This document provides an overview of a digital marketing course focused on consumer goods companies and their digital transformations. The course will explore new digital marketing frontiers and their implications, and stimulate students' creativity and marketing skills. Students will gain knowledge of digital marketing challenges and opportunities, understand transformations facing consumer goods firms, and learn from cases and executives from Danone Group to understand and lead digital changes. The course consists of 6 sessions covering topics like content strategy, social media marketing, mobile and new retail, and includes an anchor case study on Danone's digital initiatives.

1. Digital Marketing for consumer goods: Exploring the digital adventure and embracing
marketing transformation. An international journey coached by the Danone group.
Teachers: Georges-Edouard DIAS, QuantStreams’ co-founder & Marjorie BORREDA, Activia Global Digital Manager
Overview:
Marketing, which has been for long a land of adventures, would have beeen trivialized if company policies
had not been shaken in recent years by several major revolutions: globalization and growing importance of
emerging countries (China, India, Brazil and Africa), consumer behavior change (buying mode, media),
deployment of the internet, generalization of smartphones, surge of social networks ...
The purpose of this course is to explore with students new digital frontiers of marketing and the profound
implications they may have in terms of offers, corporate policy and organization.
This course will stimulate the creativity and the marketing appeal of HEC students, by confronting them to
the challenges of a digital transformation that requires all large companies to move from a "marketing deals"
to an "experience marketing " approach where the product purchased is only the beginning of a consumer
engagement cycle and not the outcome of a sales funnel.
Program objectives:
At the end of the course, students:
• will have a better knowledge of the realities, challenges, and opportunities of digital marketing,
• will have a better understanding of the transformations facing consumer goods companies,
• will have acquired through a variety of cases and examples from different parts of the world and
through exchanges with thought leaders and digital executives from the Danone group, a mindset to
understand, trigger and lead the digital transformation required for traditional companies.
Program organization:
The course is organized in 6 sessions of 3 hours each.
After an introductory session on marketing transformation and a presentation of the Danone « anchor case »
are successively covered: the transformation of the communication strategy through development and
curation of content (session 2), including the social space (session 3); the new retail mix, especially thanks to
mobile technology (session 4) ; and a disucssion on the prospects of new business accelerated or permitted
through digital (session 5). Finally, the course concludes with the Danone’s anchor case study (session 6).
The course includes numerous business cases, presented and animated by the Danone group team:
• an « anchor case », briefed during the first session and debriefed during the last, will have the
students focus on Dan’on, a group wide initiative on nutrition for which students will access actual
consumer data and will have to leverage it to imagine the future of consumer relationship at Danone.
• a case on « brand content strategy » in a web and real time mode with Danonino.
• a case featuring the international launch of a new product.
Program content:
S1 : Digital or the transformation of the marketing model through customer voice. The e-listening revolution
with the Danone Dairy Brands. Anchor case briefing.
S2 : Brand content at the time of digital: develop, propose and curate. The Danonino&Activia case study.
S3 : Marketing in a social era : as communication and commerce blend, the need for a new brand strategy.
S4 : Digital at the time of mobile and connected objects : new territories to cover with new business models.
S5 : The challenges and opportunities of a real time marketing world : from a monologue to a dialogue.
S6 : Debriefing of the Dan’On anchor case, with the presence of Danone Group’s CDO.
Teaching methods:
- Interactive teaching using computer based interface (Wisembly) combining MCQs and votes.
- Testimonials, discussions and debates with thought leaders, and with Danone’s digital teams.
Personal work and commitment:
- Business cases (workgroups).
- Interaction with the teacher and guest speakers during the class.
Evaluation:
- Business Cases Resolution – in groups (3) 60%
- Knowledge tests & Participation during the class (40%)