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Marketing

Marketing

  • Faculty
  • Curriculum
  • Seminars & Conferences
  • Awards & Honors
  • Doctoral Students
Overview Faculty Curriculum Seminars & Conferences Awards & Honors Doctoral Students
    • Article

    How to Really Motivate Salespeople

    By: Doug J. Chung

    Field research supports some current compensation practices but calls others into question.

    More Information

    • Article

    How to Really Motivate Salespeople

    By: Doug J. Chung

    Field research supports some current compensation practices but calls others into question.

    More Information

    • Book

    Cambridge Handbook of Consumer Psychology

    By: Norton, Michael I., Derek D. Rucker & Cait Lamberton, eds.

    The handbook provides a comprehensive overview of consumer psychology, examining cutting-edge research at the individual, interpersonal, and societal levels.

    More Information

    • Book

    Cambridge Handbook of Consumer Psychology

    By: Norton, Michael I., Derek D. Rucker & Cait Lamberton, eds.

    The handbook provides a comprehensive overview of consumer psychology, examining cutting-edge research at the individual, interpersonal, and societal levels.

    More Information

    • Award

    The New York Times Paywall Case

    By: Vineet Kumar, Bharat Anand, Sunil Gupta & Felix Oberholzer-Gee

    Received The Case Centre's Management Category Award in Marketing

    More Information

    • Award

    The New York Times Paywall Case

    By: Vineet Kumar, Bharat Anand, Sunil Gupta & Felix Oberholzer-Gee

    Received The Case Centre's Management Category Award in Marketing

    More Information

    • Article

    Minimum Advertised Pricing: Patterns of Violation in Competitive Retail Markets

    By: Ayelet Israeli, Eric Anderson, and Anne Coughlan

    We study the extent and depth of MAP violations among online retailers and confront managerial wisdom with empirical data.

    More Information

    • Article

    Minimum Advertised Pricing: Patterns of Violation in Competitive Retail Markets

    By: Ayelet Israeli, Eric Anderson, and Anne Coughlan

    We study the extent and depth of MAP violations among online retailers and confront managerial wisdom with empirical data.

    More Information

    • HBS Case

    Apple Pay

    By: Gupta, Sunil, Shelle M. Santana, & Margaret L. Rodriguez

    What should Apple do to continue the early momentum for the adoption and use of Apple Pay?

    More Information

    • HBS Case

    Apple Pay

    By: Gupta, Sunil, Shelle M. Santana, & Margaret L. Rodriguez

    What should Apple do to continue the early momentum for the adoption and use of Apple Pay?

    More Information

    • Working Paper

    The Comprehensive Effects of Sales Force Management: A Dynamic Structural Analysis of Selection, Compensation, and Training

    By: Doug J. Chung

    More Information

    • Working Paper

    The Comprehensive Effects of Sales Force Management: A Dynamic Structural Analysis of Selection, Compensation, and Training

    By: Doug J. Chung

    More Information

    • Award

    Outstanding Case Teacher

    By: Anita Elberse

    This world-wide Case Centre competition recognizes an excellent practitioner in the case classroom.

    More Information

    • Award

    Outstanding Case Teacher

    By: Anita Elberse

    This world-wide Case Centre competition recognizes an excellent practitioner in the case classroom.

    More Information

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

The Pandemic's Impact on the U.S. Food System

By: Jose B. Alvarez and Natalie Kindred
  • March 2021 |
  • Background Note |
  • Faculty Research
This note is intended not as a comprehensive account but as a starting point for discussion about the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the U.S. food system. Written in late 2020, the note describes, in part through the voices of industry leaders, how the pandemic disrupted supply chains and businesses, demanded new approaches to worker safety, and forced consumers to change how they shopped for food. The note allows students to reflect on how leaders responded to rapidly changing circumstances with limited information, how the pandemic exposed or exacerbated pain points in the food system, and how the pandemic may (or may not) alter industry operations and consumer behavior over the long term.
Keywords: Agribusiness; Risk And Uncertainty; Risk Management; Leadership; Change Management; Safety; Health; Health Pandemics; Disruption; Adaptation; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Retail Industry; Food And Beverage Industry; Agriculture And Agribusiness Industry; Transportation Industry; United States
Citation
Educators
Related
Alvarez, Jose B., and Natalie Kindred. "The Pandemic's Impact on the U.S. Food System." Harvard Business School Background Note 521-065, March 2021.

Artea (A), (B), (C), and (D): Designing Targeting Strategies

By: Eva Ascarza and Ayelet Israeli
  • March 2021 |
  • Supplement |
  • Faculty Research
Power Point Supplement to Teaching Note for HBS No. 521-021,521-022,521-037,521-043. This collection of exercises aims to teach students about 1)Targeting Policies; and 2)Algorithmic bias in marketing—implications, causes, and possible solutions. Part (A) focuses on A/B testing analysis and targeting. Parts (B),(C),(D) Introduce algorithmic bias. The exercises are designed such that the issues of algorithmic bias and discrimination would emerge inductively, “surprising” the students in the act of recommending a strategy that, inadvertently, is discriminating against customers who belong to minority groups. This is achieved via the combination of hands-on exercises, where students would make decisions based on data analyses and visualization, and in-class discussions, where students would defend their proposed strategies, discover the (discriminating) implications of those actions, and discuss possible solutions.
Keywords: Targeted Advertising; Targeting; Algorithmic Data; Bias; A/b Testing; Experiment; Gender; Race; Diversity; Marketing; Customer Relationship Management; Prejudice And Bias; Retail Industry; Apparel And Accessories Industry; Technology Industry; United States
Citation
Purchase
Related
Ascarza, Eva, and Ayelet Israeli. "Artea (A), (B), (C), and (D): Designing Targeting Strategies." Harvard Business School PowerPoint Supplement 521-719, March 2021.

