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• Article | Marketing Science | November–December 2020

  Lifting the Veil: The Benefits of Cost Transparency

  Bhavya Mohan, Ryan W. Buell and Leslie K. John

  Firms do not typically disclose information on their costs to produce a good to consumers. However, we provide evidence of when and why doing so can increase consumers’ purchase interest. Specifically, building on the psychology of disclosure and trust, we posit that cost transparency, insofar as it represents an act of sensitive disclosure, fosters trust. In turn, this heightened trust enhances consumers’ willingness to purchase from that firm. In support of this account, we present six studies, conducted in the field and in the lab. A pre-registered field experiment indicated that diners were 21.1% more likely to buy a bowl of chicken noodle soup when a sign revealing its ingredients also included the cafeteria’s costs to make it. Five subsequent online experiments replicated and extended this basic effect, providing evidence of when and why it occurs. Taken together, these studies imply that the proactive revelation of costs can improve a firm’s bottom line.

  Keywords: cost transparency; disclosure; field experiment; Cost; Trust; Consumer Behavior;

  Citation:

  Mohan, Bhavya, Ryan W. Buell, and Leslie K. John. "Lifting the Veil: The Benefits of Cost Transparency." Special Issue on Marketing Science and Field Experiments. Marketing Science 39, no. 6 (November–December 2020): 1105–1121.  View Details

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• Case | HBS Case Collection | October 2016 (Revised October 2020)

  Essent: From a State-Owned Utility to a Commercial Company

  Ananth Raman and Elena Corsi

  Patrick Lammers, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) for the Dutch energy company Essent NV, once a state-owned company, was pleased with the progress Essent’s consumer (“B2C”) business had made: Earnings Before Income Tax (EBIT) for B2C had gone from a loss of €18 million in 2010 to a profit of €149 million in 2014; churn rates had decreased, and customer satisfaction had increased. The B2C brand had become a leader in the fully liberalized Dutch market. Behind B2C's performance there had been a strong focus on marketing, an optimization of the channel mix, and also changes in the company's operations by adopting lean management tools. Despite the strong performance of Essent's B2C business, Essent's B2B business had instead seen its profits drastically decrease from €47 million in 2011, to minus €15 million in 2015. For 2016, B2B expected to report €15 million losses. While pondering the reasons behind the difference in performance between B2B and B2C, Lammers wondered what Essent should do to improve its B2B business.

  Keywords: lean management; operation management; service management; Commercialization; Operations; Management; Energy; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Service Operations; Performance; Energy Industry; Europe;

  Citation:

  Raman, Ananth, and Elena Corsi. "Essent: From a State-Owned Utility to a Commercial Company." Harvard Business School Case 617-026, October 2016. (Revised October 2020.)  View Details

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• Supplement | HBS Case Collection | October 2020

  Essent: From a State-Owned Utility to a Commercial Company (B)

  Ananth Raman and Elena Corsi

  Keywords: lean management; operation management; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Energy Industry; Netherlands;

  Citation:

  Raman, Ananth, and Elena Corsi. "Essent: From a State-Owned Utility to a Commercial Company (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 621-038, October 2020.  View Details

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