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Course Syllabus
Creating Consumer Experience CMHT 3950
Instructor Information
Name: Dr. Dee K. Knight
Email: dee.knight@unt.edu
Course Information
Name: Creating Consumer Experience
Number: CMHT 3950
Semester: Fall 2024
Duration: 16 weeks
Credit hours: 3
Class schedule: There are no mandatory class meetings or on-campus classes
Modality: Asynchronous online
Course Description
Exploration of the dynamic merging of retail merchandising, hospitality, and entertainment industries to create total consumer experiences. Topics include creating consumer experiences through product consumption, consumer experience through the five senses, consumer experience from social interaction, and consumer experience through technology.
This is a sixteen-week asynchronous online course, meaning there are no specific class meetings. The lectures and all the relevant course materials are published on Canvas every week for each module. Please refer to the schedule in the syllabus regularly and frequently to access course content and meet assignment deadlines. There are sixteen modules in the semester—one module for introducing the course, ten modules covering different topics and case studies, two modules for the mid-term, and the last two modules for the final project.
Course Objectives
By the end of the course, students should be able to identify current and predicted consumer and retail trends and have an understanding of how consumer expectations drive experiential retail strategies. The goal, through assigned activities and readings, is to generate excitement in discovering business venues whose differentiation from competitors, success, and competitive advantage is achieved by creating total consumer experiences.
Course Pre-Requisites, Co-Requisites, and/or Other Restrictions
There are no prerequisites, co-requisites, or restrictions for this course. However, this course is typically not recommended for Freshmen.
Learning Objectives
|
Learning Objectives |
Bloom’s taxonomy |
|---|---|
|
Analyze different forms of consumer experiences due to unique consumer motivations and individual difference variables. |
Analyze |
|
Measure different individual difference variables (e.g., hedonism, utilitarianism, cosmopolitanism, ethnocentrism) to understand consumer experience. |
Analyze, evaluate |
|
Evaluate trending merchandising strategies for creating enhanced consumer experiences. |
Evaluate |
|
Apply different social psychological theories and concepts to analyze and predict consumer responses. |
Apply |
|
Examine consumer experience as a function of social interaction. |
Understand, analyze |
|
Evaluate strategies for enhancing consumer experience through the five senses. |
Evaluate |
|
Analyze the role of technology and artificial intelligence in creating consumer experience. |
Analyze, understand |
|
Develop marketing strategies for enhanced consumer experience. |
Create |
|
Develop a functional prototype of an artificially intelligent personal assistant for a specific brand and task. |
Create |
| Collect qualitative data to better understand and demonstrate the role of consumer empathy in brands/companies. |
Create |
Required/Recommended Materials
- There is no required textbook for this course. All the required materials would be posted on Canvas. The recommended references would be provided in the PowerPoint presentations for each lecture.
- Class Materials for Digital Learning language must include the following: This course has digital components. To fully participate in this class, students will need internet access to reference content on the Canvas Learning Management System. If circumstances change, you will be informed of other technical needs to access course content.
Information on how to be successful in a digital learning environment can be found at Learn Anywhere Links to an external site..
- All the students MUST enroll in the IBM cognitive class: Build Your Own Chatbot (available for free) to learn how to build chatbots. At the end of successful completion of the IBM course, students will receive a certificate from IBM stating they have completed the course. You will use what you have learned to build a chatbot in the final major project.
Students can enroll in the IBM cognitive class Links to an external site. online.
- Students must sign-up for the NRF (National Retail Federation) Smartbrief newsletters Links to an external site. (it's free) to stay updated on business trends. Smartbrief will be particularly beneficial for the Mid-term and End projects.
How to Succeed in this Course
Since this is an asynchronous online course, it is very important that you do the following diligently:
- Have access to technology (e.g., computer, laptop, tablet, mobile, etc.) with a stable and reliable internet connection that you will use to access your course materials and submit the assignments within the given deadlines.
- Check Canvas regularly and frequently to receive important information, announcements, and course-related communications.
- Check the syllabus schedule regularly and frequently to remind you of deadlines for any upcoming assignment.
- Watch the lecture videos and keep the lecture PowerPoint slides handy. Understand the concepts before taking the quizzes.
