentry,00.html
http://fita.org/useful/index.html
http://www.usitc.gov/tr/tr.htm
http://www.esc.edu/library/ibol/
http://www.duke.edu/~charvey/Country_risk/couindex.htm
http://web.idirect.com/~tiger/guide4.htm

E13 International Marketing Page 9

Conclusion
It is the hope that the information contained in this Course Instructional Guide will be of
assistance to all instructors or course facilitators engaged in teaching this course in
International Marketing. The Commonwealth of Learning (COL) would welcome any
suggestions pertaining to changes, additions and other suggestions pertaining to this Guide
for inclusion in future revisions to the Guide. These should be directed to: info@col.org

E13 International Marketing Page 10