Tourism Marketing (5 cr)

Objectives (course unit)

Tourism marketing course focuses on customer-oriented marketing of tourism products and services. The aim is to learn skills needed for planning and implementing tourism marketing and for using a multitude of integrated marketing mix tools for various target groups, business environments and situations.

After completing the course, students will be able to:

• Understand the special features and tools of marketing tourism products and services.
• Analyze factors influencing tourism marketing and be familiar with planning, implementing and monitoring marketing in the field of tourism.
• Apply tourism marketing strategies, planning principles and integrated marketing mix tools for various target markets, business environments and situations.

Content (course unit)

• What are customer needs and requirements for tourism products and services in consumer and business-to-business markets?
• What are the special features, elements, tools and processes of tourism marketing?
• What do the decisions of integrated tourism marketing mix and branding include, how is the value chain created and how is planning and implementation of tourism marketing done?
• What kind of media and technological solutions exist for interactive marketing of tourism products and services and what online business possibilities offer for tourism marketing?
• How to draw up a marketing plan for diverse tourism businesses?

Prerequisites (course unit)

-

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1-2) (course unit)

The student is able to define the basic concepts and specific features of tourism marketing. The student can explain the strategic marketing planning, implementing and monitoring process in tourism marketing. He/she participates in the given marketing task taking responsibility for his/her own performance.

Assessment criteria, good (3-4) (course unit)

The student is able to apply marketing planning process for making a marketing plan for a tourist business. The student is able to work responsibly and engage in a group work contributing to the success.

Assessment criteria, excellent (5) (course unit)

The student masters the concepts and principles of tourism marketing and their relationships. The student is able to develop a fluent and well reasoned marketing plan and has good capabilities to apply the learning in the tourism context with different types of products and services. The individual contribution in the class and team have been especially active, responsible and constructive.

Location and time

The course starts on September 7 at 2:15 pm (if possible classroom B5-28). The students will get an invitation e-mail before the course-start announcing the classroom or the virtual meeting link. Teaching will be offered both online and on campus according to a program announced later.
Weekly classes on Tuesdays (6 consequent weeks); participation is mandatory.

Exam schedules

No exam. Evaluation is based mainly on the teamwork assessed by the team members and the teacher. Hence, upgrading is difficult and must be agreed individually with the teachers.

Assessment scale

0-5

Teaching methods

Contact sessions, assignments, marketing plan, presentations, individual and team work.

Learning materials

Kotler, P., Bowen, J.T., Makens, J.C. & Balogu, S. 2017. Marketing for Hospitality and Tourism, 7th edition. Harlow UK: Pearson.
https://andor.tuni.fi/permalink/358FIN_TAMPO/1j3mh4m/alma9911230879105973

Middleton, V., Fyal, A & Morgan, M.2010. Marketing in Tourism and Travel,4th edition, Routledge.
https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/tampere/reader.action?docID=534866

Wood, M.B. 2014. The Marketing Plan Handbook. 5th Edition. Harlow, UK: Pearson.
Other materials will be given in Moodle.

Student workload

The course is worth 5 credits, which means 135 hours of student work. About 18 hours will be contact teaching/learning and the rest individual and teamwork consisting of self studies, assignments and creating a marketing plan.

Content scheduling

1) Course start, basics of Tourism Marketing
2) Strategic marketing planning
3) Tactical marketing (action) plans
4) Marketing Commmunication
5) Accessibility and IMC
6) Team presentations to case companies

The contents are subject to changes.

Completion alternatives

None

Practical training and working life cooperation

The team assignment, marketing plan, will be done to a Case Company.

Further information

The course is based on the flipped classroom method where you study the given material in advance. In the class the topic of the day will be discussed and the student teams will have coaching on their team assignment.

The course assignment will be done as a teamwork in 4-5- member international student teams. Students need to decide in advance whether they wish to work in a virtual team or meet on campus. This choice cannot be changed afterwards unless the pandemic requlations require remote studies.