Product and Price: The Global Marketing Mix

Brand and product decisions, pricing decisions, and global marketing channels and

COMPANION TO THE WEEK 4 DISCUSSION AND ASSIGNMENT GUIDES | PREPARED AS A SELF-CONTAINED STUDY

Resource

Week 4 of BUS 622 is titled “Product and Price.” It moves the course from the market-analysis work of Week 3 into the design of the marketing mix itself — the decisions a firm makes about what it sells and at what price. The week covers three chapters of Green and Keegan: brand and product decisions in global marketing (Chapter 10), pricing decisions (Chapter 11), and global marketing channels and physical distribution (Chapter 12). The Week 4 introduction frames the span plainly: you will learn more about the global marketing mix, brand and product decisions, pricing decisions, global marketing channels, and physical distribution, and you will continue developing the Walmart Case Study that began in BUS621. Three graded deliverables sit inside the week. Two are discussion forums due in their first-post form on Day 3; the third is a formal written assignment due on Day 7. The table below is the map — each row points to the dedicated guide that takes that deliverable apart in full.

Discussion Forum 2 Initial post Day 3 (Thursday); Pricing Strategies 3 pts replies by Day 7 (Monday). See the Week 4 Discussion 2 guide. Written assignment Due Day 7 (Monday) by 11:59 p.m.; Walmart Case Study 7 pts submitted through Waypoint. See the Week 4 Assignment guide.

distribution. Together they cover product, price, and place; promotion is the focus of a later week. Reading all three chapters before starting any one deliverable is the efficient path, because the chapters reinforce one another.

The Week 4 Overview page lists three Weekly Learning Outcomes (WLOs). They are reproduced here verbatim, each followed by a note on what it actually requires and which deliverable it is tied to. WLO 1 — Discuss brands and product decisions at the global level This outcome is the Chapter 10 outcome and the anchor of Discussion Forum 1. “Discuss” here means more than describe: you must be able to explain the core branding vocabulary — brand image, brand equity, brand extension, co-branding, the global brand — and apply it to a real firm. The Product Branding discussion tests this outcome directly by asking you to analyze Red Bull and Disney. WLO 2 — Explain various price strategies in global marketing This is the Chapter 11 outcome and the anchor of Discussion Forum 2. It asks you to know the standard global pricing strategies — market skimming, penetration pricing, and market holding — along with the forces that drive price (costs, competition, and customer-perceived value) and the export-pricing concepts such as Incoterms. The Pricing Strategies discussion tests it by asking you to compare how two firms price across two countries. WLO 3 — Analyze global marketing channels and distribution systems This is the Chapter 12 outcome and the anchor of the Walmart Case Study. “Analyze” is the most demanding verb of the three: you must be able to break a distribution system into its parts — channel structure, the utilities a channel creates, physical distribution and logistics — and reason about how those parts create competitive advantage. The Walmart Case Study tests it by asking you to analyze the utilities Walmart creates in a chosen country.

compare, and judge — not merely describe Walmart’s channels.

The Week 4 Resources page lists the course text and the supporting readings. The text is the same throughout the course: Green, M. C., and Keegan, W. J. (2020), Global marketing (10th ed.), Pearson, available in full text through the VitalSource platform. Textbook Chapters

Pricing Decisions — basic pricing concepts plus the different pricing strategies and Chapter 11 objectives that influence pricing in global markets. Supports the Pricing Strategies discussion forum. Global Marketing Channels and Physical Distribution — the basic structure options for Chapter 12 consumer channels and industrial channels. Supports the Walmart Case Study assignment. Article (Required-Reading List) Stevens, C. (2022, October 25). The billionaire who hooked the world on energy drinks. Daily Mail, 13. The full-text version is available through the EBSCOHost database in the UAGC Library; students with accessibility needs should use the HTML full-text version. This article supports the Product Branding discussion forum — it covers the rise of Red Bull and its founder. Recommended Resources Several recommended items support the Walmart Case Study and need not be read for the discussions:

• Acosta, G. (2023). Walmart fires up the flywheel: The retailer doubles down on a new business model for the future. Progressive Grocer, 102(4), 44–51.
• Investopedia. The Walmart effect explained, with pros and cons.
• Korfhage, A., and Borkowski, L. (n.d.). Beyond the Walmart economy. Green America. (The onpage title is “How Walmart Hurts Your Community.”)
• UAGC Staff Member. (2024, October 7). 4 things every marketer must know. UAGC Forward Thinking Blog.
• Walmart. (n.d.). From humble beginnings. To redefining retail. (A history of Walmart.) V ERIFY THE EBSCO CITATIONS The Stevens (2022) Daily Mail article and the Acosta (2023) Progressive Grocer article sit behind the UAGC Library’s EBSCO database. The citations above are transcribed from the Canvas Resources page; before citing either source, open the article in its EBSCO record and confirm the author initial, the exact title, the date, and the volume and page numbers. A citation that is precise is worth more than one that is merely present.

