MNM4805/101/0/2022

Tutorial Letter 101/0/2022

Strategic Marketing Practice

MNM4805

Year modules
Department of Marketing and Retail
Management

This tutorial letter contains important information about your module.

BARCODE
CONTENTS
Page

1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 3
2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES ...................................................................................................... 3
2.1 Purpose ........................................................................................................................................ 3
2.2 Outcomes ..................................................................................................................................... 4
3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION ........................................................................................... 4
4 LECTURER(S) AND CONTACT DETAILS................................................................................... 5
4.1 Lecturer(s) .................................................................................................................................... 5
4.2 Lecturer availability ....................................................................................................................... 5
4.3 University ...................................................................................................................................... 5
5 RESOURCES ............................................................................................................................... 6
5.1 Prescribed book(s) ........................................................................................................................ 6
5.2 Electronic reserves (e-reserves) ................................................................................................... 6
6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES ................................................................................................ 7
7 STUDY PLAN ............................................................................................................................... 8
8 ASSESSMENT ............................................................................................................................. 9
8.1 General remarks ........................................................................................................................... 9
8.2 Assessment plan .......................................................................................................................... 9
8.3 Assignment due dates .................................................................................................................. 9
8.4 Submission of assignments ........................................................................................................ 10
8.5 The assignment .......................................................................................................................... 10
8.6 Feedback on assignments .......................................................................................................... 10
8.7 Final mark ................................................................................................................................... 10
9 ACADEMIC DISHONENESTY.................................................................................................... 11
9.1 Plagiarism ................................................................................................................................... 11
9.2 Cheating ..................................................................................................................................... 11
9.3 More information about plagiarism can be downloaded on the link below ................................... 12
10 STUDENT WITH DISABILITY .................................................................................................... 12
11 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ........................................................................................ 12
12 IN CLOSING ............................................................................................................................... 12

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 MNM4805/101/3/2022

Dear Student

1 INTRODUCTION
Dear Student

It is a great pleasure to welcome you to the BCom Honours in Marketing Management and,
more specifically, to the Strategic Marketing Practice module.

PLEASE NOTE!

This tutorial letter should be read in conjunction with the Study @ Unisa brochure. As the
honours subjects are offered online, it is absolutely essential that you register for and use
myUnisa (see Study @ Unisa for details), as well as register for your myLife e-mail address.
This will give you direct access to important information, t h a t enables you to receive
communication from Unisa and allow you to perform tasks such as updating your personal
information, submitting assignments, confirming receipt of assignments, obtaining assignment
marks, obtaining examination timetables and results, joining online discussion forums and
many more academic activities.

You will receive a number of tutorial letters during the year. You have to read all of them. A
tutorial letter is our way of communicating with you about teaching, learning and assessment.
Tutorial Letter 101 (this tutorial letter) contains important information about the scheme of
work, resources and assignments for this subject. We urge you to read it carefully and to
keep it at hand when working through the study material, preparing the assignments,
preparing for the examination and addressing questions to your lecturers/markers.

2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES

2.1 Purpose

The aim of this module is to enable students to gain a better understanding of various
concepts and steps involved in planning and executing a strategic marketing plan and to
develop a comprehensive marketing strategy for an identified product/service.

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2.2 Outcomes

After studying this module, you should be able to do the following:

• Write an executive summary for a marketing plan that you have developed.
• Analyse the marketing situation of your chosen organisation.
• Develop marketing objectives for your proposed marketing plan.
• Develop appropriate market and marketing strategies for an
identified product/service that take the organisation's current position into
account.
• Develop action plans that will implement the market and marketing strategies
that have been developed.
• Develop the necessary budgets and control plans for the marketing plan that is
being developed.
• Apply strategic marketing theory in a practical way.
• Undertake appropriate secondary research in support of a strategic marketing plan.
• Present the marketing plan in a compelling and convincing written report.

3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION
Unisa has implemented a transformation charter based on five pillars and eight dimensions. In
response to this charter, we have placed curriculum transformation high on the teaching and
learning agenda. Curriculum transformation includes the following pillars: student-centred
scholarship, the pedagogical renewal of teaching and assessment practices, the scholarship of
teaching and learning, and the infusion of African epistemologies and philosophies. These
pillars and their principles will be integrated at both programme and module levels as a phased-
in approach. You will notice a marked change in the teaching and learning strategy
implemented by Unisa, together with how the content is conceptualised in your modules. We
encourage you to embrace these changes during your studies at Unisa in a responsive way
within the framework of transformation.

