Design Brief: Marketing Bioengineered Products

Marketing Bioengineered Products

Context

The controversy of bioengineered products has caused governments from around the world to react differently. In Europe, for example, bioengineering is generally regulated from a process approach. This means that governments tell researchers which processes are acceptable and which ones are not. In the United States bioengineering is regulated from a product approach. This means the government regulates what can and cannot be produced. The ban on human cloning is a good example. This approach allows regulation of the bioengineering industry mostly through existing laws and regulations. Despite the regulation of bioengineered products, people all over the world are still worried about safety. To help educate the public and sell more products, companies spend a lot of time and money on advertising. Probably the most apparent example is the modified seeds that are advertised and sold to farmers.

Challenge

Select a bioengineered product and create a comprehensive marketing campaign. The campaign must explain the target audience, the methods you will use to reach this audience, and how you will determine the effectiveness of your campaign. Be sure to include the advertising mediums you will use (e.g., radio, television, Internet, newspaper) and sample ads for each medium.

Objectives

Upon completion of this design brief, students will be able to do the following:

Identify a target audience for a given product.
Identify the ethical, legal, and social issues associated with a bioengineered product.
Select appropriate advertising mediums for a specific audience.
Use creativity in the production of an advertisement.
Analyze the impact of an advertisement.

Materials

Sample advertisements from radio, television, Internet, newspaper, magazines, and other sources
Computers with word processing and Internet software
Computer printers and paper
Optional: Scanner, digital camera, and audio and video equipment

References

Sanders, M.E. (1997). Communication Technology: Today and Tomorrow (2nd ed.). Peoria, IL: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill.

Evaluation

Use the rubric below to evaluate student work. The left column lists the performance elements that correspond to the objectives above. Additional assessment could come from student design portfolios containing brainstorming and documentation of source material.

Excellent / Average / Unacceptable
Identify a target audience for a given product. / The student explains in writing the age, gender, and interests of the target audience. Explanations also include this information for similar products and sales data on these similar products. / The student explains in writing the age, gender, and interests of the target audience. / The student cannot explain in writing the age, gender, and interests of the target audience.
Identify the ethical, legal, and social issues associated with a bioengineered product. / Descriptions include a comprehensive list (>15) of ethical, legal, and social issues. The student can explain each of these issues. / Descriptions include a good list of milestones (6-15) of ethical, legal, and social issues. The student can explain each of these issues. / Descriptions include a short list (1-5) of ethical, legal, and social issues. The student can explain each of these issues.
Select appropriate advertising mediums for a specific audience. / Students select the best radio station, television station, newspaper, and magazine for the demographic they identified in the first objective. Students are also able to write down 5 or more strategies for marketing on the Internet and other nontraditional avenues. / Students select the best radio station, television station, newspaper, and magazine for the demographic they identified in the first objective. Students are also able to write down 1-4 strategies for marketing on the Internet and other nontraditional avenues. / Students cannot select the best radio station, television station, newspaper, and magazine for the demographic they identified in the first objective. Students are not able to write down strategies for marketing on the Internet and other nontraditional avenues.
Analyze the impact of an advertisement. / The student researches advertising campaigns for similar products and can list 5 or more positive and 5 or more negative strategies. The student correctly explains in writing all of the findings. / The student researches advertising campaigns for similar products and can list 1-4 positive and 1-4 negative strategies. The student correctly explains in writing all of the findings. / The student researches advertising campaigns for similar products but cannot list positive or negative strategies.

Bioengineering (8467)Technology Education Service

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