Faculty & Research

Marketing

Marketing

Overview Faculty Curriculum Seminars & Conferences Awards & Honors Doctoral Students

About the Unit

Marketing is critical for organic growth of a business and its central role is in creating, communicating, capturing and sustaining value for an organization. Marketing helps a firm in creating value by better understanding the needs of its customers and providing them with innovative products and services. This value is communicated through a variety of channels as well as through the firm's branding strategy. Effective management of customers and pricing allows the firm to capture part of the value it has created. Finally, by building an effective customer-centric organization a firm attempts to sustain value over time.

Our faculty addresses a broad array of topics in all of these areas. Our work attempts to get a better understanding of how consumers use information and make choices and how these choices affect the firm's strategy for new product development, customer relationship management, branding and other marketing efforts. We examine issues related to branding, business marketing, global marketing, distribution channels, pricing, direct and interactive marketing, sales management and return on marketing investment. Some of our faculty specializes in specific industries such as retailing, agribusiness, social enterprise, media, arts and entertainment.

There are several new developments in marketing that offer opportunities for us to make important contributions in the future. The current economic crisis is changing consumers' current and future purchase and consumption patterns. Search engines have changed the way consumers obtain information and make decisions and they are also dramatically changing the advertising industry. Social networks and user generated content have opened a new way for consumers to engage with each other as well as with brands and companies. There are significant changes in the attitudes of consumers and companies about social issues. Consumer preferences and choice of products are increasingly influenced by social factors. Companies are recognizing that there is a large market at the "bottom of the pyramid" and marketing to these consumers may require a new framework. These and related developments provide great opportunities for the marketing faculty to make a significant impact in the future.

Recent Publications

AptDeco: Circular Economy Furniture Marketplace

By: Ayelet Israeli and Jamie Merkrebs
  • February 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
AptDeco, a used furniture marketplace was growing rapidly in the tri-state area. The Co-Founders were confident that the business model, financial position, and unit economics positioned AptDeco for scaling in the massive $120 billion furniture market, despite its complexity and high costs. The co-founders were looking at different options to scale: working to convert sellers into buyers and vice versa, finding superusers that would fuel the supply for their platform, expand to new markets, rebrand with a sustainability focus. What is the best way for them to scale?
Keywords: E-commerce; E-commerce Strategy; Mobile; Digital Marketing; Word-of-mouth; Word-of-mouth Marketing; Word Of Mouth; Internet Marketing; Growth And Development Strategy; Growth Strategy; Platform; Platforms; Two Sided Markets; Two-sided Market; Two-sided Marketplace; Two-sided Markets; Two-sided Platforms; Two-sided Network; Black Entrepreneurs; Black Leadership; African Americans; Circular; Peer-to-peer Markets; Furniture Industry; Furniture; Growth Hacking; Monetization Strategy; Growth Management; Marketing Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Market Platforms; Marketing Channels; Online Advertising; Consumer Behavior; Acquisition; Growth And Development Strategy; Customer Focus And Relationships; Retail Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Technology Industry; Web Services Industry; United States; North America; New York (city, Ny); New York (state, Us)
Related

Rolex SA

By: Doug J. Chung
  • February 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
Rolex SA was one of the most successful watchmakers in the world. In recent years, the global demand for Rolex watches, especially the stainless-steel sports models, had dramatically increased, resulting in a supply shortage worldwide. The shortage in supply further increased the desirability of Rolex watches, leading to a significant increase in demand. High demand coupled with low supply increased prices in the gray and secondhand markets. This case study examines the high-end watch industry and discusses an organization’s objective and related pricing and channel strategies.
Keywords: Marketing; Strategy
Related

Customer Lifetime Social Value (CLSV)

By: Elie Ofek, Barak Libai and Eitan Muller
  • February 2021 |
  • Supplement |
  • Faculty Research
Related

Arçelik: COVID-19 Fueled Omnichannel Growth (B)

By: Ayelet Israeli and Fares Khrais
  • February 2021 |
  • Supplement |
  • Faculty Research
Related

Tencent: Combining Technology and Culture

By: Elie Ofek
  • February 2021 |
  • Teaching Note |
  • Faculty Research
Related

CLSV Spreadsheet Supplement

By: Elie Ofek, Barak Libai and Eitan Muller
  • February 2021 |
  • Supplement |
  • Faculty Research
Related

Customer Lifetime Social Value (CLSV)

By: Elie Ofek, Barak Libai and Eitan Muller
  • February 2021 |
  • Teaching Note |
  • Faculty Research
Related

Latinos and the MBA Option

By: José B. Alvarez, Lulu Curiel and Eric Calderon
  • January 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
Related
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Contact Information

Marketing Unit
Harvard Business School
Morgan Hall
Soldiers Field
Boston, MA 02163
Marketing@hbs.edu