Chapter 10 is about the first element of the marketing mix — the product — and the brand that carries it. Its central argument is that a product is more than its physical attributes: it is a bundle of tangible and intangible elements that together deliver value, and the brand is the intangible promise that frames how a customer perceives that value. Product Concepts A product can be analyzed at several levels — the core benefit it delivers, the actual product that delivers it, and the augmented product (warranties, service, support) that surrounds it. Products are also commonly grouped as local products (offered in a single market), international products (offered in several), and global products (designed to meet the needs of a global market). A key strategic tension across the chapter is standardization versus adaptation: whether to offer the same product worldwide for the economies of scale, or to adapt it to local tastes, regulations, and use conditions. Brand Image and Brand Equity A brand is a name, term, symbol, or design — or a combination of these — that identifies a seller’s product and differentiates it from competitors. Brand image is the set of perceptions and associations a customer holds about a brand: what it stands for, who it is for, how it feels. Brand equity is the value — the financial and strategic asset — that a strong brand represents; it is built from awareness, perceived quality, brand associations, and customer loyalty, and it allows a firm to command price premiums, extend into new categories, and resist competitive pressure. The strongest global brands are durable assets that took years to build. Brand Extension and Co-Branding A brand extension uses an established brand name to launch a product in a new category, borrowing the parent brand’s equity to lower the risk and cost of entry. Co-branding pairs two brands on a single product or experience so that each lends the other its associations and reach. Both strategies leverage existing brand equity; both also risk diluting or damaging the parent brand if the extension or partner is poorly matched. The Product Branding discussion (see Section 7) applies these concepts directly to Disney.

Chapter 11 covers the second element of the marketing mix — price. Price is the only element of the mix that generates revenue rather than cost, and in a global setting it is unusually complex, because the same product can support very different prices in different countries. The Three Forces Behind Every Price A global pricing decision balances three forces. Costs set a floor — manufacturing, distribution, tariffs, and the added costs of selling abroad. Competition shapes the room to maneuver — what rivals charge and how customers compare. Customer-perceived value sets a ceiling — the maximum a customer will pay for the benefit received. The Week 4 introduction states this directly: global marketers must take into consideration costs, competitive factors, and consumer perceptions regarding the value of the product. The Core Global Pricing Strategies

Sets a low price to win market share quickly and discourage competitors; suits Penetration pricing price-sensitive, high-volume markets. Adjusts price to defend an existing market-share position against competitive Market holding moves and currency shifts. The chapter also treats pricing objectives, environmental influences on price (currency fluctuations, inflation, government controls), and pricing problems such as gray-market goods, dumping, and transfer pricing between a firm’s own units. Incoterms — the Terms of an International Sale The Week 4 introduction also flags Incoterms: the standardized international commercial terms that define, in any export transaction, exactly where the seller’s responsibility for cost and risk ends and the buyer’s begins. Incoterms matter to pricing because they determine which costs — freight, insurance, customs — are embedded in the quoted price and which the buyer bears separately.

Chapter 12 covers the third element of the marketing mix — place — and it is the chapter that anchors the Walmart Case Study. A marketing channel is the network of intermediaries that moves a product from producer to final customer; physical distribution is the set of activities — transportation, warehousing, inventory, order processing — that physically delivers it. Channel Structure The chapter distinguishes consumer channels from industrial (business) channels and lays out the basic structure options for each — from a direct producer-to-customer channel to channels with one, two, or more layers of intermediaries (agents, wholesalers, retailers). Channel design balances reach, control, and cost; a longer channel extends reach but cedes control, while a direct channel keeps control but raises the firm’s own cost and complexity. The Four Channel Utilities The chapter’s most testable idea — and the one the Walmart Case Study turns on — is that channels create utility: value for the customer that can become a source of competitive advantage. There are four utilities:

Having the product available when the customer wants it. Time utility Having the product in a form — processed, prepared, assembled — that the Form utility customer wants. Having answers to the customer’s questions and useful two-way communication Information utility available. Physical Distribution and Logistics Physical distribution links channel design to operations: transportation mode choice, warehousing and order processing, inventory management, and the trade-offs among cost, speed, and reliability. For a global retailer, the logistics system is often the real engine of competitive advantage.

and the Waypoint rubric apart.