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4 LECTURER(S) AND CONTACT DETAILS

4.1 Lecturer(s)

My name is Mr Brian Soke and I am the lecturer for this module. My contact details are as
follows:

Address: Simon Radipere Building, Office 5-54

Tel: 012 429 3578
Fax: 012 429 3759
E-mail: bsoke@unisa.ac.za

Alternative e-mail: marketing@unisa.ac.za

4.2 Lecturer availability

The lecturer for this module will be available to take phone calls and address email queries on
academic matters. Due to COVID-19 the lecturer’s availability on campus is restricted and
students should arrange with the lecturer before visiting the campus to avoid disappointment.
Online meetings are preferred. The days and times of lecturer’s availability will be
communicated in the module page on myUnisa. These days and times are subject to change
from time to time in order to accommodate the lecturer’s work schedule and other commitments.

Please note that lecturers should only be contacted for academic enquiries, that is, enquires
about the content of the module. If you want to enquire about your student account or whether
or not we have received your assignment, please refer to section 4.3 below. Letters to
lecturers may NOT be enclosed with assignments.

4.3 University

Administrative enquiries concerning fees, receipt of assignments, examination dates etc. should
be directed to the relevant administrative departments as indicated below.

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Communication with the administrative departments of the University

If you need to contact the University about matters not related to the content of this subject,
please consult the booklet Study @ Unisa that you received with your study material. This
booklet contains information on how to contact the University (for example, to whom you can
write for different queries, important telephone and fax numbers, addresses and details of the
times certain facilities are open). Always have your student number at hand when you contact
the University. Please note that all administrative enquiries should be directed to the following:

Student admissions and registrations Study-info@unisa.ac.za

Student assessment administration for assignments Assign@unisa.ac.za
Student assessment administration for examination Exam@unisa.ac.za / examadmission@unisa.ac.za
Despatch: Study material despatch@unisa.ac.za
Finance finan@unisa.ac.za
ICT (myUnisa & myLIfe) MyUnisaHelp@unisa.ac.za
MyLifeHelp@unisa.ac.za

Also study Tutorial letter 301 MRMALL8/2022 for further contact information.

5 RESOURCES
5.1 Prescribed book(s)

There are no prescribed books for MNM4805; however, the basic outline of the topics
that are important to this course can be found in the following books:

Wiid, JA, Cant, MC & Makhitha, KM. 2016. Strategic Marketing. 2nd Edition. Juta

Jooste, CJ, Strydom, JW, Du Plessis, F & Berndt, A. 2012. Applied strategic marketing.
4th edition. Sandown: Heinemann.

Although you are not required to purchase these books, I do advise that you try to get hold
of them, as it will be of great help to you in your studies for this course.

In case you would like to do some supplementary reading, you will find ample books
referring to marketing strategy in the Unisa library.

5.2 Electronic reserves (e-reserves)

E-reserves can be downloaded from the Library catalogue. More information is available at
https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/request

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5.3 Library services and resources

The Unisa Library offers a range of information services and resources:

• For brief information, go to https://www.unisa.ac.za/library/libatglance

• For more detailed Library information, go to
http://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library
• For research support and services (eg Personal Librarians and literature search
services), go to http://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library/Library-
services/Research-support

The Library has created numerous Library guides: http://libguides.unisa.ac.za

Recommended guides:

• Request and find library material/download recommended material:

http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/request
• Postgraduate information services: http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/postgrad
• Finding and using library resources and tools:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/Research_skills
• Frequently asked questions about the library:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/ask
• Services to students living with disabilities:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/disability

Important contact information:

• Ask a Librarian: https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/ask
• Technical problems accessing library online services: Lib-help@unisa.ac.za
• General library related queries: Library-enquiries@unisa.ac.za
• For queries related to library fines and payments: Library-fines@unisa.ac.za

6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES

The Study @ Unisa website is available on myUnisa: www.unisa.ac.za/brochures/studies

The website has all the tips and information you need to succeed at Unisa.

