There is no required text for this class. However, there will be a great deal of reading. It will be a different type of reading than you are accustomed to. While you will be reading to gain knowledge, you will also be reading to gather information in order to make strategic decisions regarding a brand. So read carefully and re-read often.

This class is designed to help you acquire decision-making skills through the study of a combination of advertising and marketing theory, practical problems and traditional cases in order to build a sound advertising strategy. A sound strategy is the foundation of effective advertising campaigns. This is an analytical process which requires critical thinking, information gathering, decision-making, evaluation and superb writing skills. Most importantly, the strategy process requires a curious and open mind.

This is not a creative class. You will not be writing headlines, developing layouts or writing copy. What you will be doing is analyzing a brand - its competition, its position, its marketplace, its consumers - to develop a sound advertising strategy for the brand. While this involves defining elements that may be used in an advertisement, you are basically providing the strategy that will be the foundation for developing the advertisement and its placement.

This class is about advertising strategy: how to develop strategies, how to select from alternative strategies, how to evaluate proposed strategies and how to defend the strategy. Developing effective strategies is the key to all advertising successes. Developing critical thinking and writing skills is the key to your success in the advertising industry.

The primary objective of this class is to make you reach strategic decisions via the process of research, analysis, thought and informed judgement. Guesswork is not acceptable. In order to accomplish this objective, the primary emphasis is on students learning-by-doing. That is actually formulating, making, presenting, and defending advertising recommendations in the environment in which they occur.

The secondary objectives of the course are to increase your level of advertising competence and professionalism by creating an environment that helps sharpen the following skills: information gathering, inductive and deductive thinking; written and verbal communication; organization and planning; time management; interpersonal/team work; and presentation.

This course revolves around readings, discussion, and case analysis. Cases are written descriptions of business situations. In preparing cases, you should familiarize yourself with the facts in the situation and identify possible courses of action. It is important to distinguish between what the company is doing and what you think they should be doing. Likewise, you need to distinguish between strategy (i.e., what a company should do) and tactics (i.e., how they should do it). In every case we examine, the company involved is facing some marketing communication or advertising problem or decision. It is up to you to identify what the problem(s) is/are, identify and evaluate alternative courses of action and to recommend/defend a solution.

Written assignments will be both individual and as a member of a group, as well as some will be done in class. Over the course of the quarter, you will probably analyze 6-8 cases. Written cases should not exceed 5 double-spaced typed pages. The quality of the information is more important than the number of pages. The key here is to cover each case thoroughly and effectively - which means you will have to choose which information is most important in developing the strategy.

This course operates under the assumption that learning requires preparation, commitment, and involvement from the students as well as the instructor. I will do my best to encourage you to want to be present everyday. You should be aware, however, that secondary research, outside reading, class attendance and participation are very important parts of your final grade. Further, the quality of your comments and participation matters. Comments that reflect a lack of preparation on your part count for nothing. Rather, getting an "A" in this course requires consistently superior performance.

You are expected to attend class meetings, participate in class discussions and prepare for class by reading the cases and handouts. The first few weeks are designed to get you "up to speed" on important concepts and materials. The last few weeks are primarily working on cases. You may be called upon to present your strategy to the class so be prepared.

Your attendance and participation will be traced to determine this part of your grade. Remember, if you have perfect attendance, but have never entered in the discussion, you cannot receive full credit. Participation/attendance is scored on the following scale:

1 absence/regular class participation 90

1 absence/little class participation 80

2 absences/regular class participation 80

2 absences/little class participation 70

3 or more absences, regardless of participation 60

Each assignment will be graded on the following criteria: research, analysis, organization, strategy formulated, writing style, format.

Your final grade will be based on the following:

Class Participation/Attendance 5%

Classroom Work 10%

Written Assignments 50%

Final Case/Presentation 35%

100%

Grading Scale:

A 94-100 C+ 77-79

A- 90-93 C 74-76

B+ 87-89 C- 70-73

B 84-86 D 66-69

B- 80-83 F 65 and below

Your registration in this course assumes that you agree to the course policies set forth in this syllabus as well as those established by the Scripps School of Journalism and by Ohio University.

1. Everyone is expected to contribute answers, ideas and questions. Furthermore, everyone is excepted to be respectful of others within the class. However, lack of preparation, uninformed judgements or biased responses will not be tolerated.

2. One person talks at a time. This is the only way to learn to listen, not to mention, being respectful.

3. You can direct comments and questions to anybody in the room. This includes within discussions as well as presentations.

4. Don't monopolize discussions. Don't talk so much that others don't get an opportunity to participate.

5. Don't think yours is the only opinion or the only right answer. There is no such thing here as the right answer. We're trying to establish the best possible solution for this exact time period.

6. Arriving to class on time is essential. Promptness is expected, professional behavior. If you arrive late, you have no idea what is going on. Therefore, you will not be allowed to participate in the discussion underway. You will then lose your participation points for that session.

7. NO LATE WORK IS ACCEPTED. That's the nature of this business - a deadline is a deadline. You will be given sufficient time to finish assignments, please manage your time accordingly. A printer jam or a computer problem is not considered an excuse. Plan ahead.

8. All assignments will be collected at the beginning of the class period. It is to your benefit to make two copies of the assignment. One to hand in and one to keep for the discussion and for note-taking. If you are late for class and the assignments have already been picked up and the discussion is underway, you will be docked 10 points for that assignment for being late.

9. The work in this course is based on your analysis from research. Therefore, you will be dependent on the library and its sources. A bibliography should accompany every paper in order that the quality of the information can be graded. Furthermore, it is expected that you will use more resources than just the internet. Too many internet sources could result in a lower grade.

10. I will not tolerate any form of plagiarism, cheating, forgery, or dishonesty. Plagiarism is defined as 10 or more consecutive words taken from another's written work and presented as one's own without citation of the original work or attribution to the original author. Any incidence of academic dishonesty on a written assignment will result in a grade of zero (0) for that assignment. Furthermore, all instances of cheating or plagiarism will be reported and will become part of the student's record as per the University policy on Academic Honesty.

11. This is not a creative writing course. It is about learning to write in a professional business style. All assignments require some sort of research and analysis. Each assignment should be written in a professional manner, using the research to support your solution. Write as if you were talking to a client. Remember, it is not your brand, don't write from a personal standpoint.

12. This class is about a thought process and decision making. The answers to these cases are not in a book. You will need to search for the answers and think about it over time. This process takes time. Don't wait until the last minute to work on these projects. I can spot a hurried job. Start early, read and re-read the case, take notes, organize your research, give yourself time to contemplate and formulate. Then write - and leave plenty of time to edit and re-write. That's all part of the process.

13. I am available to help you anyway I can. I do not always know if you need help, so don't hesitate to ask. Scheduled office hours will be held each week. If you are unable to make these hours, please, out of courtesy, call or email to make an appointment. Please do not just "drop by" at your convenience. While I am always happy to meet with you, I do have various commitments and teach other courses. I want to make certain I have allotted the time to devote my full attention to your situation. Please note, I am not available for student meetings one hour before class.

14. If you have a disability that hinders you in the classroom, it is your responsibility to register with the Office of Institutional Equity. It is also your responsibility to inform me of this disability so that I may make arrangements to accommodate you. Do not wait - do this immediately.