Sunflower Intelligence
Marketing & Business Strategy

M01 · Introductory

Marketing Fundamentals

9 lessons

M01 · Introductory · 9 lessons in three modules · about 11 hours

Marketing Fundamentals

What marketing is, how customers and organisations buy, and how a business sets objectives and chooses how to compete.

What you will learn

  • Explain what marketing is and how it creates value through exchange, distinguishing needs, wants and demand.
  • Analyse customer value and satisfaction, and calculate a simple customer lifetime value to judge what a customer is worth.
  • Compare the main business orientations and explain what a market orientation requires in practice.
  • Describe how consumers and organisations decide what to buy (the stages, the influences and the roles in a buying centre), and use a weighted-attribute model to predict a choice.
  • Analyse a business’s situation (PESTEL, competitors, SWOT) and turn a business goal into SMART marketing objectives, including the number of new customers it needs.
  • Identify sources of competitive advantage and choose a competitive strategy that fits a business’s strengths and market.

Prerequisites

How it works

Each lesson teaches the idea from first principles, works examples step by step, lets you explore it in an interactive, then has you practise with feedback. A lesson is complete when you have worked its guided problems and scored 80% on its knowledge check. Mastery is tracked separately and comes back for review before you are likely to forget. Each module ends with a test; the course ends with a project and a final assessment.

Fictional case

Lantern Coffee Co. A fictional coffee business founded by Ana Lim. It starts as a catering and barista-training service, opens its own cafés and an online shop for beans, and plans a canned cold brew. Every name and figure in it is invented for teaching.

Not sure where to start?

The diagnostic has 12 questions across the course. It doesn’t count toward anything; it suggests the module to start from. Take the diagnostic.

Modules and lessons

Module 1 What marketing is

  1. What marketing isMarketing is not advertising with a bigger budget. Learn how marketers define it, why a voluntary exchange creates value for both sides, how needs, wants and demand differ, why defining a business by its product is dangerous, and what marketing looks like in consumer, business, service and non-profit settings.75 min · not started
  2. Customer value, satisfaction and lifetime valueCustomers choose the offer they judge best value, stay if it meets the expectations they formed, and are worth what they bring in over the years they stay. Learn customer-perceived value, satisfaction and loyalty, how to calculate a simple customer lifetime value with its assumptions stated, how to compare it with the cost of winning a customer, and how to write a value proposition.70 min · not started
  3. Market orientation: putting customers at the centreBusinesses differ in what they start from: what they can make, how good the product is, how hard they sell, or what customers need. Learn the five classic orientations and their limits, what a market orientation requires in practice (intelligence about customers and competitors, shared across the business and acted on), how to read what customers tell you, and why ethics and society belong in the picture.75 min · not started
  4. Module 1 test11 questions on this module. 70% passes.not taken

Module 2 How customers buy

  1. How consumers make buying decisionsEvery purchase, from a bag of beans to a barista course, comes out of a decision, made in seconds or over weeks. Learn the five stages of the buying process, how involvement changes it, how buyers weigh alternatives (with a scoring model you can calculate), what happens after the sale, and where the tidy model breaks down, online and off.70 min · not started
  2. What influences buyingWhy do two people with the same need buy different things? Learn the cultural, social, personal and psychological influences on a purchase; what motivation, perception, learning and attitudes mean; why word of mouth carries so much weight; and how anchoring, defaults and loss aversion shape choices, with the evidence and the ethics of using them.75 min · not started
  3. How organisations buyOrganisations buy differently from households: their demand is derived from their own customers’, they are fewer and larger, purchasing is a profession, and several people share each decision. Learn the three buying situations, the six roles in a buying centre, the stages of the business buying process and the procurement rules that decide how a seller must sell.70 min · not started
  4. Module 2 test12 questions on this module. 70% passes.not taken

