Publications

29 Jan 2014
Research & Ideas

Super Bowl Ads for Multitaskers

they are not getting everyone they are paying for." The possibility of consumers tuning out during ads is even worse during the rest of the year—when commercials aren't as hyped as they are during the Super Bowl. But advertisers... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Advertising; Advertising

August 2015
Case

Building an e-Commerce Brand at Wayfair

By: Thales Teixeira and Elizabeth Anne Watkins

Wayfair, Inc. comprised five home goods, furniture, and décor e-commerce brands. Wayfair.com, the main brand, which was responsible for the majority of sales, targeted the mass-middle home-goods market. AllModern, DwellStudio, Joss & Main, and Birch Lane were niche... View Details

September 2020 (Revised July 2022)
Technical Note

Algorithmic Bias in Marketing

By: Ayelet Israeli and Eva Ascarza

This note focuses on algorithmic bias in marketing. First, it presents a variety of marketing examples in which algorithmic bias may occur. The examples are organized around the 4 P’s of marketing – promotion, price, place and product—characterizing the marketing... View Details

October 1987 (Revised March 1992)
Supplement

Boston Fights Drugs (B): Converting Research to Action

By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Jennifer Lawrence

Describes the results of the advertising pre-test described in the (A) case. The group must now decide how to implement its findings for maximum impact. View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Welfare; Strategy; Advertising Industry; Boston

June 2013
Supplement

Studio Moderna - Sandi Cesko, CEO, Video Supplement

By: Jim Sharpe

This is the Video Supplement for Studio Moderna - A Venture in Eastern Europe (HBS Case #808110). View Details

May 2013
Supplement

Studio Moderna—A Venture in Eastern Europe

By: Jim Sharpe

This is the Spreadsheet Supplement for Studio Moderna—A Venture in Eastern Europe (HBS Case #808110). Includes Exhibit 3a, Exhibit 3b, Exhibit 5, and Exhibit 6. View Details

Research Summary

Mobile web advertising: maximum entropy banner allocation

The worldwide mobile advertising market, currently $3 billion in size, is expected to grow to $20 billion by 2011. Online and mobile advertising employs two main pricing models: pay-per-click (CPC) and pay-per-impression (CPM). To date, most of the... View Details

June 1989 (Revised May 1993)
Case

Rossin Greenberg Seronick & Hill, Inc. (A)

By: John A. Quelch

Rossin Greenberg Seronick & Hill (RGSH), a New England advertising agency, was keen to secure the account of Microsoft Corp. The case describes the bid for the account, which included the submission of a "flier" referring to knowledge of a competitor's plans, as a... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Marketing; Advertising; Advertising Industry; New England

January 2014 (Revised February 2015)
Case

YouTube for Brands

By: Thales Teixeira and Leora Kornfeld

This case examines the changes employed by YouTube to make the massively popular site more attractive to brands. Building from its base of amateur, user-generated content, YouTube had turned to experimenting with professionally-made content and organizing its videos... View Details

Keywords: Marketing; Internet and the Web; Decision Choices and Conditions; Digital Marketing; Brands and Branding; Advertising Industry; Advertising Industry; Advertising Industry

May 2008
Supplement

Hasbro Games -- POX (A) and (B), Supporting Video

By: Elie Ofek

The video contains advertisements and media related clips regarding the launch of Hasbro's POX handheld game. View Details

Keywords: Media; Advertising; Product Launch; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

September 2000 (Revised November 2000)
Case

GetConnected.com

By: Rajiv Lal, Nilanjana R. Pal and Jodi L. Prins

Describes the situation faced by GCI.com in April 2000, soon after raising $12 million for their new venture. After hiring an advertising agency, management needs to decide on the nature of the advertising campaign to target the right set of customers with the right... View Details

Keywords: Advertising Campaigns; Business Startups; Business or Company Management; Marketing Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Corporate Strategy; Web Services Industry

23 Sep 2008
First Look

First Look: September 23, 2008

Working PapersSecuring Online Advertising: Rustlers and Sheriffs in the New Wild West Author:Benjamin G. Edelman Abstract Read the news of recent computer security guffaws, and it's striking how many problems stem from online advertising. View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

June 2017
Case

Magellan Boatworks

By: John A. Quelch and James T. Kindley

Magellan Boatworks is a midsize manufacturer of customized, power "cruising yachts." In the face of economic and political uncertainty in late 2016, Magellan's VP of sales and marketing, Walt Robinson, wonders whether he should request a budget increase for 2017.... View Details

Keywords: Marketing; Marketing Communications; Advertising; Strategy; Salesforce Management

July 2010 (Revised December 2010)
Case

AdMob (A)

By: Mikolaj Jan Piskorski, Samuel Cohen and Nithya Vaduganathan

AdMob's CEO is deciding between international expansion and increasing the number of publishers to strengthen the company's advantage in the mobile advertising industry. AdMob displayed advertising on global devices, powered 6,000 websites and 1,000 applications, and... View Details

Keywords: Digital Marketing; Growth and Development Strategy; Resource Allocation; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Expansion; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Advertising Industry

2008
Working Paper

CPC/CPA Hybrid Bidding in a Second Price Auction

By: Benjamin Edelman and Hoan Lee

We develop a model of online advertising in which each advertiser chooses from multiple advertising measurement metrics—paying either for each click on its ads (CPC), or for each purchase that follows an ad-click (CPA). Our analysis extends classic auction results by... View Details

Keywords: Online Advertising; Auctions; Bids and Bidding; Measurement and Metrics; Quality; Mathematical Methods; Web Sites

Read Now

March 2006 (Revised February 2007)
Case

Massive Incorporated (A)

By: Joseph B. Lassiter III, Clark Gilbert and Victoria Winston

How do you go to market with a brand new product in a new industry? How does a business develop an opportunity and then adapt its strategy to ensure success? Who are the early adopters and how does a business work with them? Katherine Hays, chief operating office at... View Details

Keywords: Emerging Markets; Product Launch; Digital Marketing; Business Startups; Advertising Industry

May 1990
Case

PepsiCo and Madonna

By: John A. Quelch

In 1989, PepsiCo withdrew an advertising campaign featuring Madonna following complaints from religious groups regarding the content of a Madonna video. View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Religion; Advertising Campaigns; Brands and Branding; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

May 1975 (Revised May 1982)
Case

Southwest Airlines (C)

Southwest Airlines, a small intrastate carrier, has just completed its first year of operations in June 1972 and management is debating what advertising and promotional strategy to adopt for the future. Southwest has successfully broken into a market dominated by two... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Strategy; Air Transportation; Air Transportation Industry; United States

April 1990 (Revised April 1992)
Supplement

Ad Council's AIDS Campaign (B): Program Adoption

By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Janet Montgomery

The answer to the (A) case. Explains Ad Council's plan. Outlines alliance with American Advertising Federation to enlist support of local Ad clubs, media presentation, and implementation strategy. View Details

Keywords: Health Disorders; Advertising Campaigns; Advertising Industry