Direct Sales - Publications - Faculty & Research

21 Apr 2021
Research & Ideas

The Pandemic Conversations That Leaders Need to Have Now

organization doesn’t seem psychologically safe, create venues for honest questions and ideas. Find a channel for people who have concerns they may not want to bring to their direct supervisors. In meetings, allow people to submit... View Details

Keywords: by Boris Groysberg, Robin Abrahams, and Katherine Connolly Baden

06 Aug 2019
Cold Call Podcast

Super Bowl Ads Sell Products, but Do They Sell Brands?

surprisingly then, the day after the Super Bowl, the sales of antacids are higher by about 20 percent. Sixteen million people call in sick to work. The week leading up to the game there's a Super Bowl lift in categories like condiments,... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Sports; Entertainment & Recreation; Media & Broadcasting

19 Sep 2016
Research & Ideas

Why Isn't Business Research More Relevant to Business Practitioners?

not see their role ‘as an enabler of direct public participation in decision-making through formats such as deliberative meetings, and do not believe there are personal benefits for investing in these activities.’ And yet if society is to... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Education

30 Jan 2020
Research & Ideas

The Upside of Highlighting a Product's Downsides

When booking an international flight, the choice often comes down to “expensive but direct” or “cheap with connections.” But what if an airline warned customers that the direct flight was frequently delayed? Would customers appreciate... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

Web

2024 Reunion Presentations - Alumni

create a more fulfilling and productive employment experience for all. Business Development in a World That Never Stops Changing Senior Lecturer Frank Cespedes + More Info - Slides – Less Info - Slides Selling and sales management... View Details

01 Feb 2002
News

It's academic. (Not!)

School's investment in its doctoral programs creates intellectual capital with widespread effects. After receiving their degrees, most graduates of the DBA and Ph.D. programs go on to influential faculty positions at HBS and other top business schools.What they have... View Details

Keywords: Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services

09 Jul 2018
Research & Ideas

Overcoming the Challenges of Selling Brand New Technology (Hey, Need a 3-D Printer?)

company would be able to retain its direct connection. Ironically, much of the work of the salesforce lay in convincing buyers that the desktop printers weren’t “too good to be true,” and that a reliable printer could be produced at such... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Technology; Consumer Products; Electronics; Industrial Products; Information Technology; Manufacturing; Medical Devices & Supplies; Retail

14 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

Restarting Under Uncertainty: Managerial Experiences from Around the World

client-centric approach. It intensified virtual interactions with customers, merged sales and customer service, and boosted integration of all databases, which had been spread across functions, into a single customer resource management... View Details

Keywords: by Raffaella Sadun, Andrea Bertoni, Alexia Delfino, Giovanni Fassio, and Mariapaola Testa

03 May 2010
Research & Ideas

What Is the Future of MBA Education?

say your book offers a compass, not a roadmap: it points readers in a direction but doesn't tell them exactly which path to take. Datar: The right answer for each school depends on that school's strategy, challenges, constraints, and... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Education

01 Mar 2003
News

Books

includes real-life case examples, Connecting the Dots gives managers the tools to make the most of their technology- and projectrelated investments as they optimize expenditures on the new business frontier. — Deborah Blagg Selling China by Yasheng Huang (Cambridge... View Details

Keywords: Deborah Blagg; Publishing Industries (except Internet); Information

15 Nov 2010
Lessons from the Classroom

Connecting Goals and Go-To-Market Initiatives

indicates that while production efficiencies have enabled an average S&P 500 company to reduce the cost of goods sold by about 250 basis points over the past decade, SG&A (selling, general and administrative costs) as a percentage of revenue has not declined.... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Retail

05 Dec 2007
Sharpening Your Skills

Sharpening Your Skills: Managing Marketing

Cannibalizing Direct Sales? Working Paper: Adding Bricks to Clicks—The Effects of Store Openings on Sales through Direct ChannelsConsider a retailer who operates both... View Details

Mary Kay Ash

Ash created a successful cosmetics company by and for women by utilizing a direct sales force and creative motivational sales techniques. At the end of its first year, Mary Kay... View Details

Keywords: Personal Care & Home Products

J. Chadbourn Bolles

Under Bolles dynamic direction which spanned 34 years, Chadbourn grew from a small hosiery operation with $500,000 in annual sales to an international and diversified textile and apparel complex with $68... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

03 Aug 2015
Research & Ideas

Why Fierce Competitors Apple and Amazon Became ’Frenemies’ Over eReaders

through the App Store. Making Up For Lost Sales Those different strategies do more than just reduce competition between the two platforms, they also actually drive them to work together. "By making Kindle Reader available on the iPad,... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Information; Publishing; Technology

Charles S. Mott

Under Mott’s management, the family owned company grew into a key supplier of automobile parts for General Motors. Realizing the great future of the automobile industry, Mott changed the firm’s activity from bicycle wheel production and sold the Mott Cider and Vinegar... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

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