• Predatory providers of classes and examination support

Please be aware of the existence of multiple fraudulent and predatory providers of classes and
examination guidance to Unisa students. Please note that Unisa does not have agreements
with any of these agencies/schools/colleges to provide tuition or support to our students. Unisa
does not provide these predators with study material, guidelines or your contact information.

These providers may not have the necessary expertise to assist you and often charge
exorbitant fees. If you receive an invitation from any agency or college, it is best to confirm with
your lecturer if the provider is a legitimate Unisa partner.
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More information on this is available on the Unisa website.

• First-Year Experience Programme @ Unisa

For many students, the transition from school education to tertiary education is beset with
anxiety. This is also true for first-time students to Unisa – many of our students join Unisa in
their second or third year of study. Unisa is a dedicated open distance and e-learning institution.
Unlike face-to-face/contact institutions, Unisa is somewhat different. It is a mega university, and
all our programmes are offered through a blended learning mode or fully online learning mode.
It is for this reason that we thought it necessary to offer first-time students additional/extended
support so that you can seamlessly navigate the Unisa teaching and learning journey with little
difficulty and few barriers. In this regard we offer a specialised student support programme to
students entering Unisa for the first time. We refer to this programme as Unisa’s First-Year
Experience (FYE) Programme. The FYE is designed to provide you with prompt and helpful
information about services that the institution offers and how you can access information. The
following FYE programmes are currently offered:
· FYE website: All the guides and resources you need to navigate through your first year at
Unisa can be accessed using the following link: www.unisa.ac.za/FYE
· FYE e-mails: You will receive regular e-mails to help you stay focused and motivated.
· FYE broadcasts: You will receive e-mails with links to broadcasts on various topics related to
your first-year studies (eg videos on how to submit assignments online).
· FYE mailbox: For assistance with queries related to your first year of study, send an e-mail to
fye@unisa.ac.za

7 STUDY PLAN
The myUnisa website has been developed to supplement and enhance academic interaction
and improve communication between yourself and Unisa. At Unisa we believe that part of the
learning process is to be part of the learning community where you can test your thinking
and growth with peers. Thus, you are given the opportunity to engage with classmates and
lecturers through the online discussion forums and e-mail.

You will have to spend at least 360 hours on this module, spread over approximately 45
weeks of study, in other words about eight hours per week. To facilitate your learning process,
we will provide you with a learning programme that offers a framework by means of which you
should approach your studies. This programme allocates sufficient time to work through each
assignment systematically, do your assignments and prepare the research proposal.

There are two assignments (all compulsory – contributing 15% each to the year mark
and the total contribution for both assignments is 30%) plus the final strategic marketing
plan (or the summative Assignment 03 which is a portfolio exam and contributes 70%).

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Assignments will be available on myUnisa in the form of tutorial letters, that is, Tutorial
Letters 102 (Assignment 01, 02 and 03).

8 ASSESSMENT
8.1 General remarks

There will be a number of assignments for this module all contributing towards your final mark.
Please refer to section 7 for the breakdown of assignments contribution to the final mark. All
assignments are online assignments which you will complete on myUnisa. Pay attention to the
assessment criteria for each assignment as these criteria will help you to understand what is
required of you.

8.2 Assessment plan

• To complete this module, you will be required to submit three assignments.

• All information on when and where to submit your assignments will be made available to
you via the myUnisa site for your module.

• Due dates for assignments, as well as the actual assignments are available on the
myUnisa site for this module.

• To gain admission to the examination, you will be required to submit two assignment/s.

• Your assignments will comprise a combination of assignments 01, 02 and 03.

• You need to obtain a year mark average of 40% for the assignment/s to gain admission
to the examination.

• The examination will be a portfolio exam (assignment 03) which combines assignment
01 and 02.

• The examination will count 70% towards the final module mark.
8.3 Assignment due dates

• There are no assignment due dates included in this tutorial letter.

• Assignment due dates will be made available to you on the landing page of myUnisa for
this module. We envisage that the due dates will be available to you upon registration.

• Please start working on your assignments as soon as you register for the module.

