7B003B - Audience Insight and Storytelling 01 Sep 2026 - 31 Aug 2032 | Version 0

Associated Module Information

Module Code: 7B003B
Module Title: Audience Insight and Storytelling
Faculty: Faculty of Business and Creative Industries
Faculty Group: Fashion, Marketing and Photography
Faculty Sub Group: Marketing
Module Leader: Sofia Christidi
Module Team: Jackie Harris, Michael Parsons, Alexandra Hollyman
First Intended Intake: SEP 2026 Final Year of Intake: 2031
Date Closed:
Credit Value: 30 Credit Level: 7
Language: English
Percentage of Module Taught in Welsh: 30
Equivalent Module:
HECOS codes: 100440 - digital media
HECOS Code Weighting: 100

Document Version Information

Version 0
Valid From 01 Sep 2026
Valid To 31 Aug 2032

Module Aims

The main aims of the module are: 

  • To provide students with a framework for understanding audience and consumer behaviour within the contemporary communication and business landscape. 

  • To enable students to apply audience insights to the creation of compelling stories and innovative, sustainable audience experiences across physical and digital channels. 

  • To foster students’ skills in developing audience empathy, alongside creativity, sustainability and innovation in storytelling, communication and experience design. 

Content Summary

Understanding audiences lies at the heart of organisations that seek to create meaningful and enduring value. This module explores how insights into consumer and audience behaviour can inform the development of compelling stories, experiences, and strategies. Students will examine key theories of consumer psychology and apply research-informed approaches to uncover motivations, perceptions, and decision-making processes across diverse contexts. 

With a strategic and creative mindset, students will learn how audience insights can shape narratives, content, and customer experiences across physical and digital touchpoints. The module ultimately aims to develop reflective, innovative marketing professionals who can blend analytical insight with storytelling craft to engage, influence, and inspire audiences in a rapidly evolving communication landscape. 

Learning and Teaching Methods

Activity Type Hours
Guided Study 184
Practical Classes and Workshops 56
Summative Assessment 60
Total Hours Selected 300

Learning Outcomes

# Learning Outcome
LO1 Critically evaluate audience and consumer behaviour theories and data to generate insight that informs strategic, ethical, and sustainable storytelling and communication opportunities.
LO2 Apply audience insight to create innovative, meaningful, and sustainable storytelling and experience strategies across physical and digital touchpoints.

Module Requisites

N/A

Assessment Criteria

Assessment Category Assessment Type Description Duration Word Count Weight (%) Best of? Pass Mark
Asynchronous Assessment Portfolio Group Audience Insight & Storytelling Plan (50%) In this component, students will form small groups to research and interpret a defined audience segment, developing evidence-based insights that inform a strategic storytelling or communication campaign. This collaborative process reflects professional practice, where strategy, creativity, and audience empathy converge to drive purposeful and ethical communication. Individual Insight Portfolio (50%) The Individual Insight Portfolio is designed to extend and deepen the learning generated through the group campaign by foregrounding individual critical reflection, reflexivity, and professional self-evaluation. A reflection of the professional aspects of management and leadership of self, others and implementation of practice. 20 2000 100 No 40

Assessment Matrix

Assessment Type Learning Outcomes
LO1 LO2
Portfolio ✔ ✔

Reading List

Week 1 – Understanding the Audience Landscape 

Essential Reading 

  • Solomon, M. R., Bamossy, G., Askegaard, S., & Hogg, M. K. (2023). Consumer Behaviour: A European Perspective (8th ed.). Pearson. 
    ? Chapters 1–2: Understanding consumer behaviour and the role of values. 

  • Arnould, E. J., & Thompson, C. J. (2018). Consumer Culture Theory: Research in Consumer Behaviour, 20(1), 3–22. 
    ? Foundational article introducing cultural perspectives in audience behaviour. 

Supplementary Reading 

  • Kahneman, D. (2012). Thinking, Fast and Slow. Penguin. 
    ? Insight into cognitive biases shaping audience decision-making. 

  • Cova, B., Kozinets, R. V., & Shankar, A. (Eds.) (2012). Consumer Tribes. Routledge. 
    ? Explores sociocultural aspects of audiences and communities. 

Week 2 – The Consumer Decision-Making Journey 

Essential Reading 

  • Lemon, K. N., & Verhoef, P. C. (2016). Understanding customer experience throughout the customer journey. Journal of Marketing, 80(6), 69–96. 

  • Stickdorn, M., Hormess, M. E., Lawrence, A., & Schneider, J. (2018). This is Service Design Doing. O’Reilly Media. 
    ? Chapters on customer journey mapping and experience co-creation. 

