B2B Marketing Strategy (Online)
Requirements
This program is ideal for mid to senior-level marketing or business-unit managers.
Requirements
This program is ideal for mid to senior-level marketing or business-unit managers.
B2B Marketing Strategy (Online)
Requirements
This program is ideal for mid to senior-level marketing or business-unit managers.
Overview
Because marketing to businesses is fundamentally different than marketing directly to consumers — namely a longer and more complex sales process — it requires a different approach. B2B Marketing Strategy (Online) is a six-week online program that provides the tools to successfully apply marketing strategies, bring value to your B2B relationships, and make a clear connection between marketing and sales functions.
The program provides professionals operating in B2B markets and those wanting to develop a B2B product line with a strategic yet practical framework to sustain a competitive advantage by understanding how to deploy the right marketing, pricing, sales force, and decision-making toolkit for each stage of your go-to-market strategy.
Participants discover the essentials of B2B brands, beginning with an overview of the differences between B2C and B2B brands and exploring the value of having a consistent marketing strategy as well as a solid platform for marketing implementation, especially when coordinating sales.
The program highlights the complex consumer decision-making process of B2B brands and the best way to develop your go-to-market strategies. It also delves into sales force management and how to address the challenges of channel distribution and variable compensation. You also learn about B2B pricing to address the complexity of contracts and brand strategies for competitive advantage.
Please contact our partners at Emeritus at columbia@emeritus.org, +1 315-982-5094, or +1 315-277-2746 for a personal conversation about this program and how it may benefit you.
Delivered in collaboration with
“If you sell to businesses and other organizations, you cannot use the standard consumer marketing techniques. This program teaches you the business-to-business marketing tools that you need to design and implement a successful go-to-market strategy in a competitive environment.”
The program's faculty director Miklos Sarvary
Impact
Throughout the program, you will develop a B2B management toolkit that provides key tools to increase B2B effectiveness.
By the end of the program you will be able to:
- Review the marketing process and identify the functional, process, and relationship benefits of your B2B brand, allowing you to discern the value proposition of any B2B brand
- Discern how the decision funnel is different for organizations and individuals (B2B decision funnel vs. individual decision funnel) and use this knowledge to capitalize on the decision-making process to provide your business with customer loyalty
- Identify and deploy your marketing weapons for each stage of the Go-to-Market process
- Design effective compensation systems to create motivated sales teams
- Identify basic pricing strategies and use these to control prices
- Discover how marketing strategy provides you with a sustainable competitive advantage and use this knowledge to make marketing relevant to your CEO
Upon completion of this program, you will earn two credits towards a Certificate with select alumni and tuition benefits. Learn more.
Program Structure
The B2B Marketing Strategy (Online) program is distributed across six modules and made available on a weekly basis. The program will begin with an orientation week, which provides an overview of the key features and resources you will need for a successful start.
The program features a mix of faculty video lectures, required activities, discussions, and a video interview with a B2B industry expert. Our approach is to provide the tools and frameworks to improve the efficiency of your B2B marketing efforts and increase revenue and profitability.
Weekly program topics are:
- Week 1: B2B Brands
- Week 2: B2B Decision-Making Process
- Week 3: B2B Go-to-Market Strategies
- Week 4: B2B Sales Force Management
- Week 5: B2B Pricing
- Week 6: B2B Marketing Strategy and Competitive Advantage
For a complete program schedule, please download the agenda.
Participant Profile
The B2B Marketing Strategy (Online) program is ideal for mid to senior-level marketing or business-unit managers, including:
- Managers from a technical or manufacturing background, now responsible for growth or marketing-driven functions
- Product managers and marketing leads transitioning from a consumer domain into a B2B environment
- Account managers seeking to make better customer-relationship decisions specific to B2B marketing
- Experienced and newly promoted product and business unit managers with technical expertise but limited marketing background
Columbia Business School Alumni and up to four of their colleagues are eligible for a 25 percent tuition benefit for this program. More on the Alumni Tuition Benefit.
