UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE
COURSE DESCRIPTION – Summer 2008
NAME OF COURSE: Buyer Behavior
COURSE NUMBER: BUAD 473
PREREQUISITE: BUAD 301
PROFESSOR: Mark Bambach
OFFICE # - Purnell 013B
OFFICE PHONE: (302) 831-1792
E-MAIL: bambachm@lerner.udel.edu
WEB PAGE: http://www.buec.udel.edu/bambachm
OFFICE HOURS: Discussed the first day of class.
I am happy that you are enrolled in my class and hope that it is an enjoyable semester for you!
CATALOG DESCRIPTION: The decision process associated with buying and consumption. Social, cultural and psychological influences on consumer decisions and consumption patterns. The relationship between buyer and marketing decision-making.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
1. To enable the student to understand the relationship between consumer behavior and marketing strategy, including regulatory policy and social marketing, and how these effect market segmentation.
2. To familiarize the student with external influences that affect consumer behavior, including changing American values, demographics and social stratification, subcultures, families and households, and group influences.
3. To provide the student with a fundamental understanding of internal influences that affect buyer behavior, such as perception, learning, memory, motivation, personality, emotion and attitudes.
4. To enable the students to identify components of the consumer decision process, including problem recognition, information search, alternative evaluation and selection, purchase decision, post purchase processes and customer satisfaction.
5. To help the students understand organizations as consumers, including organizational buyer behavior, firm demographics, culture/government, reference groups, and external and internal factors influencing organizational culture.
6. To provide the student with an understanding of the relationship between consumer behavior and marketing regulation, including concerns about the effects of the content of commercial messages on children, the ability of children to comprehend commercial messages, and controversial marketing activities aimed at children.
TEACHING METHODOLOGY:
The nature of this course will be a combination of lecture, discussion and hands-on activities. Most chapters will include assignments and activities. You will note below that a substantial portion of your grade depends on the effort and results of these assignments and activities.
GRADING:
It is expected that you attend class and be on time for the start of the class. Tests will be announced at least one week in advance. You are to take the tests on the scheduled day and at the scheduled time. If you come in after a test has started, 15 points will be deducted from the test, no matter what the reason is for being late. I do not want you disturbing the students who showed up on time and are now taking the test. A missed test counts as a zero. There are no make-ups given. You can’t take the test early or late because of other obligations. Please don’t ask! Your lowest test grade will be dropped if you take all four tests. During the tests all books, phones, hats, drinks, etc. must be put in the front of the class. All you need is a number two pencil in front of you. This will help keep the test taking honest for everyone. Research papers must follow current APA format. Double sided papers will not be accepted. Length, acceptable topics and other pertinent information will be discussed the first week of class. Late papers will not be accepted. They are due at the start of the section that you’re enrolled in and must be handed in, not emailed to me. You are to attend the section you are registered in, not the one that fits your schedule. Deviation from this will not be tolerated and will adversely affect your grade. If you join the class after it has started, it is YOUR responsibility to get the notes from someone in class. Please don’t ask me to go over what I’ve already covered in class.
BASIS FOR GRADES:
Tests (3 @ 27%) 81%
In-class quizzes and reviews 9%
Presentation 5%
Research Paper(s) 5%
GRADE SCALE:
A (93-100) C+ (77-79) D- (60-62)
A- (90-92) C (73-76) F = Below 60
B+ (87-89) C- (70-72)
B (83-86) D+ (67-69)
B- (80-82) D (63-66)
REQUIRED TEXT: Consumer Behavior; Building Marketing Strategy, Hawkins, Best & Coney, Tenth Edition.
Week # CHAPTER
1 chapter 1
2 chapter 2 and 3
3 chapter 4, Presentations start
4 chapter 5 and 6
5 chapter 7, Test # 1 (ch. 1-6)
6 chapter 8 and 9
7 chapter 10
8 chapter 11
9 chapter 12
10 chapter 13, Test # 2 (ch. 7-12)
11 chapter 14 and 15
12 chapter 16
13 chapter 17
14 chapter 18, Test # 3 (ch. 13-18)
15 Final exam week - Test # 4 (ch. 1-18)
Note: The professor reserves the right to modify this syllabus at any time. If this occurs you will be notified in class.