AIM Module 2 Introduction

By: Das Narayandas, Arijit Sengupta and Jonathan Wray
  • March 2021 |
  • Module Note |
  • Faculty Research
Citation
Related
Narayandas, Das, Arijit Sengupta, and Jonathan Wray. "AIM Module 2 Introduction." Harvard Business School Module Note 521-072, March 2021.

eToro: Building the World’s Largest Social Trading Network

By: Elie Ofek
  • March 2021 |
  • Teaching Note |
  • Faculty Research
Citation
Purchase
Related
Ofek, Elie. "eToro: Building the World’s Largest Social Trading Network." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 521-088, March 2021.

Beyond Pajamas: Sizing Up the Pandemic Shopper

By: Ayelet Israeli, Eva Ascarza and Laura Castrillo
  • March 17, 2021 |
  • Other Article |
  • Harvard Business School Working Knowledge
A first look at how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted e-commerce apparel shopping in the US and the UK. Extensive analysis and interactive graphics utilizing millions of transactions. While the pandemic is still playing out, our preliminary investigations suggests that the new e-commerce consumers are turning out to be valuable for online retailers. Companies should use the data they collect from digital interactions to learn about these new customers: How do the new e-commerce customers compare to the pre-pandemic ones? Are they buying the same products at the same rates and prices? Are they returning items in the same rates? What is important for these new customers? Companies should use these insights to deepen their relationships with these new customers—and more newcomers on the way—and delight them with good service and product selection.
Keywords: Retail; Retail Analytics; Consumer; Pandemic; Covid; Covid-19; Apparel; Ecommerce; E-commerce; Online Shopping; Online Apparel; Online Sales; Returns; Crm; Customer Retention; Customer Experience; Customer Value; Digital; Customer Focus And Relationships; Customers; Health Pandemics; Consumer Behavior; Customer Relationship Management; Online Technology; Behavior; Retail Industry; Apparel And Accessories Industry; Technology Industry; United States; United Kingdom
Citation
Read Now
Related
Israeli, Ayelet, Eva Ascarza, and Laura Castrillo. "Beyond Pajamas: Sizing Up the Pandemic Shopper." Harvard Business School Working Knowledge (March 17, 2021).

Blue Meridian Partners (B): Pivoting in a Crisis

By: V. Kasturi Rangan
  • March 2021 |
  • Supplement |
  • Faculty Research
Citation
Related
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Blue Meridian Partners (B): Pivoting in a Crisis." Harvard Business School Supplement 521-091, March 2021.

Blue Meridian Partners (A): Scaling for Impact

By: V. Kasturi Rangan
  • March 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
Citation
Educators
Related
Rangan, V. Kasturi. "Blue Meridian Partners (A): Scaling for Impact." Harvard Business School Case 521-090, March 2021.

M-KOPA: Empowering Lives

By: V. Kasturi Rangan, Wale Lawal and Pippa Tubman Armerding
  • March 2021 |
  • Case |
  • Faculty Research
Citation
Educators
Related
Rangan, V. Kasturi, Wale Lawal, and Pippa Tubman Armerding. "M-KOPA: Empowering Lives." Harvard Business School Case 521-085, March 2021.
More Publications

In the News

    • 07 Apr 2021
    • Washington Post

    Aubrey Bledsoe’s present is on the soccer pitch. Her future, she hopes, is in the boardroom.

    By: Anita Elberse
    • 02 Apr 2021
    • Harvard Business School

    Salary Negotiations: A Catch-22 for Women

    Re: Julian Zlatev
    • 29 Mar 2021
    • Harvard Business Review

    Research: A Little Recognition Can Provide a Big Morale Boost

    By: Shibeal O'Flaherty, msanders@opm52.hbs.edu & Ashley Whillans
→More Faculty News

HBS Working Knowledge

    • 07 Apr 2021

    How Teams Work: Lessons from the Pandemic

    by Kristen Senzby Kristen Senz
    • 02 Apr 2021

    Salary Negotiations: A Catch-22 for Women

    by Kristen Senz
    • 25 Mar 2021

    Steer Clear of the Blind Spots That Derail Experiments

    by Danielle Kost
→More Working Knowledge Articles

Harvard Business Publishing

    • October 2013
    • Article

    Ferguson's Formula

    By: Anita Elberse and Sir Alex Ferguson
    • March 2021
    • Case

    The U.S. Home Improvement Sector in 2020

    By: Jose Alvarez and David Lane
    • 2018
    • Book

    Driving Digital Strategy: A Guide to Reimagining Your Business

    By: Sunil Gupta
→More Harvard Business Publishing

Seminars & Conferences

Apr 13
  • 13 Apr 2021

Leif Nelson, University of California Berkeley Haas School of Business

Marketing Seminar
→More Seminars & Conferences

Faculty Positions

Harvard Business School seeks candidates in all fields for full time positions. Candidates with outstanding records in PhD or DBA programs are encouraged to apply.
→Learn More

Contact Information

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

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