Faculty
Miklos Sarvary
Carson Family Professor of Business
Co-Faculty Director, Media and Technology Program
Miklos Sarvary
Carson Family Professor of Business
Co-Faculty Director, Media and Technology Program
Miklos Sarvary's broad research agenda focuses on media and information marketing. His most recent papers are studying agenda setting, user-generated content, social network competition and online/mobile advertising. Previously, he worked on media and telecommunications competition.
He is a member of the Editorial Boards of Marketing Science, Quantitative Marketing and Economics, International Journal of Research in Marketing, and Journal of Interactive Marketing.
Prior to joining Columbia, Miklos was the Deputy Dean for Executive Development Programs at INSEAD. He has taught executive courses and consulted in various parts of the world for large corporations, including IBM, INTEL, Nokia, Alcatel, Samsung, Pearson, McKinsey & Co., Dun & Bradstreet and PwC. Before joining INSEAD, Miklos was a faculty member at Harvard Business School and the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University.
He studied physics in Hungary’s Eotvos Lorand University, earned an MS in Statistics from École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris and a PhD in Management from INSEAD. Prior to becoming an academic, he worked for IBM.
FAQ
Certification
I’m interested in the Certificate in Business Excellence (CIBE), how do I get started?
At Columbia Business School Executive Education, you’ll be able to customize a unique learning experience by selecting programs that best interest you and are most suited for your needs. Any completed program, regardless of format (live online, in-person, or online), will count towards the Certificate in Business Excellence.
Which programs qualify for the CIBE?
Any completed executive education program, regardless of format (live-online, in-person, or online), will count towards the Certificate in Business Excellence. Partner programs will also count towards the certificate.
What programs are considered partner programs?
Executive education programs developed and administered with our educational partners, bring the best of our combined knowledge, thought leadership, resources, and expertise. Kindly find a list of our partners here on our partnership page.
What are the costs of the certificate?
There’s no set cost associated with the certificate path since you’re able to customize your learning journey with in-person and online programs (price will vary depending on the program type and length).
Are there any tuition assistance or scholarships?
At Columbia Business School Executive Education, we offer non-degree and non-credit-based professional development programs to the global business community. As our programs are non-degree and non-credit, they do not qualify for financial aid.
How are CIBE credits determined?
Credits for a program are determined by the program duration and total learning hours.
Where do I find information on the credit value for a program?
You will find this information on each program page. Credits range from 0.5 credits – 26 credits per program.
How do I get enrolled in the CIBE?
Your certificate journey will start with your first program, and you have 4 years to complete your CIBE. You may register for any of our executive education programs on each program page. You may enroll using the “Enroll Now” button, and the application process should take 5-10 minutes.
How do I receive credits?
You are required to fully attend a program and complete all necessary coursework in order to receive CIBE credits. Credits are only awarded after you complete a program.
How do I check the status of my Certificate completion?
Kindly reach out to a Learning Solutions representative for any questions on the status of your CIBE credit count.
Do CIBE credits expire?
Credits are only valid for four years (Please note: While we are not able to offer in-person programming due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the duration to complete the programming has been extended to five years.). If you have not completed your CIBE within four years, we will only count non-expired credits towards your CIBE credit total.
Does the Certificate in Business Excellence expire?
Your Certificate in Business Excellence does not expire. Once you become a certificate recipient, you will join the greater alumni community at Columbia Business School.
I’ve reached 18 CIBE credits, what’s next?
Congratulations! You should receive a digital copy of your certificate at the end of your program. If you do not receive a copy from your program manager, kindly contact your Learning Solutions representative or your program manager for next steps.
Will I receive a physical certificate?
Yes, all certificate recipients will receive a physical plaque. If you completed your last CIBE credits through an online or live online program, you will receive a plaque in the mail. We will ask for you to provide us with your preferred mailing address and our vendor will ship the plaque directly to you. We kindly ask for your patience as the processing time takes a few weeks. Please contact your program manager for the status of your plaque. If you completed your last CIBE credits through an in-person program, you will receive a plaque at the end of the program.