- Watch the case study lecture videos and keep the case study lecture PowerPoint slides handy. Understand the concepts before taking the case study quizzes.
- Be thorough and detailed in your Mid-Term and End-Term projects. This is a team project! Think that you are developing these projects as part of your resume/portfolio. Create something of which you are proud to present to teachers, future potential employers, friends, and family.
- Submit all the assignments and quizzes within the deadlines. LATE SUBMISSIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
- Communicate effectively with group members to ensure your major group assignments are successfully completed with 100% accuracy by the designated deadlines.
- Communicate effectively with the instructor to ensure you are on track. For questions or concerns email me at dee.knight@unt.edu so I can guide you. It is my intention to respond as quickly as possible Monday-Friday. However, the semester can get very busy; if I do not respond within two business days, please send me a friendly reminder!
- Help create a collaborative learning environment. Discuss topics among your classmates by posting your questions/comments/thoughts in the Student Open Discussion section on Canvas. Please respond to your classmates’ questions and share your thoughts with each other. This is a tool available to you.
- Academic Integrity Policy: DO NOT ENGAGE IN ACADEMIC DISHONESTY. Academic dishonesty is not tolerated. If any instance of academic dishonesty is found, there will be severe consequences, including but not limited to getting an F grade in the course. Examples of academic dishonesty include cheating or copying from others’ work, copying from own work (self-plagiarism), and submitting an assignment submitted in another course. Additional information about academic dishonesty Links to an external site. should be understood to make sure you are not intentionally or unintentionally engaging in such activities.
- AI (Artificial Intelligence): The use of AI to develop any assignment in this course will receive at the minimum a grade of zero (0). Repeated violations will result in at the very least a grade of F in this course.
Course Requirements/Schedule
|
Week |
Topic |
Assignment Due |
Points Possible |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Week 1 8/19 - 8/25
|
-Course Introduction -Syllabus discussion -Introduction to IBM course: Build Your Own Chatbot |
|
-Syllabus Quiz: 50 points. -Screenshot of IBM course sign-up: 25 points
|
|
Week 2 8/26 - 9/1 |
-Introduction to Module 1: Creating Consumer Experience through Product Consumption
|
-Watch the Introduction to Module 1 lecture video
|
-Quiz 1: 20 points.
-IBM grades from Module 1: 20 points
|
|
Week 3 9/2 - 9/8
|
Case Studies covering topics related to Module 1 (Creating Consumer Experience Through Product Consumption) |
-Watch All the Case Study lecture videos in Module 1
|
-Complete Case Study Quiz 1: 20 points -Group Signup assignment: 25 points -IBM grades from Module 2: 20 points
|
|
Week 4 9/9 - 9-15
|
Introduction to Module 2: Creating Consumer Experience through the Five Senses
|
-Watch Introduction to Module 2 lecture video.
|
-Quiz 2: 20 points. -IBM grades from Module 3: 20 points
|
|
Week 5 9/16 - 9/22 |
Case Studies covering topics related to Module 2 (Creating Consumer Experience Through the Five Senses) |
-Watch All Case Study lecture videos in Module 2.
|
-Case Study Quiz 2: 20 points -IBM Module 4 grade: 20 points
|
|
Week 6 9/23- 9/29
|
Introduction to Module 3: Creating Consumer Experience through Social Interactions
|
-Watch Introduction to Module 3 lecture video.
|
-Quiz 3: 20 points. -BM Module 5 grade: 20 points
|
|
Week 7 9/30 - 10/6
|
Case Studies covering topics related to Module 3 (Creating Consumer Experience Through Social Interactions) Start Mid-term Project ( - Due 10/13 |
-Watch all Case Study lecture videos in Module 3.
|
-Case Study Quiz 3: 20 points -IBM Module 6 grade: 20 points
|
|
Week 8 10/7 - 10/13 |
Work on and submit Mid-term project draft |
-Watch the video for mid-term Project Instructions.
|
Submit Mid-term (Group) Project draft: 100 points (Team grade will be reduced 10 pts for each member that does not participate.) -IBM Module 7 grade: 20 points
|
|
Week 9 10/14 - 10/20
|
Complete and submit Mid-term Project |
|
Submit Mid-term (Group) Final Project: 75 (Team grade will be reduced 10 pts for each member that does not participate.) -IBM course Final Exam: 100 points -IBM course completion certificate: 25 points |
|
Week 10 10/21 - 10/27
|
Introduction to Module 4: Creating Consumer Experience through Technology |
-Watch Introduction to Module 4 lecture video.
