Sports Marketing

MKT3575 Sports Marketing
4 General CreditsThis course focuses on the application of marketing concepts in the dynamic and high-profile sports industry that has become a significant economic and social force on a global scale. Among the topics to be explored in the context of the sports field are: sponsorship, branding, marketing research, consumer behavior, product development, licensing, distribution, pricing, segmentation, targeting, positioning, media, marketing communications, advertising, sales promotion, public relations, direct marketing, personal selling, legal issues, ethical issues, women's sports professional sports, collegiate sports and others. Emphasis will be on the need for an integrated approach for marketing of sports, by sports or through sports. We will view sports as a product and sports as a vehicle. Using a text, custom-designed materials, cases, special assignments, a major project creating a comprehensive integrated marketing plan, and guest speakers from the sports field, the course will promote critical integrative thinking and analysis relative to the important issues and challenges confronting marketers in the sports industry. As we go about this course, we will be guided by the following principle: the genius of managing a sports marketing program is acquired largely through a genuine understanding of the activities and relationships that constitute fully integrated marketing, relying on a system of learned skills and experiences.

Prerequisites: SME2011