Module 3 Foundations of strategy

  1. Situation analysisBefore deciding where to go, a business needs an honest picture of where it stands. Learn to scan the marketing environment with PESTEL, profile competitors and compare them with numbers, and build a SWOT analysis that rests on evidence and leads to decisions, knowing what each tool can and can’t tell you.75 min · not started
  2. Marketing objectivesA business goal says where the business wants to be; a marketing objective says which customers must do what, by when, to get it there. Learn to turn a goal into SMART objectives across the funnel, and to work out how many new customers a growth target really needs once you allow for the customers you lose.70 min · not started
  3. Competitive advantageCustomers choose between alternatives, so a business needs a reason to be chosen that rivals can’t easily copy. Learn where competitive advantage comes from (lower cost, differentiation and focus), how to compare competing on price with competing on value, and how to judge whether an advantage will last.70 min · not started
  4. Module 3 test12 questions on this module. 70% passes.not taken

Project and final assessment

  1. Project: Lantern’s marketing foundations for 2027Help Ana plan Lantern’s catering marketing: map how a corporate client buys, value a client, analyse Lantern’s situation, set objectives for 2027 and choose how to compete with a cheaper rival.not taken
  2. Final assessment25 questions across the whole course. 70% passes.not taken

The course is complete when every lesson is complete, every module test is passed, the project is finished and the final assessment is passed.

Resources

  • Glossary: every term this course defines.
  • Formulas: every formula with its symbols and units.
  • Review: flashcards and the questions you missed, when they are due.

