Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to: appraise current trends and impacts on the hospitality industry, including technology, consumer behavior, international travel and tourism, political, social and economic trends, and quick service and limited service restaurants; perform market research within the hospitality industry, including using management information systems, different approaches and designs to research studies, as well as issues within data collection and ethics while researching; evaluate the markets and market segments in the hospitality and tourism industries and how to target those segments, including pricing, brand establishment, marketing strategies, and positioning strategies; recommend effective marketing strategies, including using different marketing channels, niche strategy, relationship marketing and global marketing; explain and describe advertising and its functions within hospitality, as well as different advertising strategies and approaches; assess the role that public relations plays in the hospitality industry including press releases and relations, crisis management, and corporate communication; and analyze the concept of personal selling and relate the steps and different methods involved in the selling process within the hospitality industry.