1. (a) Implementation.

   1. (1) The provisions of this section shall be implemented by school districts beginning with the 2025-2026 school year.
   2. (2) School districts shall implement the employability skills student expectations listed in §127.15(d)(1) of this chapter (relating to Career and Technical Education Employability Skills, Adopted 2025) as an integral part of this course.
2. (b) General requirements. This course is recommended for students in Grades 10-12. Recommended prerequisite: Principles of Business, Marketing, and Finance. Students shall be awarded one credit for successful completion of this course.

3. (c) Introduction.

   1. (1) Career and technical education instruction provides content aligned with challenging academic standards and relevant technical knowledge and skills for students to further their education and succeed in current or emerging professions.
   2. (2) The Business, Marketing, and Finance Career Cluster focuses on careers in planning, organizing, directing, and evaluating business functions essential to efficient and productive business operations.
   3. (3) The Marketing course explores the seven core functions of marketing, which include marketing planning -- why target marketing and industry affect businesses; marketing-information management -- why market research is important; pricing -- how prices maximize profit and affect the perceived value; product/service management -- why products live and die; promotion -- how to inform customers about products; channel management -- how products reach the final user; and selling -- how to convince a customer that a product is the best choice. Students will demonstrate knowledge through hands-on projects that may include conducting research, creating a promotional plan, pitching a sales presentation, and introducing an idea for a new product or service.
   4. (4) Students are encouraged to participate in extended learning experiences such as career and technical student organizations and other organizations that foster leadership and career development in the profession such as student chapters of related professional associations.
   5. (5) Statements that contain the word "including" reference content that must be mastered, while those containing the phrase "such as" are intended as possible illustrative examples.

4. (d) Knowledge and skills.

   1. (1) The student defines marketing and identifies the seven core functions of marketing. The student is expected to:

      1. (A) define marketing and explain the marketing concept; and
      2. (B) identify the seven core functions of marketing, including marketing planning, marketing-information management, pricing, product/service management, promotion, channel management, and selling.

   2. (2) The student knows the interrelationship and purpose of the marketing mix or 4P's of marketing: product, price, promotion, and place. The student is expected to:

      1. (A) identify and describe the four elements of the marketing mix, including product, price, place, and promotion;
      2. (B) explain how each component of the marketing mix contributes to successful marketing;
      3. (C) analyze the interdependence of each element of the marketing mix with the other three elements;
      4. (D) develop and present an idea for a new product or service and the marketing mix for the new product or service; and
      5. (E) investigate and explain how to determine the feasibility of a new product or service proposal.

   3. (3) The student knows how a company considers internal and external factors to understand the current market. The student is expected to:

      1. (A) explain the internal and external factors that influence marketing planning;
      2. (B) define a marketing plan and describe each step in the plan;
      3. (C) identify and explain market position and market share;
      4. (D) explain how a business can use a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis to plan for opportunities in the market;
      5. (E) conduct a SWOT analysis; and
      6. (F) analyze the data from a SWOT analysis to make informed business decisions.

   4. (4) The student applies the concepts of market and market identification to make informed business decisions. The student is expected to:

      1. (A) define the term market;
      2. (B) identify the target market for a product or service;
      3. (C) define niche marketing, identify examples of niche marketing, and compare niche marketing to other marketing strategies;
      4. (D) analyze an appropriate target market within a specific industry;
      5. (E) compare types of markets, including business to business and business to consumer; and
      6. (F) identify real-life scenarios of effective markets and explain what makes a market effective.

   5. (5) The student understands the concept of market segmentation. The student is expected to:

      1. (A) define the term market segmentation;
      2. (B) explain the commonly used types of market segmentation, including demographic segmentation, geographic segmentation, psychographic segmentation, and behavioral segmentation;
      3. (C) analyze the impact of culture on buying decisions; and
      4. (D) describe how market segmentation concepts apply to real-world situations.

   6. (6) The student understands the purpose and importance of gathering and evaluating information for use in making business decisions. The student is expected to:

      1. (A) describe marketing information and how it influences marketing decisions;
      2. (B) use marketing-research tools to gather primary and secondary data;
      3. (C) compare primary and secondary research data;
      4. (D) define analytics;
      5. (E) identify sources of data and information that can be analyzed to make business decisions;
      6. (F) identify key business metrics that are used to make business decisions or evaluate outcomes of business decisions; and
      7. (G) analyze data and make recommendations for improving business operations.