Each Week 4 deliverable has its own dedicated study guide. This section gives the short version so the week is visible as a whole; the dedicated guides carry the prompts, rubrics, and worked guidance. Discussion Forum 1 — Product Branding (3 points) Tagged to WLO 1 and CLOs 1, 2, and 3, and built on Chapter 10. After reading Chapter 10 and the “billionaire” energy-drink article, the initial post (about 250 words, due Day 3) must do three things: explain brand image and brand equity for Red Bull; explain why Red Bull invests so heavily in extreme sports and high-energy events; and identify at least five Disney brand extensions and co-brandings beyond Disney Parks, with a brief explanation of each. Two peer replies of 100+ words follow by Day 7. See the Week 4 Discussion 1 guide. Discussion Forum 2 — Pricing Strategies (3 points) Tagged to WLO 2 and CLO 2, and built on Chapter 11. After reading Chapter 11, the initial post (about 250 words, due Day 3) asks you to select two similar brands offering at least one line of similar products, select two different countries (preferably one aligned to your Week 2 region and a second country), and compare the pricing strategies each company uses to compete in each country. Two peer replies of 100+ words follow; each reply must suggest a pricing strategy the peer did not consider and cite a credible online article. See the Week 4 Discussion 2 guide. Walmart Case Study (7 points) Tagged to WLO 3 and CLOs 2, 3, and 5, and built on Chapter 12. This is a 4–5 page APA paper, due Day 7 and submitted through Waypoint, that continues the program-spanning Walmart Case Study begun in BUS621. Using the same country chosen in BUS621, the paper summarizes that country’s political, economic, and cultural environment; recommends a market-expansion strategy; analyzes the channel utilities Walmart creates there; identifies the utility that can be a competitive advantage; addresses sustainability; and builds a SWOT analysis for Walmart.com. See the Week 4 Assignment guide.

Study line, not the Global Marketing Plan line.

BUS 622 builds in a deliberate sequence. Weeks 1–3 establish the global environment and how to read a market: the economic, trade, cultural, and political-legal environments; global information systems and research; and segmentation, targeting, positioning, market entry, importing and exporting. Week 4 turns from reading markets to designing the offer — the product, the price, and the channel that reaches the customer. Later weeks add the remaining mix element, promotion and integrated marketing communications, and the management of the global marketing program. Two threads run forward from Week 4. First, the Global Marketing Plan built on a mentor company: Part 1 was the Week 2 environmental analysis and country strategy; Part 2 in Week 6 is the course’s summative paper, where the product, pricing, and channel thinking practiced in Week 4 becomes part of a complete marketing plan. A student who works the Week 4 discussions seriously is rehearsing the analysis the Week 6 paper will require. Second, the Walmart Case Study continues across the MBA program: the work done in this week’s assignment is cumulative, and the same country carries into later courses.

the summative paper, not an isolated set of tasks.

The key terms of Week 4, defined for use. These are the words the discussions and the assignment expect you to deploy precisely.

Term

Brand image it stands for and who it is for. The financial and strategic value a strong brand represents, built from Brand equity awareness, perceived quality, associations, and loyalty. Use of an established brand name to launch a product in a new category, Brand extension leveraging the parent brand’s equity. Pairing two brands on a single product or experience so each lends the other Co-branding its associations and reach. A product designed to meet the needs of a global market, as opposed to a local Global product or international product. The strategic choice between offering the same product worldwide for scale Standardization vs. adaptation economies and adapting it to local conditions. A pricing strategy that sets a high price to capture revenue from the least Market skimming price-sensitive segment first. A pricing strategy that sets a low price to win market share quickly and Penetration pricing discourage competitors. A pricing strategy that adjusts price to defend an existing market-share Market holding position against competitive and currency pressures. Standardized international commercial terms that define where the seller’s cost Incoterms and risk responsibility ends and the buyer’s begins. Genuine branded products diverted from authorized channels and sold, often Gray-market goods across borders, outside the producer’s control. The network of intermediaries that moves a product from producer to final Marketing channel customer. The activities — transportation, warehousing, inventory, order processing — Physical distribution that physically deliver a product. The value created by having a product available where the customer wants it. Place utility The value created by having a product available when the customer wants it. Time utility The value created by having a product in the form — processed, assembled, Form utility prepared — the customer wants. The value created by answering the customer’s questions and enabling useful Information utility two-way communication. Companion to the BUS 622 Week 4 Discussion 1, Discussion 2, and Assignment study guides. Prepared as a selfcontained study resource for Week 4. Verify all dates, point values, and citation details against Canvas and the UAGC Library before submission.