Publications

October 2006 (Revised March 2007)
Case

Production I.G: Challenging the Status Quo

By: Andrei Hagiu, Tarun Khanna, Felix Oberholzer-Gee, Masako Egawa and Chisato Toyama

In July 2006, Mitsuhisa Ishikawa wondered how he could further enhance the success and visibility of his animation production company headquartered in Tokyo, Production I.G. For the year ended May 2006, Production I.G. had sales of 5,439 million yen ($47.3 million),... View Details

Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Competitive Advantage; Markets; Animation Entertainment; Going Public; Growth and Development Strategy; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Tokyo

September 2007
Article

(Noisy) Communication

By: Bharat Anand and Ron Shachar

Communication is central to many settings in marketing and economics. A focal attribute of communication is miscommunication. We model this key characteristic as a noise in the messages communicated, so that the sender of a message is uncertain about its perception by... View Details

Keywords: Communication Intention and Meaning; Interpersonal Communication; Cost vs Benefits; Marketing Communications; Performance Improvement; Mathematical Methods

Find at Harvard

13 Oct 2010
First Look

First Look: October 13, 2010

http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/11-038.pdf The Unbundling of Advertising Agency Services: An Economic Analysis Authors:Mohammad Arzaghi, Ernst R. Berndt, James C. Davis, and Alvin J. Silk Abstract We address a longstanding puzzle... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

22 May 2024
HBS Case

Banned or Not, TikTok Is a Force Companies Can’t Afford to Ignore

brands after learning about them from TikTok creators versus advertising from companies. But even ads created specifically for TikTok had a 27 percent higher “completion rate”—when viewers watch the whole ad— than ads that were repurposed... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Technology

February 2021 (Revised May 2021)
Case

SafeGraph: Selling Data as a Service

By: Ramana Nanda, Abhishek Nagaraj and Allison Ciechanover

Set in January 2021, the CEO of SafeGraph, a four-year-old startup that sold Data as a Service, looked to the future. His aim was to become the most trusted source for data about a physical place. The company provided points of interest (POI) and foot traffic data on... View Details

Keywords: Data As A Service; Monetization; Pricing; Business Startups; Analytics and Data Science; Consumer Behavior; Analysis; Business Model; Health Pandemics; Information Industry; United States

October 2013 (Revised January 2016)
Case

J.C. Penney's 'Fair and Square' Strategy (Abridged)

By: Elie Ofek and Jill Avery

As he gets ready to release 2nd quarter 2012 results, Ron Johnson, the new CEO of department store J.C. Penney, is reconsidering the dramatic changes he initiated for the business model and brand image of his company. A new pricing scheme he put in place in February,... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Change Management; Marketing Strategy; Price; Consumer Behavior; Decision Making; Management Teams; Brands and Branding; Retail Industry; United States

17 Jan 2024
HBS Case

Psychological Pricing Tactics to Fight the Inflation Blues

pricing is everywhere—because it still works Charm pricing is one of the most familiar pricing techniques out there: setting prices ending in 99, whether it’s a supermarket advertising fruit at $2.99 a pound or a streaming service... View Details

Keywords: by Jay Fitzgerald; Consumer Products; Retail

05 Feb 2013
First Look

First Look: Feb. 5

work by other researchers. The memorable propositions that he formulated have probably done more than any other academic to transform views of negotiation toward an interest-based, joint problem-solving conception. Working PapersThe Dynamic View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

29 Nov 2010
HBS Case

United Breaks Guitars

are. You can't hope to project an idealized version of the truth." The old rules of marketing and advertising still apply, too: "The genius is not in the choice of medium: in the simple idea of using social media to fight social... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

24 Apr 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, April 24, 2018

April 2018 Management Science Offline Showrooms in Omni-channel Retail: Demand and Operational Benefits By: Bell, David R., Santiago Gallino, and Antonio Moreno Abstract—Omnichannel environments where customers shop online and offline at the same retailer are... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

2009
Working Paper

Broadening Focus: Spillovers, Complementarities and Specialization in the Hospital Industry

By: Jonathan R. Clark and Robert S. Huckman

The long-standing argument that focused operations outperform others stands in contrast to claims about the benefits of broader operational scope. The performance benefits of focus are typically attributed to reduced complexity, lower uncertainty, and the development... View Details

Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Medical Specialties; Performance Capacity; Diversification; Health Industry

08 Aug 2022
HBS Case

Building an 'ARMY' of Fans: Marketing Lessons from K-Pop Sensation BTS

What would it take to attract customers who are so loyal that they would not only buy your products, but would also lavish your distributors with flowers and purchase advertising to elevate your brand? Ask the minds behind K-pop sensation... View Details

Keywords: by Shalene Gupta; Media & Broadcasting; Music

01 Oct 2013
First Look

First Look: October 1

Publications August 2013 Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization Religion, Politician Identity and Development Outcomes: Evidence from India By: Bhalotra, Sonia, Guilhem Cassan, Irma Clots-Figueras, and Lakshmi Iyer Abstract—This paper investigates whether... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

29 Apr 2013
Working Paper Summaries

Exclusive Preferential Placement as Search Diversion: Evidence from Flight Search

Keywords: by Benjamin G. Edelman & Zhenyu Lai; Publishing; Technology

June 2007 (Revised March 2011)
Case

The CW: Launching a Television Network

By: Anita Elberse and S. Mark Young

In May 2006, Dawn Ostroff, president of entertainment of the newly formed CW Television Network, was faced with the task of choosing the final set of programs for the 2006 fall schedule, which she would present to advertisers at the annual "upfront" market in New York... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Customer Relationship Management; Decision Choices and Conditions; Television Entertainment; Brands and Branding; Product Launch; Strategic Planning; Networks; Media and Broadcasting Industry

28 Feb 2017
First Look

First Look at New Research, February 28

2017 Advancing Organizational Theory in a Complex World Getting Started with Ambidexterity By: Binns, Andrew, and Michael Tushman Abstract—This paper demonstrates the value of thinking about ambidexterity as having three distinct moments—ideation, incubation, and... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

2024
Working Paper

Immodest Victims: Victims Who Broadcast Their Victimization Are Seen as Less Morally Virtuous

By: Nathan Dhaliwal, Jillian J. Jordan, Anoushka Kiyawat and Pat Barclay

How do people evaluate victims who advertise their victim status? Because such broadcasting can elicit sympathy and support, we propose that declining to broadcast serves as a costly act of modesty: one is withholding a fact about oneself that could garner resources... View Details

Keywords: Public Opinion; Communication; Perception; Reputation

2023
Working Paper

Personalized Game Design for Improved User Retention and Monetization in Freemium Games

By: Eva Ascarza, Oded Netzer and Julian Runge

One of the most crucial aspects and significant levers that gaming companies possess in designing digital games is setting the level of difficulty, which essentially regulates the user’s ability to progress within the game. This aspect is particularly significant in... View Details

Keywords: Freemium; Retention/churn; Field Experiment; Field Experiments; Gaming; Gaming Industry; Mobile App; Mobile App Industry; Monetization; Monetization Strategy; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Customers; Retention; Product Design; Strategy