| Course | MT359 Integrated Marketing Communications |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 1 |
| Paper type | Discussion board post |
| Length | About 430 words, 2 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 discussion post |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | BS in Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MT359 Unit 1
Two Prices in One Year: An MT359 Unit 1 Discussion Post on a Tamale Brand's Radio and Its Grocery Circular
MT359 · Unit 1 Discussion Board Post
Posted by [Student Name]
The tamale company, its figures and the classmate are composite; the pricing research cited is real.
Initial Post
Nogalitos Tamale Co. spent last year quoting shoppers two prices, and the one printed in the circular was the one they believed. I work as a sales coordinator for Nogalitos, a composite family company in San Antonio that sells frozen dozen-packs of pork tamales through about 340 grocery stores in South and Central Texas. Its radio spots and freezer-door clings said the tamales were spread by hand and worth $8.99. Meanwhile, the largest chain carrying the brand ran buy one, get one free in its weekly circular 17 weeks out of 52, close to a third of the year.
The two tools did different things. The radio only asserted quality. The deal changed what happened at the freezer case. Kalyanaram and Winer (1995) review evidence that shoppers judge a price against an internal reference price formed largely from the prices they have seen before. A shopper who sees two bags for $8.99 every third week learns that a bag is really worth about $4.50, and the $8.99 shelf tag starts to look like an overcharge. Our own shopper-card estimate says about 57 percent of the chain's packs moved on deal last year. Mela et al. (1997) found that years of frequent promotion made consumers more sensitive to price, which is the habit our circular has been teaching.
The radio told shoppers what the tamales were worth; the circular showed them, every third week, what they really cost.
One side has to give way. I would keep the premium claim and cut the deal weeks, because a hand-spread tamale sold as a commodity loses to the national machine-made brand on that brand's own ground, price.
Can anyone name a brand whose offers and advertising disagree? Which of the two is telling the truth about where that brand actually competes?
Reply to Jordan
Jordan, you faulted the pizza chain whose ads praise its hand-stretched dough while its app never shows a full price. I wonder whether the discounting is the chain's real position and the dough ads are the piece out of line. If nearly every order goes through a coupon, the brand already competes on price, and the honest fix might be to change the ads rather than the offers. What share of its orders would you guess are discounted?
References
Kalyanaram, G., & Winer, R. S. (1995). Empirical generalizations from reference price research. Marketing Science, 14(3_supplement), G161-G169. https://doi.org/10.1287/mksc.14.3.G161
Mela, C. F., Gupta, S., & Lehmann, D. R. (1997). The long-term impact of promotion and advertising on consumer brand choice. Journal of Marketing Research, 34(2), 248-261. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224379703400205
Reading the MT 359 Unit 1 instructions
The first board of the term asks students to find a brand whose communication tools contradict each other and to say what the contradiction costs. Instructors want the two messages quoted or described side by side, with enough detail to show how often each ran. One concept from the unit reading should explain the damage, rather than a general sense that the campaign felt inconsistent. The post is expected to decide which side should change, since integration can be repaired from either end. A question to classmates closes it. The reply should test a peer's example, perhaps by asking whether the contradiction runs the other way, instead of agreeing with it. Figures about deal buying need a source or a clear label.
Inside the MT359 Unit 1 example
Its opening sentence carries the whole argument: two prices, and shoppers believed the circular. The writer's job at the company appears next, followed by the radio claim and the deal frequency in plain numbers. The second paragraph separates what each tool said from what each tool did, then brings in reference price and the shopper-card estimate. Mela and colleagues explain how frequent deals teach price sensitivity. A highlighted line contrasts what the radio claimed with what the circular showed. The proposal keeps the hand-spread claim and drops the deal weeks, with the reason stated. A question to the thread asks which message tells the truth. In reply, Jordan's pizza chain is turned around: maybe the discount is real and the ads drifted.
MT359 Unit 1 rubric: what earns full points
Marks on an opening IMC post usually reward a named contradiction stated precisely, not a complaint that a campaign lacked polish. Posts that give both messages and how often the offer ran collect the analysis credit. Applying a course concept by name, here reference price, lifts the post above opinion. A clear decision about which side should change earns the application points, because the unit's question is about repair. Citing research on promotions in APA 7 supports figures that would otherwise read as guesses. Posts that list every flaw, from jingle to casting, drift from the prompt. A reply gains by questioning how the classmate read the brand. A question that leaves the thread with a real choice keeps participation credit high.
Common MT359 Unit 1 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Many first posts describe a campaign the writer disliked and never pin down two messages that conflict. Others name the contradiction but leave out how often the deal ran, which is the fact that turns an occasional sale into a pricing lesson for shoppers. Some apply no concept at all. A frequent gap is the missing decision: the post explains the problem and stops. Replies often say great point and add an anecdote. Before you post, write the two messages in two short sentences, add the number of weeks or the share of sales behind the offer, and finish with one sentence saying which message you would change. If you cannot write that last sentence, the post is not ready.
Get an MT359 Unit 1 example written to your instructions
Some Unit 1 boards assign a campaign; others leave the choice to each student. Either way, pass along the brand, the board question and how participation is graded. Back within 24-48h: a post that states the contradiction in two sentences, applies one course concept to it, and adds a reply for a classmate. Nothing is charged for that first one. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
More MT359 papers and BS in Business Administration samples
- MT359 Unit 2: Positioning Statement
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- MT359 Unit 5: Publicity Plan
- MT359 Unit 6: Seminar Reflection
- MT359 Unit 7: Sales Promotion Proposal
- MT359 Unit 8: Media and Budget Plan
- MT359 Unit 9: Evaluation Plan
- MT359 Unit 10: Integrated Campaign Plan
- MT358 Unit 1: Brand Community Misstep Post
- MT357 Unit 1: Retargeting Waste Discussion Post
- MT355 Unit 1: Published Statistic Critique Post
- MT340 Unit 1: Task Conflict Discussion Post
MT359 Unit 1 questions, answered
Can the post use a small or regional brand instead of a national campaign?
Yes, and a regional brand often makes the sharper post, because its circulars, radio spots and store signs are easy to collect side by side. A national campaign works too, but the contradiction has to be documented rather than remembered. Whichever you choose, quote the two conflicting messages directly and give a source or date for each, so classmates can check the reading.
Does a price promotion always contradict premium advertising?
Not always. A rare, well-framed promotion can sit comfortably beside a quality claim, especially one tied to an occasion or a new product. The contradiction appears when the deal runs often enough to reset what buyers expect to pay, or when its wording treats the product as ordinary. Frequency and framing are the two things worth measuring in your post.
How should the reply to a classmate be framed?
As a test of their reading rather than agreement with it. Ask whether the contradiction they found might run the other way, with the offer reflecting the real position and the advertising out of line, or whether a detail they cite has another explanation. Most rubrics reward a reply that adds evidence or a concept the original post did not use.
Where can I find a free MT359 Unit 1 sample paper?
This page holds the full MT359 Unit 1 post and reply, arguing that a tamale brand's grocery circular taught shoppers a lower price than its radio claimed.
Why does the MT359 Unit 1 sample cut the deal weeks rather than the premium claim?
A hand-spread product priced like a commodity competes on the national brand's ground, price, where a regional maker cannot win.