The sessions delve into the intersection of contemporary branding and the digital agenda for international businesses, focusing on effective strategies and responsible community engagement.

The sessions aim at critically discussing the nexus between contemporary branding approaches (both in their theoretical components and in their practical implications) and the digital agenda of international businesses. The profounder discussion is on the repercussions of the application of digital marketing by present-day businesses and the simmering interest that marketing ploys revolving around experience marketing, value creation through social media, influencer marketing, A.I., augmented reality and machine learning have witnessed in light of breaking through the branding clutter. The broader framework is that of finding the most effective ways companies can follow to manage their brands in a way effective and more responsible for the communities. A special emphasis is put on the evolution from Marketing 1.0 to Marketing 5.0.

One of the subject’s important objectives is to provide students with concepts and techniques necessary for companies to improve the long-term profitability of their brand strategies. It incorporates current thinking and developments on these topics from both academics and industry point of view, and combine a comprehensive theoretical foundation with rich practical insights to assist future specialists in their day-to-day and long-term brand decisions.

By course completion, students should gain knowledge and skills in the following topics:

• The role of brands and the concept of brand equity;
• The process of brand positioning and the diversity of brand positioning strategies;
• The role of brand associations, the concept of integrated brand communications and the advantages of creating strong brands;

The three main ways to build brand equity: by properly choosing brand elements, designing marketing programs and activities, and leveraging secondary associations.

Each module is delivered over 12 hours. 4 Hours will be divided into 2 blocks of 2 hour online meetings and the remaining 8 hours will be a block held during a Saturday.