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Unit of study_

MKTG3121: Advertising: Creative Principles

Semester 1, 2020 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Most companies use advertising to introduce themselves, their products and services to existing and potential customers. Advertising is their public face and together with integrated marketing communications and public relations is one of the three pillars of commercial communication. This subject explores the creative material that is developed and produced to contact, inform, educate and influence consumer decisions. Advertising is the point where communication theory is put into practice. Understanding the creative principles and practices used by advertising personnel enables the marketer to commission, evaluate and produce creative material to professional industry standards. This subject addresses topics such as the importance of creativity; messaging issues, determining consumer insights; the creative potential and purpose of different media; developing creative concepts; determining the advertising idea; critiquing advertising; identifying key issues; producing the final creative material and taking it to the marketplace.

Unit details and rules

Unit code MKTG3121
Academic unit Marketing
Credit points 6
Prohibitions
? 
None
Prerequisites
? 
MKTG1001
Corequisites
? 
None
Assumed knowledge
? 

None

Available to study abroad and exchange students

Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator Tom Van Laer, tom.vanlaer@sydney.edu.au
Type Description Weight Due Length
In-semester test Mid-semester exam
Multiple choice questions
42% Mid-semester exam period 90 minutes
Outcomes assessed: LO1 LO6 LO3 LO2
Assignment Advertising portfolio part I
Video
2% Week -03
Due date: 09 Mar 2020 at 17:00
45 minutes
Outcomes assessed: LO2 LO6
Participation Business research component
Participation in a research study or review of a research paper
2% Week 12
Due date: 22 May 2020 at 17:00
N/A
Outcomes assessed: LO1 LO6 LO3 LO2
Assignment Advertising portfolio part II
Advertisements and analysis
41% Week 13
Due date: 29 May 2020 at 17:00
7 advertisements and 3,500 words
Outcomes assessed: LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO6
Participation In-class participation
Participation in tutorial sessions
13% Weekly N/A
Outcomes assessed: LO1 LO6 LO5 LO4 LO3 LO2

Assessment summary

  • Mid-semester exam: Students will be required to sit a closed-book multiple choice exam testing what they have learnt thusfar.
     
  • In-class participation: Students will be required to actively participate in the tutorial sessions. Individual participation will be assessed using the following assessment criteria: achievement motivation (3%), social competence (4%), intercultural awareness (3%), and flexibility and creativity (3%).
     
  • Business research component: Please refer to the Business research component site on the Canvas courses dashboard for detailed instructions on how to complete this assessment. Students will have two options for completing this assessment: Option 1) participating in a research study or Option 2) reviewing a research paper. Each option is worth 2 marks of the 100 marks total for MKTG3121 Advertising: Creative Principles.
     
  • Advertising portfolio: Students will be required to record a 45-minute walk through Sydney. Reviewing the video, they must build a portfolio of 7 advertisements (one per persuasive technique). If they cannot find a technique in their video, they may collect it from newspapers, magazines, or the Internet. They will then answer questions about each ad.
     

Detailed information for each assessment can be found on Canvas.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a high distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name

Mark range

Description

High distinction

85 - 100

Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at an exceptional standard, as defined by grade descriptors or exemplars outlined by your faculty or school. 

Distinction

75 - 84

Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at a very high standard, as defined by grade descriptors or exemplars outlined by your faculty or school.

Credit

65 - 74

Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at a good standard, as defined by grade descriptors or exemplars outlined by your faculty or school.

Pass

50 - 64

Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at an acceptable standard, as defined by grade descriptors or exemplars outlined by your faculty or school. 

Fail

0 - 49

When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

  • Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
  • After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website  provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.  

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

WK Topic Learning activity Learning outcomes
Week 01 Persuasion: definition, history, and a model Lecture (2 hr)  
Week 02 Attitudes and behaviour Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 03 Which behaviour to change? Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 04 Argumentation Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 05 Storytelling Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 06 Emotions part I, Q&A, and exam preparation Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 07 Mid-semester exam Lecture (2 hr)  
Week 08 Emotions part II and cognitive heuristics part I Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 09 Cognitive heuristics part II and feedback on exam Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 10 Social heuristics Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 11 Automatic persuasion Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 12 Social norms and social comparison Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  
Week 13 Using your powers for good Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)  

Attendance and class requirements

Students are required to attend 80% of tutorial sessions. This means a maximum of two tutorial sessions can be missed with the tutor’s pre-approval.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

  • van Laer, T., de Ruyter, K., Visconti, L. M., & Wetzels, M. (2014). The Extended Transportation-Imagery Model: A meta-analysis of the antecedents and consequences of consumers’ narrative transportation. Journal of Consumer Research, 40(5), 797-817.

  • van Laer, T., Escalas, J. E., Ludwig, S., & van den Hende, E. A. (2019). What happens in Vegas stays on TripAdvisor? A theory and technique to understand narrativity in consumer reviews. Journal of Consumer Research, 46(2), 267-285.

  • van der Pligt, J. & Vliek, M. (2017). The psychology of influence: Theory, research and practice. Abingdon: Routledge.

All prescribed readings for this unit can be accessed through the Library eReserve, available on Canvas.

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

  • LO1. integrate insights from across cognitive and social psychology, communication studies and linguistics, through to marketing.
  • LO2. demonstrate the effective application of knowledge, critical analysis and creativity to communicate effectively to a target group.
  • LO3. provide insights into the challenge facing contemporary organisations to design persuasive messages.
  • LO4. use several strategies to formulate persuasive messages about challenges facing the broader society.
  • LO5. influence others to address the problem of communicating effectively to a target group.
  • LO6. reflect on how persuasive communication skills and abilities contribute to the effective and socially responsible management of organizations.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1 Depth of disciplinary expertise

Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.

GQ2 Critical thinking and problem solving

Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.

GQ3 Oral and written communication

Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.

GQ4 Information and digital literacy

Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.

GQ5 Inventiveness

Generating novel ideas and solutions.

GQ6 Cultural competence

Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.

GQ7 Interdisciplinary effectiveness

Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.

GQ8 Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity

An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.

GQ9 Influence

Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes Graduate qualities
GQ1 GQ2 GQ3 GQ4 GQ5 GQ6 GQ7 GQ8 GQ9

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

This unit has been completely renewed since it was last offered.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.