Version 1 and 2: Instruction is offered online through video lectures, study guides, required and supplemental readings, quizzes, homework, and final exams. Major topics include: modern field of strategy, competitive advantage, industry attractiveness and structure, the four key facts about competition, drivers of profitability, strategic planning process, Porter’s five forces and its origination, the advantages and limitations of the framework, the perfect competition model, complements and coopetition, low growth and high growth industries, Porter’s three generic strategies, economic and perceived value, the use of financial statements, judo strategy and hold up, the three main external threats, herd behavior, the advantages and disadvantages of trade-offs, blue ocean strategy, differentiation, first mover versus late mover, economies of scale, learning curve effect, network effect, sunk-cost trap, spillover effect, freemium business model, pioneering costs, disruptive innovation versus incremental innovation, three main threats to competitive advantage, resource allocation process, long tail, mental lock-in, competitor analysis, types of non-economic motives, targeting the fight, Prisoner’s dilemma, the definition of marketing, value creation and the definition of value, the four of types of value, communicating value to the customer, segmentation analysis, demographic profiling, three approaches to market segmentation, target market segmentation, rules of proper targeting, attribute-by-segment matrix, definition of positioning, steps and checks in the positioning process, better mousetrap theory, value proposition, differentiation, positioning statement, the Ansoff Matrix: market penetration, product development, market development, diversification, gap analysis, the four types of value: information value, communication value, loyalty value, direct value, communal sharing relationship, market pricing relationship, types of information value, word of mouth, the 4 P’s framework: price, place, promotion, product, expanded marketing mix, six rules for managing customer experiences, peak-end rule, reference points, hedonic treadmill, diminishing sensitivity, definition of branding, branding elements, brand perspectives, sources of value, lifestyle branding, brand ladder, cost information, price discrimination, low-cost strategy, price wars, extremeness aversion, price image, advertising, communications plan, rationing, the definition of tactics, types of communications campaigns, trivial innovation, traditional and nontraditional means of communication, destination content, double-duty advertising, advantages and disadvantages of social media, viral content, shiny object trap, market research: qualitative research versus quantitative research, surveys, focus groups, customer observations, ethnographies, and projective techniques.