|
|
|
Week 11 10/28 - 11/3
|
Case Studies covering topics related to Module 4 (Creating Consumer Experience Through Technology) |
-Watch All the Case Study lecture videos in Module 4.
|
-Case Study Quiz 4: 20 points |
|
Week 12 11/4 - 11/10
|
Introduction to the End-term Project |
-Watch the video for the End-term project instructions
|
End-term project draft: 100 points (Team grade will be reduced 10 pts for each member that does not participate.) |
|
Week 13 11/11 - 11/17
|
Introduction to Module 5: Creating Consumer Experience through Artificial Intelligence |
-Watch Introduction to Module 5 lecture video.
-Watch the video for the End-term Project Instructions -Work in groups to refine ideas from Mid-term Project for the End-term Project. |
-Quiz 5: 20 points.
|
|
Week 14 11/18 - 12/2 |
Work on Final Term Project |
Work on Final Term Project |
-Case Study Quiz 5: 20 points Work on Final Term Project |
| Thanksgiving Holiday 11/25 - 12/1 | |||
|
Week 15 12/2 - 12/9 |
End Term Project The project serves as your final exam.
|
|
Final Project 120 points (Team grade will be reduced 10 pts for each member that does not participate.) |
Please note that this is a tentative schedule and may be changed if the professor deems it in the students' best interests
Syllabus Quiz
Please go through the entire syllabus posted on Canvas and watch the Introduction to Course video discussing the syllabus. After that, take the Syllabus Quiz on Canvas. There are multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blanks, and true/false questions from every section of the syllabus. The Syllabus Quiz is to help ensure that you understand the course structure, requirements, and expectations. You will have two attempts in your Syllabus Quiz with the highest posted to your grades.
Group Project Sign-Up Sheet
Throughout the semester, you will work in groups to learn in a collaborative environment. You will have four major assignments where you will work in groups–– Mid-Term Project First Draft, Mid-Term Project Final Version, End-Term Project First Draft, and End-Term Project Final Version. These projects represent a major part of your final grade. Therefore, it is crucial that you form your groups well in advance and get to know your group members well before you start your projects. You will form your own groups. Each group will have 4 members with the following roles:
- Initiator: One who initiates the start of work, communicates with the group members to ensure that ALL the group members come together and start the work. If there is a conflict in the group, the Initiator would initiate the required communication to mitigate the conflict. If the conflict is beyond the scope of the group to solve, the Initiator should contact the instructor of the course.
- Facilitator: One who facilitates idea generation and encourages ALL the group members to share their ideas on the project. After discussion, the Facilitator ensures that the final ideas for the project have been determined with a consensus before moving forward.
- Timekeeper: One who creates internal deadlines for the group after discussing with ALL the group members and makes sure that the required tasks by ALL the group members are completed by those deadlines. If any group member is found to be inactive and unable to meet the deadlines, the Timekeeper would work with the other group members to discuss the situation, adjust the internal deadlines and workload if needed. Please note that the final deadline on Canvas will not be adjusted due to group-conflict related situations.
- Organizer: One who makes sure that the project adheres to the project guidelines and no required elements are missed. The organizer proofreads and compiles the final work together in a cohesive single work with a logical flow. The Organizer ensures that the final project/assignment is submitted by the due date and time.
For completing the Group Project Sign-Up Sheet Assignment, you need to do the following:
- Identify your group members.
- Contact the group members to make sure they are willing and available to work with you
- Come together as a group (e.g., having a group Zoom call is a good idea!) and discuss the group member roles as described above.
- Note each group member’s role in the group and their contact information.
- Give your group a unique name of your choice.
- Go to the page on Canvas under the heading “Group Project Sign-Up Sheet” (look at the left-hand-side menu on Canvas).
- Click Edit on the Page. Once the editable page opens, type in the information for your group (e.g., group name, names of all the group members, and their respective roles.)
- Hit the save button. Make sure that the information that you entered has been successfully saved.
- Submit Assignment: Name of your group members and group name. Due 9/8 at 11:59 p.m.
