Maybe this is my bias — I am a bit of a geek. But I like to encourage my students to speculate about how future technological advances might impact marketing strategy and planning. This falls into the discussion of the external market environment in Chapter 3 (see In-Class Activity 3-1 for example). This article in USA Today, “AI, 5G, ‘ambient computing’: What to expect in tech in 2020 and beyond,” offers an opportunity to examine some of these emerging technologies. The article includes a 5 minute video on 5G that you could show in class to put students on a common base. What can be interesting for students, is to think about is the implications of new technology on traditional businesses. So for example, I could see asking students how this technology might impact:
- Starbucks or a small local coffee shop,
- A law office,
- A fast-food restaurant chain (say McDonalds),
- A grocery store,
- A clothing maker — say Levi’s or Lululemon
Push students beyond the obvious. Or of course, you could have students come up with companies on their own.
Marketing has always relied on creativity. Creativity in promotion design, product definition, copy, and more. Today, more and more we’re seeing opportunity for technology advancements to augment marketing strategy. The 16th (soon to be published) edition of our book, Essentials of Marketing, focuses on the impact of artificial intelligence and technology on marketing. You don’t have to look far to see examples of that impact today. Big data has been talked about (and utilized successfully) for years but AI, virtual reality, and other advancements are finding their way into marketing as well.