This class doesn’t have a textbook. In fact, some of the required reading comes from Wikipedia, a taboo for just about any other class on campus. But the syllabus states it bluntly: “Text: none; it would be outdated anyway.”
Welcome to internet marketing, the Marriott School’s newest class. Created by Jeff Larson, an assistant professor of marketing, with adjunct professor Bryant Hoopes, the class prepares students for the online business world. Instead of a traditional textbook, students read various online articles, which the professors believe are more up-to-date and informative—not to mention free.
In addition to its unconventional reading assignments, the class provides students with valuable opportunities to apply their knowledge.
Everyone knows that getting your web site listed as a top search result on Google is exciting. To help students understand how to obtain that coveted spot—and to provide résumé-worthy experience—student groups are assigned to consult with an organization and implement a marketing campaign that includes email marketing, search engine marketing, and search engine optimization. This semester, the students’ clients include Thrift Books, the Utah Donor Registry, and the Idaho Potato Commission.
“The consulting engagement is the best experience a student can put on a résumé,” Hoopes says. “Through this, they demonstrate their ability to understand a business’ goals and objectives, develop a marketing plan, and measure the results of their efforts.”
Most of the students in the group consulting for the Idaho Potato Commission were unfamiliar with internet marketing before the class—and all of them were unfamiliar with the spud-promoting commission—but now they discuss both topics with ease.
In a study area of the Tanner Building, you’ll find the students working on their project. In one group meeting, they delve into matters of pay-per-click ads, meta tags, landing pages, and keyword density.
“It looks like most of the text on this page is embedded into pictures, so the search bots can’t read it,” says Chad Williams, a senior majoring in entrepreneurship from Frisco, Texas. “We should take the text out of the main picture and make it the header.”
Later, Danielle Tuttle, a senior marketing major from Seattle, suggests, “I think ‘potato recipes’ is the main phrase that needs to be optimized—that’s one of the areas of opportunity I’m seeing.”
Tuttle says that although the consulting project can be intimidating, Larson and Hoopes are a great resource. “They are very good at making sure we understand everything,” she says.
Each professor drew from his own expertise to develop the curriculum. Larson provides a theoretical background; he teaches the class about various internet business models—how they generate revenue, drive traffic, and create a competitive advantage.
Hoopes, a marketing professional of seven years, also has insights to offer. He was hired by Omniture as a BYU undergraduate and worked with high-tech, high-profile clients such as Samsung, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, and Adobe. He is currently a consultant for VML, a marketing agency.
Catherine Williams, a senior marketing major from Santaquin, Utah, says the skills she is learning in the class, particularly with the consulting project, will be beneficial as she enters the workplace.
“I am interviewing right now for jobs,” she says, “and because of this class, my options have been opened to include a whole new aspect of marketing—a growing one.”