• Log on to the myUnisa site for this module to obtain more information on the due dates
for the submission of the assignments

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8.4 Submission of assignments

• Modules offered by Unisa are either blended (meaning that we use a combination of printed
and online material to engage with you) or online (all information is available via the
internet). In all cases of online engagement, we use myUnisa as our virtual campus.

• From 2022, the myUnisa virtual campus will be offered via a new learning management
system. This is an online system that is used to administer, document and deliver
educational material to you and support engagement with you.

• Look out for information from your lecturer as well as other Unisa platforms to determine how
to access the virtual myUnisa module site.

• Information on the tools that will be available to engage with the lecturer and fellow students
to support your learning will also be communicated via various platforms.

• The University undertakes to communicate as clearly and as frequently as is necessary to

ensure optimum advantage in the use of the new learning management system.

• Additional information on the use of the myUnisa site for the module, as well as features to
engage and communicate with your lecturer and other students will also be made available
via the online site for the module.

• Therefore, log on to the myUnisa site for your module to gain more information on where to
complete and/or upload your assignments and how to communicate with your lecturer.

8.5 The assignment

As indicated in section 8.2, you need to complete three assignments for this module. Details on
the assignments are as follows:

Number Weight Type of assessment

1 50 Written
2 50 Written
3 100 Written

8.6 Feedback on assignments

The assignments and the feedback on the assignments are an important part of your learning
and should help you to be better prepared for the next assignment. You will receive detailed
feedback on each of your assignment submissions via the myUnisa module page.

8.7 Final mark

Your year mark, based on the mark obtained for the two compulsory assignments,
contributes 30% towards your final mark, while your examination mark contributes 70%. The
combined weighted average of your year mark and examination mark must be 50% or higher
for you to pass the module. However, you must obtain a minimum of 40% in the examination,
regardless of your year mark. If you obtain less than 40% in the Portfolio, your year mark

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will not be taken into account and you will fail the module. Here is an example of how the year
mark and final mark are calculated:

Example:
Assignment mark 01 = 60% mark received and
Assignment mark 02 = 80% mark received
Average mark = 70% (60% + 80% / 2)
The first assignment contributes 15% and the second assignment 15% to make the total year
mark contribution to the final mark 30%.
30% of the assignment mark = 21%

Examination (Portfolio) mark = 50%

70% of the examination mark = 35%

Final mark = (30% assignment mark or year mark) + (70% examination mark)
= 21% + 35%
= 56%
You will need a final mark of at least 40% to qualify for a supplementary examination. Refer
to Tutorial Letter 301 MRMALL8/2022 for more information.

9 ACADEMIC DISHONENESTY
9.1 Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the act of taking the words, ideas and thoughts of others and presenting them as
your own. It is a form of theft which involves several dishonest academic activities, such as the
following:

• Cutting and pasting from any source without acknowledging the source.
• Not including or using incorrect references.
• Paraphrasing without acknowledging the original source of the information.

9.2 Cheating
Cheating includes, but is not limited to, the following:

• Completing assessments on behalf of another student, copying from another student

during an assessment or allowing a student to copy from you.
• Using social media (eg WhatsApp, Telegram) or other platforms to disseminate
assessment information.
Submitting corrupt or irrelevant files.
• Buying completed answers from “tutors” or internet sites (contract cheating).

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 9.3 More information about plagiarism can be downloaded on the link below
https://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/myunisa/default/Study-@-Unisa/Student-values-and-rules

10 STUDENT WITH DISABILITY

The Advocacy and Resource Centre for Student with Disability ARCSWiD) provides an
opportunity for staff to interact with new and returning students with disabilities.

• If you are a student with a disability and would like additional support or need additional
time for assessments, you are invited to contact (Brian Soke and bsoke@unisa.ac.za) so
that you can be assisted.

11 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The Study @ Unisa booklet contains an A-Z guide of the most relevant study information.

12 IN CLOSING
Do not hesitate to contact us if you are experiencing problems with the content of this tutorial
letter or with any academic aspect of the module.

We wish you a fascinating and satisfying journey through the learning material and trust that
you will complete the module successfully.

Enjoy the journey!

Mr Brian Soke
DEPARTMENT OF MARKETING AND RETAIL MANAGEMENT

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