ADMAMB: "Advanced Marketing, Advertising and Branding"

Module code: ADMAMB

Module provider: School of Agriculture, Policy and Development

Credits: 20

ECTS credits: 10

Level: 7

When you’ll be taught: Semester 1

Module convenor: Mrs Louise Smith, email: l.smith2@reading.ac.uk

Module co-convenor: Mr Nick Walker, email: n.walker@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2026/7

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: Yes

Last updated: 25 March 2026

Overview

Module aims and purpose

 This module aims to develop students’ advanced strategic understanding of how organisations create, communicate and deliver value through coherent brand propositions, optimised customer journeys and responsible engagement with societal and environmental challenges. Drawing on contemporary professional marketing practice and informed by the CIM Global Professional Marketing Framework, the module focuses on the integration of brand proposition development, customer journey optimisation and societal impact within complex and dynamic market contexts . 

The module enables students to critically examine how organisations differentiate themselves through compelling value propositions and how these propositions are delivered consistently across customer journeys using data, insight and cross-functional alignment. Students will explore how customer needs, behaviours and expectations shape both brand value and experience design, and how marketing strategy can be used to optimise customer satisfaction, loyalty and advocacy while maintaining authenticity, transparency and trust . 

The module is aligned with CIM professional standards and assessment criteria. Students opting to pursue CIM assessment will be required to hold CIM membership, which is supported through the University as a CIM Partner. Successful completion of the module provides a strong foundation for progression towards the CIM Level 6 Diploma in Professional and Digital Marketing and subsequent professional recognition, subject to individual eligibility and at the student’s own cost. 

In addition, the module addresses the growing responsibility of marketing to respond to societal and environmental challenges, including sustainability, ethics, inclusion and stakeholder accountability. Students will evaluate the role of marketing in supporting long-term organisational and societal goals, building business cases for change, and aligning commercial objectives with positive social and environmental impact. Overall, the module prepares students to operate at a strategic level by developing their ability to analyse complex marketing problems, justify decisions in uncertain environments, and design integrated marketing strategies that balance brand performance, customer experience and societal impact. 

Please note, the module does not relate to agricultural or development issues. It is oriented towards decision making in a commercial environment. 

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Describe and explain the marketing planning process and its application within dynamic and complex market contexts. 
2. Demonstrate an understanding of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) and how communications contribute to consistent brand and customer experience across touchpoints. 
3. Develop an appreciation of digital marketing and its role in optimising customer journeys and supporting brand performance. 
4. Develop the ability to interpret market and customer information and convert this into marketing intelligence to justify strategic decisions, including consideration of ethical, sustainability and societal impact factors. 
5. Work more effectively in teams to analyse marketing problems and propose integrated, evidence-informed recommendations. 

Module content

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

Interactive lectures, blackboard lecture slides, learning resources: videos and further learning resources including Vloggs, bloggs and industry websites (this is likely to change from term to term). Online simulation to be completed in groups.

Study hours

At least 30 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 50% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each calendar day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three calendar days;
• where the piece of work is submitted up to three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in you Individual Learning Plan), the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three calendar days of the deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

Where a piece of work is submitted late after a deadline which has been revised owing to an extension granted through the Assessment Adjustments policy and process (self-certified or otherwise), it will be subject to the maximum penalty (i.e., considered to be more than three calendar days late). This will also apply when such an extension is used in conjunction with a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Reassessment

Additional costs