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Introduction to Marketing: How Companies Reach Consumers

Level: Open to students entering grade 9 or 10 in fall 2013.

Session: II, July 16-August 2, 2013

Days & Time: Monday-Friday, 10:00 AM-12:00 PM and 2:00 PM-4:00 PM

Instructor(s): Daniel Petre,

Related Courses: Students interested in this course might also be interested in The Media and Politics and The Stock Market.

"I liked how we could apply the information we learned during the morning lectures to the group projects we did in the afternoon."

- Suzan Idil Demindag, 2012 

Course Description

What is marketing? Is it buying and selling, advertising and promotion, surveys and telemarketing, or looking at how consumers buy? Do you want the same stuff your friends have, do you want to be part of the “in” crowd, and what do your clothes say about you?

Students examine multiple ads and promotional programs, read about how companies try to reach consumers, and discuss consumers’ responses to companies’ programs. They explore how companies advertise and promote their products to the consumer.

The morning session is devoted to lecture and discussion. In the afternoon, students meet in groups to develop their own advertisements and promotions which they present during the final class.

Instructor(s)

Daniel Petre

Daniel Petre is vice president, global account director, at Publicis Worldwide, where he manages P&G’s Vicks, the world’s largest over-the-counter brand. Over the past decade he has worked with leading firms such as Procter & Gamble, Pfizer, Reebok, UBS, and BMW. He is particularly interested in advertising that is persuasive through the use of emotion, as well as the topics of consumer decision-making, attitude-behavior relationship, and other areas in cognitive sciences.

Beyond his time at the agency, Petre acts as a communications consultant for the New York based non-profit Project Achieve, working to recruit and conduct clinical trials for an HIV vaccine. He also sits on New York Blood Center’s Generational Leadership Council and serves on the Product Advisory Council for Cannon Partners, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm developing innovation new technologies in advertising research.

Petre earned his B.S. in marketing from Plymouth State University and his M.S. in strategic communications from Columbia University.

Specific course information, such as hours and instructors, are subject to change at the discretion of the University.