General Information
Promotional Video
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Instructor Bio
Avi Goldfarb is the Rotman Chair in Artificial Intelligence and Healthcare, and Professor of Marketing. Avi is also Chief Data Scientist at the Creative Destruction Lab, former Senior Editor at Marketing Science, a Faculty Affiliate at the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, and a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Avi’s research focuses on the economics of digital technology, including artificial intelligence. Based on this work, he has testified to the US Senate Judiciary committee about online advertising. Along with Ajay Agrawal and Joshua Gans, Avi is the author of the bestselling books Prediction Machines: The Simple Economics of Artificial Intelligence and Power and Prediction: The Disruptive Economics of Artificial Intelligence.
Target Audience
Students interested in the impact of technology on business, including digital marketing and technology entrepreneurship.
Format
12 weekly sessions
Course Mission
For each technological innovation, we will emphasize what is different, and what is not, for consumers, and for the production, distribution, and communication of goods and services. The goal will be to develop the skills to bring a new digital product to market. Students will:
- be able to understand how digital channels affect market strategy, the products offered and the prices charged
- be able to leverage digital advertising and social media to better communicate with customers
- know how to respond to new digital marketing tools as they arise
- measure how digital marketing activities affect company performance
- be able to leverage Google, Facebook, and other online advertising platforms
- understand how trends like social and mobile media affect company strategies
- develop marketing plans for new products and services that take advantage of technological changes in artificial intelligence and other emerging tools
Course Scope
Social media, search engines, mobile commerce, digital advertising, and online marketplaces are impacting competition for all firms, large and small. Drawing on some common themes across digital marketing platforms, we examine (i) how companies find and serve customers using digital tools, (ii) the kinds of digital products that companies offer, (iii) the role of distance in the customer-company relationship when information is digital, (iv) the locus of control of brand-related messages, (v) the concept of privacy, and (vi) the digital targeting of marketing tactics. Broadly, for each technological innovation, we will emphasize what is different, and what is not, for consumers, and for the production, distribution, and communication of goods and services.
Evaluation and Grade Breakdown
| Component | Due Date | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Class Participation | Ongoing | 10% |
| Individual Homework (5 short assignments) | Ongoing | 15% |
| Group Homework | Weeks 6 and 10 | 30% |
| Individual Project Proposal | Week 5 | 10% |
| Individual Project Presentation | Weeks 11 and 12 | 5% |
| Individual Project | Last Week of Class | 30% |
Required Resources
A reading list will be provided, focused on recent advances in technology.