Introduction to Module Quizzes
In Weeks 2, 4, 6, 10, and 14, new topics, concepts, and theories related to consumer experience are introduced. After watching the lecture videos and going through the related PowerPoint presentations (posted on Canvas under the respective modules), take the corresponding quizzes (e.g., Quiz 1 in Week 2, Quiz 2 in Week 4, Quiz 3 in Week 6, Quiz 4 in Week 10, and Quiz 5 in Week 14). The questions will be directly related to the topics, concepts, and theories that are covered in the lecture videos and the PowerPoint presentations. There are multiple-choice questions, fill-in-the-blanks, and true/false questions. In total, there are 20 questions in each quiz. Each quiz has a time limit of 120 minutes. There is a maximum allowed attempts of 2 for each of the quizzes. The highest of the two grades will be posted.
Case Study Quizzes
In Weeks 3, 5, 7, 11, and 15, the lectures discuss some case studies related to the topics, concepts, and theories covered in the previous week (when the module was introduced). After watching the case study videos and going through the related PowerPoint presentations (posted on Canvas under the respective modules), take the corresponding Case Study Quizzes (e.g., Case Study Quiz 1 in Week 3, Case Study Quiz 2 in Week 5, Case Study Quiz 3 in Week 7, Case Study Quiz 4 in Week 11, and Case Study Quiz 5 in Week 15). The case studies are given primarily in the form of videos. Therefore, make sure that you watch all the case study videos and their explanations in the Case Study lecture videos before taking the quizzes. There are multiple choice questions, fill-in-the-blanks, and true/false questions. In total, there are 16 questions in each quiz. One or two questions will be based on imaginary situations where you need to apply your understanding to answer the questions. Each quiz will have a time limit of 150 minutes. The highest grade of the two attempts will be posted.
IBM Module Grades, IBM Final Exam, and IBM Course Completion Certificate
As part of this course, you will enroll in the IBM course: Build Your Own Chatbot Links to an external site.. This is a free course offered by IBM. You just need to sign-up for the IBM cognitive class. There are 7 modules in this course and a final module for taking the final exam. Each week, starting from Week 2, you will complete one module from the IBM course and post your grades from the IBM quizzes from that respective module on Canvas. Please note that you need to score a minimum of 80% to pass a module in the IBM course. Therefore, make sure you understand the content in a specific module before taking the quiz. If you have doubts/questions regarding any topic which are not answered in the course, you are highly encouraged to post your questions/comments/thoughts in the Canvas Student Discussion page for that week. You are also highly encouraged to answer any question that your classmates post on the Discussion section. I will monitor this discussion and share my answers/thoughts/comments from time-to-time.
By the end of Week 9, you should be able to complete all the modules and the final exam in the IBM course. Make sure that you post your module grades, final exam grade, and the final course completion from IBM on Canvas by the due dates posted in the course schedule.
Mid-Term Project
You will submit a detailed report in a WordDoc (please no GoogleDoc please!) file covering the following aspects. There will be three parts to your Mid-Term Project as described below:
- Part 1: In this section, you will analyze your own consumption behavior as a group by using some measurement scales. In Module 1, we learned how consumption patterns could change based on certain individual difference variables such as hedonism, utilitarianism, ethnocentrism, and cosmopolitanism. Use the given scales on Canvas to analyze your own hedonism, utilitarianism, ethnocentrism, and cosmopolitanism. Simply read the statements on the left and mention the degree to which agree/disagree with those statements on a scale of 1-5 (1 = strongly disagree, 2 = disagree, 3 = neither agree nor disagree, 4 = agree, 5 = strongly agree). For any of the variables, if your average score is between 1-2.99, your consumption pattern should have low degrees of those factors, and if your average score is between 3.1-5, your consumption pattern should have high degrees of those factors.
For example, if your average score for hedonism is 1.2 (i.e., between 1-2.99), then you do not go shopping for pleasure, fun, and enjoyment. If your average score for hedonism is 4.4 (i.e., between 3.1-5), you like to go shopping for pleasure, fun, and enjoyment.
Therefore, to analyze your shopping patterns, you will follow the following steps:
- Respond to the given scales on hedonism, utilitarianism, ethnocentrism, and cosmopolitanism.
