| SFSU Public Affairs Press ReleasePublished by the Public Affairs Office at San Francisco State University, Diag Center. |
Client projects provide challenges; guest speakers from the industry share insights.
SAN FRANCISCO, October 6, 2000--Students in San Francisco State University's new College of Business concentration in E-Commerce Marketing are not spending their evenings hunkered over a textbook, a yellow highlighter in hand. Instead they are learning Internet communications strategies from industry experts and then applying what they've learned to real-world client projects.
The students are taking classes in Internet marketing, digital advertising, and Internet public relations-all three are taught this semester by Deborah Lowe, a professor of marketing at SFSU who is completing a study on the Internet buying habits of men and women.
"Published sources simply cannot keep up with the changes taking place in Internet marketing," said Lowe. "For an MBA education in e-commerce to be of value in the marketplace, students have to learn the latest technologies and strategies being used in Internet communications. Marketing on the web is moving so fast the key phrase is 'Oh, that information is so last week.'"
Students will have the opportunity to show off what they learn with semester projects for real clients. Internet marketing student-teams are designing sales, advertising, public relations, and customer services Web pages for companies such as:
The client work will be the culmination of a process that began with the students reviewing Web sites selected by Lowe for their innovative marketing techniques. Guest speakers from the industry will add to the students' portfolio of techniques for Internet communications. Speakers include Tim Smith, president and CEO of Redsky Interactive, who will speak on the strategy of branded experiences using microsites; Marty Izensen, the director of information strategy for Visa International, who will discus s emerging Internet transaction methods including electronic wallets, biometric security, and smart cards; and Tony Nethercutt, DoubleClick's regional sales director, who will talk about tracking advertising audiences on the Web. Neil Cohen, founder of Camp Six, a dot.com accelerator/incubator, has already discussed with the students in the Internet marketing class the criteria for new business ideas accepted at incubators in the Internet class.
"Because of it's proximity to Silicon Valley and San Francisco, our program in E-Commerce Marketing is perfectly positioned to draw upon professionals who are setting the pace in the rapidly evolving global Web," said College of Business Dean Ray Maghroori.
For the students to be able to plan their client sites, they will need to know at least elementary web design. For the Internet marketing class, David Greene, president of Creative Spark, will provide a lab in creating Flash pages. Students will also learn the basics of Dreamweaver, Shockwave, Fireworks and other web design tools.
"While the students do not need to become design experts, if they are going to be successful in the field of Internet communications, they should at least know what's technically possible so they can develop their marketing or pr plans," said Lowe.
The College of Business at San Francisco State enrolls more than 5,000 students and has more than 120 faculty members. Business administration is the most popular undergraduate major at SFSU, chosen by nearly one in four undergraduates.
NOTE: Professor Deborah Lowe is available at (415) 338-2202, or dlowe@sfsu.edu
SFSU, 1600 Holloway Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94132
Last modified November 14, 2000, by Office of Public Affairs