In 1965, Smithtown, Arkansas, had virtually no natural resources, core competencies, human capital advantages, or infrastructure advantages. The local river was impassable and not suitable for transport, and the town had no rail line and no airport. Smithtown’s young population (about 18,000 scattered across two counties) was pretty much stagnant and comparatively less educated than the rest of the United States. Although Smithtown had low-cost land and labour, which was ideal for tourism, it lacked anything that tourists typically looked for and had just a few natural attractions, although nothing spectacular. The town’s leaders wondered what the future would hold and whether there was anything they could do to steer the town’s future direction and avoid its ruin.

In 1965, Smithtown, Arkansas, had virtually no natural resources, core competencies, human capital advantages, or infrastructure advantages. The local river was impassable and not suitable for transport, and the town had no rail line and no airport. Smithtown's young population (about 18,000 scattered across two counties) was pretty much stagnant and comparatively less educated than the rest of the United States. Although Smithtown had low-cost land and labour, which was ideal for tourism, it lacked anything that tourists typically looked for and had just a few natural attractions, although nothing spectacular. The town's leaders wondered what the future would hold and whether there was anything they could do to steer the town's future direction and avoid its ruin.

This note provides an overview of the elements of marketing strategy, and explains how they can be applied in the public and not-for-profit sectors. Elements necessary for a successful marketing strategy (segmentation, pricing (including price discrimination), product design, place/distribution, and promotion) are examined, and then applied to public sector examples, such as: NYC's Municipal Identification Card program, a hypothetical needle exchange program, and mass transit systems. This note concludes with practical advice for implementing a marketing strategy.

European municipalities, eager to increase the use of environmentally friendly forms of public transportation, offered bicycle sharing programs as adjuncts to their public transportation systems. This case focuses on the bicycle sharing systems in three mid-sized European cities: Mainz, Germany, Lille, France and Antwerp, Belgium. The case describes the market segments within each city and lays out the marketing mix variables-the 4Ps (product, price, place and promotion)-to allow students to compare and contrast the cities' opportunities and challenges. The protagonist in each city is charged with using the marketing mix to help his or her city reach its goals: in Mainz, to reach breakeven; in Lille, to increase bicycle usage from 2% to 10% and in Antwerp, to persuade drivers to commute by bicycle instead of by car. Case number 2030