Geographic Information Systems in Marketing

The goal of this project is to integrate Geographic Information Systems (GIS) into higher education marketing curriculums. Several different industries are already utilizing GIS in their business forecasting and activities. These businesses recognize the numerous advantages that GIS affords them. Therefore, there is a job market for people with experience using GIS. This research project was launched to capitalize on the innovative use of GIS to enhance the teaching curriculum. Spatially Enabling the Marketing Curriculum is a series of GIS software modules constructed for the use of students enrolled in college marketing courses. Presently, there is one module being used to test the effectiveness of GIS in a retail management course. The module is entitled Retail Site Selection in San Francisco. While students study course material on GIS, they are exposed to the retail module and asked to use the software to determine where to locate a new Better Books store in San Francisco. We have tested this module for three semesters and have made improvements to it throughout that time period. The improvements were largely based on the feedback gleaned from students\u27 evaluation surveys. This project will continue as we add additional modules to be tested in the marketing courses. For example, we plan to add a module for consumer behavior courses that addresses demographic, lifestyle and purchasing behavior patterns. Similarly, a module for a marketing research course will focus on the use of socioeconomic and demographic data to create customer profiles