Using relevant and specific theoretical concepts related to topics covered in lectures 1-4 of this module, analyse the reasons behind and dynamics of an attack on a brand of your choosing that took place in 2022.
As part of your essay, you can analyse why the brand was attacked, how the brand was attacked, and/or how the brand responded to the attack. You can choose which aspect(s) to focus on; we want depth over breadth. Good prioritisation shows that a proper analysis was conducted that has resulted in a good understanding of what matters (and therefore should be included in the essay) and what does not matter (and therefore should not be included in the essay).
Keep in mind that this is a marketing module and that you must therefore analyse a marketing case using marketing theory. Many companies are attacked through lawsuits, for example, however this would not make for a relevant marketing case study. Also, keep in mind that you must demonstrate that you have met this module’s learning outcomes and you must therefore use relevant concepts covered throughout this module. Many companies are attacked by other companies, for example, however this type of comparative competition is not part of this module and therefore would not make for a relevant case study.
The findings you present must be the outcome of your own research. You can use news articles for this as well as social media posts and websites of relevant organisations (referenced throughout). You must not simply copy case studies produces by others (and you most certainly must not plagiarise the work of others).
Suggested Essay Structure
1. Your own unique title
2. Introduction (~10%)
3. Theoretical framework (~25%)
4. Findings (~30%)
5. Analysis (~25%)
6. Conclusion (~10%)
7. List of references
Marking Criteria
Theory
Good answers will show an in-depth knowledge of relevant theory from this module by explaining key academic sources in detail, clearly evidencing that these sources have been studied thoroughly. Simply throwing in references at the end of sentences to beef up the bibliography will not achieve this. Instead, good answers will use key academic sources effectively, drawing out and explaining in detail specific theoretical concepts, models, or frameworks that can then be applied in the analysis. Thus, the goal must not be to merely present a broad review of the literature, but instead to build an effective theoretical framework that can then be used to make sense of the data collected. The number of theoretical concepts, models, and frameworks required to build an effective theoretical framework thus depends on the number of phenomena/events in the data to be made sense of. The number of references used to build said framework is of no importance. All sources used to explain theory must be of a high academic standard, such as academic journal articles or books, and must not be dot-com websites. Furthermore, good answers will show their understanding of relevant theory from this module by explaining specific theoretical concepts, models, and frameworks clearly and accurately.
Findings
Good answers will be based on thorough research, evidenced by the presentation of detailed findings/data. Furthermore, the findings/data presented will be relevant to the question and focused around one or more key issues. The goal must be to tell an in-depth story about the most important phenomena/events, and not to cover everything in little detail only. Here, good answers will show their understanding of the context/problem being researched by prioritising what is most important and relevant. What needs to be presented in the essay is the outcome of the research process, and not all the findings/data that have been collected regardless of their ultimate importance/relevance to the final argument of the essay.
Analysis
Good answers will present an in-depth analysis that clearly makes sense of the phenomena/events researched by explicitly applying the theoretical concepts, models, and frameworks to the findings/data collected. Furthermore, the relevance of the applied theoretical concepts, frameworks, and models must be clearly evident.
Conclusions
Good answers will present a coherent and logical argument throughout the essay. This must include conclusions/suggestions that follow directly from the analysis. As such, the conclusions/suggestions must be understood as a continuation of the argument, and not as separate from the rest of the essay. Furthermore, good answers will present focused and relevant conclusions/suggestions that directly answer the question. Here, students must show their understanding of the essay’s central issue by prioritising the most impactful conclusions/suggestions. Students must not merely present a list of loosely connected ideas.
Referencing
Good answers will ensure that all ideas presented that require referencing are referenced accordingly. All assignments will be checked for plagiarism. Students should consider that referencing theory is a way to show knowledge of academic literature and that referencing findings/data is a way to evidence thorough research. Furthermore, good answers will reference correctly throughout, both regarding in-text citations as well as the bibliography. A recognised business referencing style such as APA or Harvard must thus be used correctly and consistently throughout. The number of references presented has no bearing on the final mark. What matters is that students score highly against the ‘theory’ and ‘data’ marking criteria, and this cannot be achieved by throwing in references purely for the sake of beefing up the bibliography.
Presentation
Good answers will be well-written, that is, easy to understand and free of spelling and grammatical mistakes. Good answers will also be well-structured, both across sections (i.e., effective and concise introduction, clearly separated sections, effective and concise conclusion) and within sections (i.e., each section broken down into clear paragraphs). Furthermore, good answers will be well-presented (i.e., unique title, effective header, page numbers) and well-formatted (i.e., correct font, text alignment, line spacing).