Sources used in this course

  1. American Marketing Association. “Definitions of Marketing”: the definition of marketing, and the note that a panel of five scholars (the 2017 panel) reviews the AMA’s definitions. ama.org/the-definition-of-marketing-what-is-marketing
  2. Kotler, P. (1972). A generic concept of marketing. Journal of Marketing, 36(2), 46–54. The abstract was consulted. doi.org/10.1177/002224297203600209
  3. Kotler, P. & Levy, S. J. (1969). Broadening the concept of marketing. Journal of Marketing, 33(1), 10–15. The abstract was consulted. doi.org/10.1177/002224296903300103
  4. Levitt, T. (1960, July–August). Marketing myopia. Harvard Business Review, 45–56. Reprinted in Harvard Business Review, July–August 2004 (the page consulted); the 1960 publication details were confirmed from EBSCO’s Research Starter on marketing myopia. hbr.org/2004/07/marketing-myopia
  5. Gomez Albrecht, M., Green, M. & Hoffman, L. (2023). Principles of Marketing, sections 1.1 “Marketing and the Marketing Process” and 1.5 “Determining Consumer Needs and Wants”. OpenStax. openstax.org/books/principles-marketing/pages/1-1-marketing-…
  6. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Advertising, Promotions, and Marketing Managers”, Occupational Outlook Handbook: what they do. bls.gov/ooh/management/advertising-promotions-and-marketing-…
  7. Zeithaml, V. A. (1988). Consumer perceptions of price, quality, and value: a means-end model and synthesis of evidence. Journal of Marketing, 52(3), 2–22. The abstract was consulted; the consumers’ meanings of value (“value is low price”, “what I get for what I give”) were confirmed from Wikipedia’s summary in its article “Consumer value”. doi.org/10.1177/002224298805200302
  8. Oliver, R. L. (1980). A cognitive model of the antecedents and consequences of satisfaction decisions. Journal of Marketing Research, 17(4), 460–469. The abstract was consulted. doi.org/10.1177/002224378001700405
  9. Newcastle University. “Expectation Confirmation Theory”, TheoryHub: expectations, perceived performance, disconfirmation, and why satisfied customers may still switch. open.ncl.ac.uk/theories/14/expectation-confirmation-theory
  10. Gupta, S., Lehmann, D. R. & Stuart, J. A. (2004). Valuing customers. Journal of Marketing Research, 41(1), 7–18. The pre-publication version consulted gives the lifetime-value formula with margins from the moment of acquisition and notes that acquisition costs already incurred are sunk. business.columbia.edu/sites/default/files-efs/pubfiles/534/V…
  11. Fullerton, R. A. (1988). How modern is modern marketing? Marketing’s evolution and the myth of the “production era”. Journal of Marketing, 52(1), 108–125. The abstract was consulted. doi.org/10.1177/002224298805200109
  12. Kohli, A. K. & Jaworski, B. J. (1990). Market orientation: the construct, research propositions, and managerial implications. Journal of Marketing, 54(2), 1–18. The abstract was consulted; the three activities were confirmed from Tomášková, E. (2007), “The current models of market orientation”, European Research Studies, 11, special issue 3–4. doi.org/10.1177/002224299005400201
  13. Narver, J. C. & Slater, S. F. (1990). The effect of a market orientation on business profitability. Journal of Marketing, 54(4), 20–35. The original was not consulted. The abstract was read in the Portuguese translation, “Efeito da orientação para o mercado sobre a lucratividade da empresa”, Revista de Administração de Empresas (RAE-Clássicos), 2006, 46(2); the components and decision criteria were confirmed from Tomášková (2007). scielo.br/j/rae/a/vYSGStjtt5S76Xmn7drtynN/abstract/?lang=en
  14. Smith, N. C., Drumwright, M. E. & Gentile, M. C. (2010). The new marketing myopia. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 29(1), 4–11. The abstract was consulted. research.birmingham.ac.uk/en/publications/the-new-marketing-…
  15. American Marketing Association. “AMA Statement of Ethics”: ethical norms and values for marketers. ama.org/ama-statement-of-ethics
  16. Federal Trade Commission. Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims (the “Green Guides”), 16 CFR Part 260, especially § 260.2 (substantiation), § 260.4 (general environmental benefit claims) and § 260.7 (compostable claims). First issued in 1992, last revised in 2012, and under review when consulted. ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-260
  17. Assael, H. (1987). Consumer Behavior and Marketing Action, 3rd edn. Boston: Kent Publishing. Catalogue record consulted (CiNii Books); the book itself was not. ci.nii.ac.jp/ncid/BA01005262
  18. Krugman, H. E. (1965). The impact of television advertising: learning without involvement. Public Opinion Quarterly, 29(3), 349–356. The abstract was consulted; the full text is not free to read. doi.org/10.1086/267335
  19. Court, D., Elzinga, D., Mulder, S. & Vetvik, O. J. (2009). The consumer decision journey. McKinsey Quarterly, 2009 number 3. mckinsey.com/~/media/McKinsey/Business%20Functions/Marketing…
  20. Festinger, L. (1957). A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance. Title, author and year confirmed from the Stanford University Press edition’s catalogue page; the book itself was not consulted. degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9781503620766/html
  21. Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50, 370–396. Full text in York University’s Classics in the History of Psychology. psychclassics.yorku.ca/Maslow/motivation.htm
