Publications

Helene Hall is a doctoral student in the Business Economics program at Harvard University. Prior to coming to Harvard, she worked as a research analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and studied economics and mathematics at Williams College. Her main research... View Details

Article

Sadness, Identity, and Plastic in Over-shopping: The Interplay of Materialism, Poor Credit Management, and Emotional Buying Motives in Predicting Compulsive Buying

By: Grant Edward Donnelly, Masha Ksendzova and Ryan Howell

A comprehensive study is currently lacking to explain why material values strongly influence compulsive buying. The goal of the current study is to test if money management, buying motivations for improving mood and identity, and self-transformation expectations... View Details

Keywords: Credit Cards; Consumer Behavior; Identity; Emotions

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Article

Red Light States: Who Buys Online Adult Entertainment?

By: Benjamin Edelman

This paper studies the adult online entertainment industry, particularly the consumption side of the market. In particular, it focuses on the demographics and consumption patterns of those who subscribe to adult entertainment websites. On the surface, this business... View Details

Keywords: Online Technology; Segmentation; Film Entertainment; Demographics; Web Sites; Competition; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Demand and Consumers; Legal Liability; Culture; Religion; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States

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Read Now

September 1995 (Revised December 1997)
Case

Philip Morris: Marlboro Friday (A)

By: Alvin J. Silk and Bruce Isaacson

On April 2, 1993 Philip Morris USA launched an elaborate integrated program of consumer and retail promotions of unspecified duration that effectively slashed the retail price of its flagship brand, Marlboro, by 20% in the U.S. market. This program represented a major... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Price; Marketing Strategy; Market Participation; Brands and Branding; Consumer Products Industry; United States

Video

Vimal Shah

Vimal Shah, Co-Founder and Chairman of Kenya-based Bidco Africa, outlines his focus on fast-moving consumer goods, emphasizing the importance of adapting to consumer demands and a growing population, while leveraging technologies such as fintech to support sustainable... View Details

02 May 2016
Blog Post

5 Facts about Clubs at HBS

many options at HBS, participating in student-run clubs can be a great way both to explore interests and meet some of your closest HBS friends. Here are five things we think you should know. 1. Clubs are a... View Details

Elisabeth Kempf

Elisabeth Kempf is an Associate Professor in the Finance Unit, teaching Finance 1 to MBA students. She is also a Faculty Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) and a Research Affiliate at the Centre for Economic Policy and Research... View Details

Alex Magnuson

I am a doctoral student in the business economics program. I received a B.A. in Economics from Dartmouth College in 2019 and my main interests are in the topics of international trade and urban economics. My current research focuses on the role of big... View Details

26 Oct 2010
News

Cool. So we are not alone

Article

Brand (In)fidelity: When Flirting with the Competition Strengthens Brand Relationships

By: Irene Consiglio, Daniella Kupor, Francesca Gino and Michael I. Norton

We document the existence and consequences of brand flirting: a short-lived experience in which a consumer engages with and/or indulges in the alluring qualities of a brand without committing to it. We propose that brand flirting is exciting and that when consumers... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Behavior; Brands and Branding; Emotions

Jorge Colmenares graduated from Yale College in 2020, where he studied Economics and Mathematics. Prior to graduate school, he worked as a research assistant for Profs. Lawrence Schmidt and Taha Choukhmane at MIT Sloan School of Management. His research... View Details

October 2006 (Revised August 2007)
Case

RKS Guitars

By: Elie Ofek, Thomas J. Steenburgh, Michael I. Norton and Kerry Herman

RKS has designed a revolutionary electric guitar and needs to decide how to best market their innovation. The iconic status of existing electric guitars, and the lack of any recent radical innovations in the category, pose challenges in securing consumer adoption. If... View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Invention; Marketing Strategy; Product Launch; Consumer Behavior; Product Design; Adoption

16 Apr 2020
Research & Ideas

Has COVID-19 Broken the Global Value Chain?

The coronavirus pandemic has not only disrupted lives and businesses, it has illuminated underlying fragilities in the global value chain (GVC) that drives economies around the world. The smartphone you use many times daily is a product View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

Isamar Troncoso

Isamar Troncoso is an Assistant Professor of Business Administration in the Marketing Unit at HBS. She teaches the Marketing course in the MBA required curriculum.

Professor Troncoso studies problems related to digital marketplaces and new technologies. She... View Details

Keywords: e-commerce industry; high technology; retailing

July 2005 (Revised April 2006)
Case

Idea Village (A)

By: Joseph B. Lassiter III and Dan Heath

Andy Khubani, the CEO of Idea Village, a company that markets to consumers via direct-response TV ads, must decide whether to launch a campaign touting a hair removal product for women. Explains the direct-response industry and contrasts its methodology with... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Channels; Gender; Consumer Products Industry

26 May 2009
Research & Ideas

Improving Market Research in a Recession

product categories, or stores. Some are even changing long-held attitudes toward consumption. To many folks, filling the home with more stuff or keeping up with the Joneses is no longer appealing. As a result, the degree of uncertainty in... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch

1985
Working Paper

Sequential Innovation and Market Structure

By: Jerry R. Green and Jean-Jacques Laffont

This paper concerns the introduction of a sequence of new, higher-quality durable products in a market in which there already exists a lower-quality substitute. The product has the further attribute that a real resource cost is incurred at the time a higher-quality... View Details