   7. (7) The student explains concepts and strategies used in determining and adjusting prices to maximize return and meet customers' perceptions of value. The student is expected to:

      1. (A) investigate and describe how businesses make pricing decisions;
      2. (B) identify and explain goals for pricing, including profit, market share, and competition;
      3. (C) analyze factors affecting price, including supply and demand, perceived value, costs, expenses (profit margin), and competition;
      4. (D) explain the economic principle of break-even point;
      5. (E) explain key pricing terms, including odd/even pricing, loss leaders, prestige pricing, penetration pricing, price bundling, price lining, and everyday low pricing; and
      6. (F) explain how supply and demand affect price.

   8. (8) The student explains the role of product or service management as a marketing function. The student is expected to:

      1. (A) explain the concept of product mix, including product lines, product width, and product depth;
      2. (B) explain the importance of generating new product ideas;
      3. (C) analyze the product mix for a current business;
      4. (D) identify and discuss the components of the product life cycle, including introduction, growth, maturity, and decline; and
      5. (E) identify the impact of marketing decisions made in each stage of the product life cycle.

   9. (9) The student knows the process and methods to communicate information about products to achieve a desired outcome. The student is expected to:

      1. (A) explain the role of promotion as a marketing function;
      2. (B) identify and describe elements of the promotional mix, including advertising, public relations, personal selling, and sales promotion;
      3. (C) describe and demonstrate effective ways to communicate features and benefits of a product to a potential client; and
      4. (D) analyze and evaluate websites for effectiveness in achieving a desired outcome.

   10. (10) The student identifies promotional channels used to communicate with the targeted audiences. The student is expected to:

       1. (A) create advertising examples using various media, including print media such as outdoor, newspapers, magazines, and direct mail; digital media such as email, apps, and social media; and broadcast media such as television and radio, to communicate with target audiences;
       2. (B) describe various public-relations activities such as a press releases and publicity management;
       3. (C) analyze and compare examples of sales promotions such as coupons, loyalty programs, rebates, samples, premiums, sponsorship, and product placement; and
       4. (D) explain the role of marketing ethics in promotional strategies.

   11. (11) The student explores the role of channel members and methods of product transportation. The student is expected to:

       1. (A) define channel of distribution;
       2. (B) describe the roles of intermediaries, including manufacturer, agent, wholesaler/industrial distributor, retailer, and consumer/industrial user, and explain how the roles may impact business decisions and the success of a business;
       3. (C) identify and discuss the methods of transportation for products, including road, air, maritime, rail, and intermodal; and
       4. (D) analyze and explain the impact of the distribution channel on price.

   12. (12) The student demonstrates how to determine client needs and wants and responds through planned and personalized communication. The student is expected to:

       1. (A) explain the role of personal selling as a marketing function;
       2. (B) explain the role of customer service as a component of selling relationships;
       3. (C) explain the importance of preparing for the sale, including gaining knowledge of product features and benefits, identifying the target market and their needs, and overcoming common objections; and
       4. (D) identify and explain ways to determine needs of customers and their buying behaviors, including emotional, rational, or patronage.

   13. (13) The student demonstrates effective sales techniques. The student is expected to:

       1. (A) describe the steps of the selling process such as approaching the customer, determining needs, presenting the product, overcoming objections, closing the sale, and suggestive selling;
       2. (B) explain effective strategies and techniques for various sales situations; and
       3. (C) develop and pitch a sales presentation for a product or service using the steps of the sales process such as addressing customers' needs, wants, and objections and negotiating the sale.

   14. (14) The student implements a marketing plan. The student is expected to:

       1. (A) identify a key target audience;
       2. (B) develop an appropriate message and select a medium to attract customers;
       3. (C) create a promotional plan that includes target market, promotional objective, advertising media selection, promotional schedule, and budget;
       4. (D) develop and present a marketing plan to an audience; and
       5. (E) analyze various marketing plans for effectiveness.

   15. (15) The student knows the nature and scope of project management. The student is expected to:

       1. (A) investigate and describe the various tools available to manage a project such as a Gantt chart; and
       2. (B) define and explain the components of a project plan, including project goals schedule, timeline, budget, human resources, quality management, risk management, monitoring, and controlling a project.

   16. (16) The student knows the nature and scope of ethics in marketing. The student is expected to:

       1. (A) analyze and explain the role and use of ethics in marketing;
       2. (B) research and discuss how ethics has affected a company's profitability; and
       3. (C) describe how marketing ethics can be effectively applied to the decision-making process.

Source Note:The provisions of this §127.262 adopted to be effective August 1, 2025, 50 TexReg 3752.