How do I get access to my alumni benefits?
Once you complete your CIBE, we kindly ask for your patience as we process your alumni credentials. The processing time can take anywhere from 8 to 10 weeks long.
Can I refer colleagues to the Certificate in Business Excellence?
If you are a certificate holder, you may sponsor up to four colleagues each year for full-price in-person programs lasting up to seven days and all full-price online programs.
Can I add the Certificate in Business Excellence to LinkedIn?
Yes! We will provide you with instructions on how to add your certificate to your LinkedIn profile after you become a Certificate recipient.
Preferred Pricing and Tuition Benefits for Alumni
Are there preferred pricing options available for live online programs?
Yes, preferred pricing is available for groups of two or more. To inquire, email execed@gsb.columbia.edu.
As a Columbia Business School alumni am I eligible for tuition benefit?
Columbia Business School alumni and up to four of their colleagues are eligible for a 25 percent tuition benefit for this program. More on the Alumni Tuition Benefit.
Assignments
Will there be any homework or assignments?
For select programs, there will be some assignments to complete after the end of select program sessions. Assignments will typically consist of readings, self-reflections, and brief assessments. This approach is designed to help you practice your learnings.
How long will assignments take?
We do not expect that homework assignments will take up a large amount of time to complete.
Will there be any examinations or grades?
There will be no examinations or grades for our live online programs.
Access
When will I receive information on how to log in?
You will receive your login information immediately before the program start date. Kindly reach out to your Program Manager for further instructions on how to prepare and log in for the program.
What platform do you use to deliver live online programs?
We use the Zoom platform.
Recordings
Will sessions be recorded?
Most live online sessions (depending on the faculty and program) will be recorded and will be available for you upon request. In-person programs are not recorded.
How long will they be available for?
Recordings will be available for the duration of the program. Depending on the program, some recordings may have additional availability post-program.
How do I gain access to the recordings?
Your Program Manager will provide you with further instructions on how to gain access to recorded sessions.
Experience
How do participants network during the live online programs? Will I participate in group work?
Our live online programs are fully virtual and highly interactive. Most programs also feature small group work for a high-touch learning experience. The virtual program experience allows participants to feel comfortable and productive learning at home while preserving the interconnectivity of an in-person program.
What are the networking opportunities during the live online sessions?
Yes. Examples of this may include: virtual lunches, virtual receptions, use of the chat function, and virtual office hours for you to connect with participants and faculty. Please refer to the agenda of the specific live online program you are interested in for details.
Live Online Format
What are live online programs?
Now, more than ever, executives need the knowledge and insights to help them adapt to change and solve complex problems. As the business world has evolved, we have applied new best practices to continuously improve your learning experience. With our live online programs, we are taking select in-person programs and are translating them to a fully live and virtual format, delivering the same interactive sessions with faculty and real-time application of the knowledge you would experience in person.
What is the difference between live online and online programs?
Compare our two formats for distance learning here.
What does “live online” mean?
Live online programs are fully virtual, highly interactive programs taking place in real-time, often featuring small group work for a high-touch learning experience. Our Columbia Business School faculty stream to you live and virtually, no matter where you are located.
Are all live online programs the same in terms of format and length?
No. Please refer to the agenda of the specific live online program you are interested in. For any questions, please reach out to the Contact person listed on the program's web page.
Do I have to attend all live sessions?
Participants are expected to attend all sessions. However, we understand that participants may have scheduling conflicts. Kindly let us know in advance whenever possible and your Program Manager would be happy to discuss how we can help you get up to speed. We will also record most faculty sessions, which you can review upon request.
Will I need to attend the live sessions even if I’m based in a different time zone?
You are required to attend all live sessions even if you are based in a different time zone. (Kindly reach out to the Learning Solutions team to learn more about our asynchronous program offerings, which consist predominantly of pre-recorded videos that you can watch on your own time).
COVID-19 Safety Plans
Please review the latest COVID-19 related protocols at Columbia Business School.
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