marketing knowledge to analyze marketing problems. Your analysis must use well-established marketing knowledge and theory glued together with logic and common sense a Before tackling the full case, familiarize yourself with it. Depending on the length of the case, this may require more or less time but probably not more than several minutes. Quickly skim the material to develop a general sense of the structure, the people involved the kind of organization under study, and similar general information Return to the beginning and start reading the case carefully, underlining what light be important information, and making marginal notes as selective in what you underline for its purpose is to attract attention to key ideas. Also important is to make connections among ideas both mentally and visually. So, draw a connecting line if some ideas are related. You may even consider writing on the connecting line the essence of the relationship as you see a Try to understand who is trying to make what decision with what kind of constraints. "Who"may refer to an individual or an organization such as a Separate the symptom from the problem. Do not accept what the case presents without critically evaluating the information. If the case says, "our promotion has not created the desired result"do not immediately assume that the core decision area is"promotion. ""Promotion not working " may very well be a symptom of another or a deeper problem Determine the strategic area where a decision is necessary. Your knowledge of the subject matter will be your first line of defense of attack. Although there are no"best " solutions to cases, you must firmly seat all"plausible "solutions in a body of supporting knowledge of marketing. What makes one case analysis better than another is not the answer "or the decision but the quality of analysis-synthesis and the support given for it. a Use appropriate tools of analysis. If the case offers relevant financial data, use financial analysis tools like financial state like. When dealing with behavioral information, you will tap into your knowledge of consumer behavior and theories explaining behavior, and although common sense is a desirable trait Remember that the purpose gg Do not assume that you can simply studying a case is to help you learn the subject, marketing "Arm-waving"with ommon sense will result in, well; arm waving which is not the same as sound a When writing the result of your analysis do not simply rehash the information in the case. Do not include sections from the case to retell the story. Present your analysis and use the material from the case as evidence when necessary tell the reader what that information means, what needs to be done, and why. Focus your attention on the result of your analysis of the case rather than the material that you used. At times, you will find it necessary to point to a particular piece of information or data in the case. In such circumstances refer to the information rectly and be brief. Your written case report must convey your thoughts clearly. Do not leave points pen for interpretation the reader of your report may not interpret them the way you want and expect Clearly articulate your thoughts using proper marketing and business terminology and clear English Remember that there is no"correct answer"to a case. The reason for studying them is to remove the illusion that there may be a singularly correct answer to questions faced by marketers. In learning with cases, the road traveled is more important than the destination Pay attention to the"road"since you will travel that many more times. Reflect on what you have done, observe what you have learned, and understand why This is precisely the reason you study a case A. Cemal Ekin. ph. D Home Department of Marketing ce co ce,R02918 401-865-2660 Requirements AssignmentsHome Site map Description Readings Policies Requirements Assignments marketing knowledge to analyze marketing problems. Your analysis must use well-established marketing knowledge and theory glued together with logic and common sense. Before tackling the full case, familiarize yourself with it. Depending on the length of the case, this may require more or less time but probably not more than several minutes. Quickly skim the material to develop a general sense of the structure, the people involved, the kind of organization under study, and similar general information. Return to the beginning and start reading the case carefully, underlining what might be important information, and making marginal notes as necessary. Be selective in what you underline for its purpose is to attract attention to key ideas. Also important is to make connections among ideas both mentally and visually. So, draw a connecting line if some ideas are related. You may even consider writing on the connecting line the essence of the relationship as you see it. Try to understand who is trying to make what decision with what kind of constraints. “Who” may refer to an individual or an organization such as a company. Separate the symptom from the problem. Do not accept what the case presents without critically evaluating the information. If the case says, “our promotion has not created the desired result” do not immediately assume that the core decision area is “promotion.” “Promotion not working” may very well be a symptom of another or a deeper problem. Determine the strategic area where a decision is necessary. Your knowledge of the subject matter will be your first line of defense of attack. Although there are no “best” solutions to cases, you must firmly seat all “plausible” solutions in a body of supporting knowledge of marketing. What makes one case analysis better than another is not the “answer” or the decision but the quality of analysis-synthesis and the support given for it. Use appropriate tools of analysis. If the case offers relevant financial data, use financial analysis tools like financial statement analysis, financial ratios, and the like. When dealing with behavioral information, you will tap into your knowledge of consumer behavior and theories explaining behavior, and so on. Do not assume that you can simply use common sense for analyzing information although common sense is a desirable trait. Remember that the purpose of studying a case is to help you learn the subject, marketing. “Arm-waving” with common sense will result in, well; arm waving which is not the same as sound analysis. When writing the result of your analysis, do not simply rehash the information in the case. Do not include sections from the case to retell the story. Present your analysis and use the material from the case as evidence when necessary. Tell the reader what that information means, what needs to be done, and why. Focus your attention on the result of your analysis of the case rather than the material that you used. At times, you will find it necessary to point to a particular piece of information or data in the case. In such circumstances, refer to the information directly and be brief. Your written case report must convey your thoughts clearly. Do not leave points open for interpretation. The reader of your report may not interpret them the way you want and expect. Clearly articulate your thoughts using proper marketing and business terminology and clear English. Remember that there is no “correct answer” to a case. The reason for studying them is to remove the illusion that there may be a singularly correct answer to questions faced by marketers. In learning with cases, the road traveled is more important than the destination. Pay attention to the “road” since you will travel that many more times. Reflect on what you have done, observe what you have learned, and understand why. This is precisely the reason you study a case. A. Cemal Ekin, Ph.D. Department of Marketing Providence College Providence, RI 02918 ekin@providence.edu 401-865-2660