This article outlines ideas and beliefs that Terry O’Reilly has learned from his career in marketing and as host of Under the Influence on CBC.

Appropriate Subject Area(s):

Marketing, advertising, promotion

Key Questions to Explore:

• How does an organization determine which strategies to use to market its products or services?

Materials Needed:

Flip chart paper, markers, copies of the article

Introduction to lesson and task:

Students will explore a variety of marketing strategies and identify cases where each is used effectively.

Action (lesson plan and task):

• Have a class discussion reviewing key marketing concepts already taught.
• Distribute the article for reading.
• In groups of three or four, have students talk through each of the ideas and beliefs Terry O’Reilly has put forward in his book. Have them use flip chart paper to record the key meaning of the ideas and identify two or three examples of how these strategies are used in marketing.
• Combine groups and ask students to share their understanding of the concepts and their examples.

Consolidation of Learning:

• In the combined groups, have students select two of the strategies and discuss the impact, both positive and negative, on the community/consumers.

Success Criteria:

• Students understand the impact of applying the appropriate marketing strategy for the projected outcome.

Confirming Activity:

• In combined groups, have students select a local organization, either a business or a not-for-profit organization, and develop a marketing strategy based on the ideas outlined in the article.