- Calculate the average score for each of these four variables by adding the total score for each statement and then dividing by the number of statements in that given scale.
- Look at the average score for each of the four variables. Do you have a low average score in any of the variables? Do you have a high average score in any of the variables?
- Now, reflect on the scores as a group. How is a low or high score in a variable reflected in your consumption pattern? For example, if you have scored high in utilitarianism, do you prefer to shop for essential items which have practical utilities rather than for items that would make you feel good? If you have scored high in ethnocentrism, do you prefer products that are made in your country of birth/citizenship? If you have scored high in cosmopolitanism, does your shopping reflect that you prefer products from countries around the globe? Share your scores and examples of consumption patterns in your group. Do you have similar scores as any of your group members? If yes, how is your consumption pattern similar to that of other group members? If not, how is your consumption pattern different from your group members? How are these scores and consumption patterns related to your demographic characteristics (e.g., age, gender, occupation, education), or lifestyles, attitudes, and values?
- Write a detailed report covering all the details from points i-v.
- Part 2: In this section, you will create a marketing strategy to enhance consumer experience utilizing the five senses. In Module 2, we learned different strategies and tools on how different brands are utilizing one or more of the five senses to create a consumer experience. Based on the report in Part 1, identify a brand that caters to consumers having a similar profile as yours (i.e., having similar demographic characteristics, lifestyle, attitudes, and values). Do some research on what the brand is currently doing to enhance consumer experience to utilize one or more of the five senses. Is there any underutilized potential for using any of the senses? What marketing strategy would you recommend for the brand to enhance consumer experience by utilizing all five senses? Please note that it might be challenging to include all five senses in your marketing strategy. Think out of the box and suggest a marketing strategy that would involve ALL the five senses effectively.
- Part 3: In this section, work in your group to utilize your knowledge of creating a chatbot from the IBM course to create a concept of a chatbot for the identified brand in Part 2. To complete this section, you need to complete the following steps:
- Identify a task for the chatbot.
- Determine whether the chatbot will be task-oriented or socially oriented.
- Determine whether to utilize natural language processing or rely only on clickable options, or use a mix of both.
- Determine whether there would be pictures or other multimedia in the chat.
- Determine how to customize the error message (the “Anything else” message).
- Based on the task of the chatbot, generate some ideas for the intents, entities, and anticipated dialog flow. Context variables, although not required, are encouraged to be used.
- List some of the possible variations of user inputs (i.e., intents) due to spelling/grammatical/typing errors, linguistic styles, synonyms of words/alternate forms of constructing sentences.
- Create a table listing all the intents and their corresponding entities. Using these intents and entities, create an anticipated dialog flow.
Please note that you are not developing a chatbot in your Mid-term Project. You are just generating a concept that will guide you in creating a fully functional chatbot for your End-Term Project. Therefore, the ideas that you present in your Mid-Term Project should be practical and achievable for your End-Term Project. While ideating, consider the limitations of the Watson Assistant program that will not allow you to include certain features in the free version. Avoid those features.
In your Mid-Term First Draft, you will submit your completed Mid-Term Project covering all the aspects mentioned in Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. I will give you feedback on your work, and you will make corrections according to that and make the Mid-Term Final Version submission. Please note that the final versions should reflect all the changes that I have suggested in your Mid-Term First Draft submission.
End-Term Project
Based on the chatbot concept in your Mid-Term Project, you will work in as a group and develop a fully functional chatbot as your End-Term Project. For this, you will use the intents, entities, dialog, and context variables (if any) proposed in your Mid-Term Project to develop the chatbot using Watson Assistant. You will create the preview link and share that in your submission along with a 2-3 minute long video demonstrating an ideal conversation between the chatbot and a user. The user could be one of your group members.
In your submission, you would include the following:
- The preview link to your chatbot. Make sure that the link is working before submission.
- A video demonstrating the ideal dialog between the chatbot and a user.
- A one-page written report demonstrating the strengths, weaknesses, and limitations of the Watson Assistant program and the chatbot that you developed here.
In your End-Term First Draft, you will submit your completed End-Term Project with the preview link, video, and the one-page report. I will give you feedback on your work, and you will make corrections according to that and make the End-Term Final Version submission. Please note that the final versions should reflect all the changes that I have suggested in your End-Term First Draft submission.
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