marketplace live

MARKETPLACE LIVE INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING SIMULATIONS

STUDENT GUIDELINES

The Introduction to Marketing simulation by Marketplace Live is designed to introduce you to a broad range of topics covered in the Principles of Marketing course. It is a simulation game in which you will compete against the computer to research, design, and promote a new product for a particular segment of the market. The points you earn on the assignment are based on your overall performance in the simulation.

UNDERSTAND SIMULATIONS

Simulations are unlike exams and do not have right or wrong answers. Things unfold over time based on the decisions you make. Most professions and trades have practice as part of mastering them; e.g., photography, medicine, cooking, etc. The same is true for business and marketing. Simulations are a higher and complementary form of learning and evaluations, and serve a very important role. So, as frustrating as it may be for those of you not familiar with simulations, take heart in the fact that everyone is in the same boat, and you are getting a good learning experience using “hands-on, real world” learning. In the Marketplace simulation, you are given control of a simulated business and must manage its operations through several decision cycles.

Play the Game:

Follow the instructions once you have signed in to compete against the computer. The game is played as a series of 6 quarters. The decisions you make for quarter 2 are not considered for your final evaluation, so you can treat this for practice.

Technical Questions or Web Help:

If you need any assistance on the Web issues, please contact their technical support. The support team is available 8AM to 9PM on Monday through Friday; and 10AM through 7PM on Saturday and Sunday. All times specified are Eastern Standard Time (3 hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time).

Support email: [email protected] | Phone: 865.522.1946

Additional Notes

1. This is your exercise. You will submit individual decisions, and you will be evaluated on your decisions, so I cannot provide you any help on how to do well (besides the tips listed below). This is commonly misunderstood. I am not being unhelpful. It’s just that your performance depends on the quality of your decisions, even though there are no right or wrong answers. That said, you are welcome to discuss this with others in the class, because such discussions help improve your understanding.

2. You will need about 30 minutes (and should not need more than one hour) for each quarter and there are six quarters. Plan accordingly.

3. You can submit your decisions for any quarter till any time before the deadline, but you will not be able to see the results till after the deadline. In the interim, you will be able to change your decisions.

4. Better performance will earn you a better grade, but you can get a passing grade just for completing the simulation in a proper manner.

5. One more time: I will not be providing individual assistance, beyond what is listed in this document, so follow this very carefully; but you are free to talk to your classmates for any questions or discussions.

Tips on Doing Well in the Simulation

1. Read all instructions carefully and stick to the deadlines.

2. Watch http://www.marketplace-simulation.com/introduction-to-marketing-demo for an introduction to the game. Once you understand what you need to do, you should apply what you have learned in the course.

3. Pay close attention to the information given, the decisions you make, and how the market and the competitors respond.

4. You should benchmark yourself and competitors.

5. Decisions need to make sense. Pay attention to product, pricing, distribution and promotion – they all need to work together.

6. Aggressiveness may be good, but be reasonable and don’t go overboard in your decisions, which means don’t try to “game” the system, use outlandish pricing, or unreasonable investment.

7. Pay special attention to success of advertising campaign; e.g., just because demographics favor a media outlet doesn’t necessarily mean the expense is worth it; it just maybe an (unjustifiable) expensive proposition. Also, don’t try deceptive advertising.

8. In the first quarter, you will figure out your strategy.

9. In the second quarter, you will be hiring sales people and getting ready to enter the market

10. You will only start seeing results in the third quarter.

11. As a crude rule of thumb, you should be spending 30 minutes to one hour for each quarter.

12. One final note. Each of you is playing against simulated competitors (computer), not against each other; so a second rank in the game does not mean you are second in the class.

13. Watch below link to an excellent student-created 6 minute video on the simulation and tips for success

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYoG5Mya1o0&feature=youtu.be