Supplementary Reading 

  • Rawson, A., Duncan, E., & Jones, C. (2013). The truth about customer experience. Harvard Business Review, 91(9), 90–98. 

  • Schmitt, B. (2011). Experiential Marketing: How to Get Customers to Sense, Feel, Think, Act, Relate. Free Press. 

Week 3 – Profiling and Segmenting Audiences 

Essential Reading 

  • Dibb, S., Simkin, L., Pride, W. M., & Ferrell, O. C. (2020). Marketing: Concepts and Strategies (8th ed.). Cengage Learning. 
    ? Chapters on segmentation, targeting, and positioning. 

  • Cooper, A., Reimann, R., Cronin, D., & Noessel, C. (2014). About Face: The Essentials of Interaction Design (4th ed.). Wiley. 
    ? Sections on persona development and empathy mapping. 

Supplementary Reading 

  • Kotler, P., Kartajaya, H., & Setiawan, I. (2021). Marketing 5.0: Technology for Humanity. Wiley. 
    ? Integrates digital empathy and human-centric segmentation. 

  • O’Brien, H. L., & Toms, E. G. (2010). The development and evaluation of a survey to measure user engagement. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 61(1), 50–69. 

Week 4 – From Insight to Story: Crafting Meaningful Narratives 

Essential Reading 

  • Fog, K., Budtz, C., Munch, P., & Blanchette, S. (2010). Storytelling: Branding in Practice (2nd ed.). Springer. 

  • Simmons, A. (2006). The Story Factor: Inspiration, Influence, and Persuasion Through the Art of Storytelling. Basic Books. 

Supplementary Reading 

  • Escalas, J. E. (2004). Narrative processing: Building consumer connections to brands. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 14(1–2), 168–180. 

  • Denning, S. (2011). The Leader’s Guide to Storytelling: Mastering the Art and Discipline of Business Narrative. Jossey-Bass. 

Week 5 – Live Client Project: Evaluating Audience Engagement 

Essential Reading 

  • Keller, K. L. (2012). Strategic Brand Management: Building, Measuring, and Managing Brand Equity (4th ed.). Pearson. 
    ? Chapters on brand resonance and consumer-brand relationships. 

  • Schultz, D. E., & Schultz, H. F. (2004). IMC: The Next Generation: Five Steps for Delivering Value and Measuring Returns Using Marketing Communication. McGraw-Hill. 

Supplementary Reading 

  • Hatch, M. J., & Schultz, M. (2008). Taking Brand Initiative: How Companies Can Align Strategy, Culture, and Identity Through Corporate Branding. Jossey-Bass. 

  • Balmer, J. M. T., & Greyser, S. A. (2006). Corporate marketing: Integrating corporate identity, corporate branding, corporate communications, and corporate reputation. European Journal of Marketing, 40(7/8), 730–741. 

Week 6 – Disruption, Trends, and the Future Audience 

Essential Reading 

  • Euromonitor International (Annual). Top 10 Global Consumer Trends Report. 
    ? Latest insight into evolving audience behaviours. 

  • Kotler, P., & Sarkar, C. (2018). Brand Activism: From Purpose to Action. Idea Bite Press. 

Supplementary Reading 

  • Holt, D. (2002). Why do brands cause trouble? A dialectical theory of consumer culture and branding. Journal of Consumer Research, 29(1), 70–90. 

  • McCracken, G. (2020). Chief Culture Officer: How to Create a Living, Breathing Corporation. Basic Books. 

Week 7 – Integration and Reflection: Insight to Impact 

Essential Reading 

  • Baines, P., Fill, C., & Page, K. (2019). Essentials of Marketing (6th ed.). Oxford University Press. 
    ? Integrative chapters on strategy development and communication impact. 

  • Gray, D. E. (2018). Doing Research in the Real World (4th ed.). Sage. 
    ? For synthesising insights and reflective practice. 

Supplementary Reading 

  • Gibbs, G. (1988). Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods. Oxford Polytechnic. 

  • Schon, D. A. (1983). The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think in Action. Basic Books. 

 

Additional General Resources 

  • (Available throughout the module to support research, enterprise, and employability development.) 

  • Journals: 

  • Journal of Consumer Research 

  • Journal of Marketing 

  • Journal of Brand Management 

  • International Journal of Advertising 

  • Harvard Business Review 

  • Professional & Industry Resources: 

  • Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) Knowledge Hub 

  • Market Research Society (MRS) Insight Toolkit 

  • Think with Google 

  • WARC Case Study Library