  22. Wahba, M. A. & Bridwell, L. G. (1976). Maslow reconsidered: a review of research on the need hierarchy theory. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 15(2), 212–240. The citation was confirmed from Crossref; the article is not free to read, and its conclusion is reported here as quoted in secondary accounts. doi.org/10.1016/0030-5073(76)90038-6
  23. Tay, L. & Diener, E. (2011). Needs and subjective well-being around the world. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 101(2), 354–365. Findings as reported by the University of Illinois News Bureau, “Researchers look for ingredients of happiness around the world”. news.illinois.edu/researchers-look-for-ingredients-of-happin…
  24. Tversky, A. & Kahneman, D. (1974). Judgment under uncertainty: heuristics and biases. Science, 185(4157), 1124–1131. doi.org/10.1126/science.185.4157.1124
  25. Kahneman, D. & Tversky, A. (1979). Prospect theory: an analysis of decision under risk. Econometrica, 47(2), 263–292. Abstract consulted on the Econometric Society’s page. econometricsociety.org/publications/econometrica/1979/03/01/…
  26. Thaler, R. H. & Sunstein, C. R. (2008). Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. The definition of a nudge (p. 6) was confirmed from the Behavioral Economics Guide’s encyclopedia entry; the book itself was not consulted. behavioraleconomics.com/resources/mini-encyclopedia-of-be/nu…
  27. Johnson, E. J. & Goldstein, D. G. (2004). Defaults and donation decisions. Transplantation, 78(12), 1713–1716. doi.org/10.1097/01.tp.0000149788.10382.b2
  28. Robinson, P. J. & Faris, C. W., with Wind, Y. (1967). Industrial Buying and Creative Marketing. Boston: Allyn & Bacon, for the Marketing Science Institute. Catalogue record consulted; the book was not. catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001321445
  29. Webster, F. E., Jr. & Wind, Y. (1972). A general model for understanding organizational buying behavior. Journal of Marketing, 36(2), 12–19. Abstract consulted; the five roles as summarised in The Open University’s OpenLearn course Understanding your customers, section 3.4. doi.org/10.1177/002224297203600204
  30. Bonoma, T. V. (1982). Major sales: who really does the buying? Harvard Business Review, May–June 1982; reprinted as an HBR Classic (product R0607P), whose description was consulted. store.hbr.org/product/major-sales-who-really-does-the-buying…
  31. Federal Acquisition Regulation, section 2.101 (definitions of the micro-purchase and simplified acquisition thresholds) and part 13, sections 13.003(c)(2) (no splitting of requirements), 13.104 (promoting competition) and 13.203 (micro-purchases), FAC 2026-01, effective 13 March 2026. Acquisition.gov. acquisition.gov/far/part-13
  32. Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman. “Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council inflation thresholds”: the micro-purchase threshold rose from $10,000 to $15,000 and the simplified acquisition threshold from $250,000 to $350,000 on 1 October 2025. pillsburylaw.com/en/news-and-insights/federal-acquisition-re…
  33. Bright, D. S., Cortes, A. H. et al. (2019). Principles of Management, sections 8.2, “Using SWOT for Strategic Analysis”, and 8.3, “A Firm’s External Macro Environment: PESTEL”. OpenStax. openstax.org/books/principles-management/pages/8-3-a-firms-e…
  34. Hill, T. & Westbrook, R. (1997). SWOT analysis: it’s time for a product recall. Long Range Planning, 30(1), 46–52. The full text was not consulted; the findings are taken from the article’s abstract. doi.org/10.1016/S0024-6301(96)00095-7
  35. Weihrich, H. (1982). The TOWS matrix: a tool for situational analysis. Long Range Planning, 15(2), 54–66. Publication details confirmed from the Crossref record. doi.org/10.1016/0024-6301(82)90120-0
  36. Porter, M. E. (1980). Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors. New York: Free Press. The book was not consulted; its three generic strategies and “stuck in the middle” were confirmed from the abstract on SSRN. papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1496175
  37. Porter, M. E. (1985). Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance. New York: Free Press. The book was not consulted; the cost-focus and differentiation-focus variants (chapter 1, pp. 11–15) were confirmed from University of Cambridge, Institute for Manufacturing, “Porter’s Generic Competitive Strategies”. ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/research/dstools/porters-generic-competiti…
  38. Barney, J. (1991). Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage. Journal of Management, 17(1), 99–120. Also Barney, J. B. (1995). Looking inside for competitive advantage. Academy of Management Executive, 9(4), 49–61, doi:10.5465/ame.1995.9512032192. Both confirmed from their Crossref records (with the 1991 abstract); the full texts were not consulted. doi.org/10.1177/014920639101700108
  39. Hill, C. W. L. (1988). Differentiation versus low cost or differentiation and low cost: a contingency framework. Academy of Management Review, 13(3), 401–412. Citation confirmed from the Crossref record and the author’s CV; the full text was not consulted. doi.org/10.2307/258088
  40. Brandenburger, A. M. & Stuart, H. W. (1996). Value-based business strategy. Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, 5(1), 5–24. doi.org/10.1111/j.1430-9134.1996.00005.x