Publications

December 2019
Article

The Impact of Increasing Search Frictions on Online Shopping Behavior: Evidence from a Field Experiment

By: Donald Ngwe, Kris J. Ferreira and Thales Teixeira

Many online stores are designed such that shoppers can easily access any available discounted products. We propose that deliberately increasing search frictions by placing small obstacles to locating discounted items can improve online retailers’ margins and even... View Details

Keywords: Online Retailing; Friction; Effor; Search Costs; Price Discrimination; Marketing; Consumer Behavior; Strategy; Price; E-commerce; Retail Industry; Fashion Industry

Find at Harvard

September 2015
Case

Eco7: Launching a New Motor Oil

By: John Quelch and Sunru Yong

Aaron Jonnerson, vice president of marketing at the automotive division of Avellin, must make marketing mix decisions for the launch of Eco7, a new environmentally-friendly motor oil. The company's performance has been mediocre, shareholder pressure is increasing, and... View Details

Keywords: Distribution Channels; Environmental Sustainability; Product Launch; Transportation; Energy Sources; Auto Industry

2019
Working Paper

The Impact of Increasing Search Frictions on Online Shopping Behavior: Evidence from a Field Experiment

By: Donald Ngwe, Kris J. Ferreira and Thales Teixeira

Many online stores are designed such that shoppers can easily access any available discounted products. We propose that deliberately increasing search frictions by placing small obstacles to locating discounted items can improve online retailers’ margins and even... View Details

Keywords: E-commerce; Online Retailing; Friction; Effor; Search Costs; Price Discrimination; Consumer Behavior; Price; Search Technology

Read Now

22 Apr 2013
Working Paper Summaries

Competing with Privacy

Keywords: by Ramon Casadesus-Masanell & Andres Hervas-Drane; Publishing

26 Feb 2018
News

The quest to win over Amazon

July 2007 (Revised March 2009)
Case

Berkshire Partners: Purchase of Rival Company (A)

Berkshire Partners, a private equity firm in Boston, was pleased with their recent investment in the Holmes Group, a home comfort consumer electronics company. The portfolio company was exceeding key financial targets and Berkshire Partners was confident that it would... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Capital Structure; Decision Choices and Conditions; Investment; Acquisition; Financial Services Industry; Boston

March 2020
Technical Note

Influencer Marketing

By: Jill Avery and Ayelet Israeli

Despite a heavy barrage of advertising, most consumers declare that their purchases are most influenced by the experiences, advice, and recommendations of others, and not by marketers. Interpersonal communication between and among consumers serves as a potent path for... View Details

Keywords: Influencers; Marketing; Marketing Communications; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry

August 2018 (Revised February 2019)
Case

Shindigz

By: Frank Cespedes

Shindigz provides party and celebratory items for various occasions and events through its branded online channel, through third-party retail and wholesale channels, and external online marketplaces. The case focuses on pricing challenges facing a venture with an... View Details

Keywords: Ecommerce; Pricing; Price; Strategy; Decision Making; Brands and Branding; Distribution Channels; E-commerce; Consumer Products Industry

November 2019 (Revised December 2019)
Case

Marcus by Goldman Sachs

By: Rory McDonald, Samir Junnarkar and David Lane

Five years on from the 2008 financial crisis, Goldman Sachs remained wounded. Revenues at the global investment bank had stagnated below pre-crisis levels, and the firm had yet to rebound from a substantial decline in securities-trading revenues. Marcus by Goldman... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Entrepreneurship; Banks and Banking; Innovation Leadership; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Organizational Culture; Financial Services Industry; United Kingdom

27 Feb 2024
Research & Ideas

Why Companies Should Share Their DEI Data (Even When It’s Unflattering)

Lives Matter movement in 2020, consumers report being four times as likely to buy from companies that speak out against racism, according to Edelman research. Almost 90 percent of consumers say they View Details

Keywords: by Shalene Gupta

13 May 2024
Research & Ideas

Picture This: Why Online Image Searches Drive Purchases

topping $85 billion by 2032, according to Fortune Business Insights. Consumers increasingly expect to find the goods they want easily, and a satisfying search feature could give retailers an advantage. The... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Consumer Products; Consumer Products; Consumer Products; Consumer Products

28 May 2020
Research & Ideas

Coronavirus Could Create a 'Bankruptcy Pandemic'

With a pandemic temporarily closing many businesses and stifling consumer demand, whole industries, especially those that recently leveraged their balance sheets to take advantage of near-zero interest rates, are seeing their profits... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Financial Services; Banking

November 2000
Case

Clust.com: Dream More and Pay Less

Clust is a French group-buying Web site. Instead of marketing products to consumers, Clust is marketing aggregated consumer demands to manufacturers. Consequently, beyond the usual act of choosing among predefined alternatives, consumers are expected to bring up their... View Details

Keywords: Customer Value and Value Chain; Marketing

18 Jul 2023
Research & Ideas

Will Global Demand for Oil Peak This Decade?

Is the globe’s thirst for oil finally topping out? A major international energy watcher says yes, predicting last month that demand for global oil for transport will peak around 2026, plateau for all uses by 2028, and possibly hit a zenith by the end of the decade.... View Details

Keywords: by Alvin Powell, Harvard Gazette; Energy; Industrial Products; Auto; Green Technology

Research Summary

Regulatory negotiations and risk communication

In the pharmaceutical industry a drugs benefits and risks are constantly being weighed by companies, regulators, physicians and drug consumers. While companies and regulators must make decisions based on population statistics about drug outcomes, physicians and drug... View Details

17 Aug 2023
Research & Ideas

‘Not a Bunch of Weirdos’: Why Mainstream Investors Buy Crypto

checking accounts. Moreover, these investors are drawn by the lure of potentially higher returns in a “lottery-style payoff” than investors expect with traditional investments. Plus, the COVID-19 stimulus money led new investors to... View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand

December 2018 (Revised August 2019)
Case

Super Bowl Storytelling

By: Shelle Santana and Jill Avery

The one day a year when consumers not only tolerate but actually eagerly anticipate ads is during the NFL's Super Bowl. In sharp contrast to their behavior on the other 364 days of the year, consumers watch an average of 89 commercials per Super Bowl game for an... View Details

Keywords: Television Advertising; Entertainment; Brand Management; Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Marketing Communications; Advertising; Television Entertainment; Brands and Branding; Media; Cost vs Benefits; Advertising Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Sports Industry; United States; North America

August 2019 (Revised March 2022)
Case

Lemonade: Disrupting Insurance with Instant Everything, Killer Prices, and a Big Heart

By: Elie Ofek and Danielle Golan

Launching its first products in the fall of 2016 in New York, insurtech startup Lemonade was on a mission to disrupt the insurance market by using AI and behavioral economics principles. The company offered renters, homeowners, and condo insurance and mainly targeted... View Details

Keywords: AI; Business Startups; Insurance; Technological Innovation; Business Model; Disruption; Brands and Branding; Growth and Development Strategy; Global Strategy; Decision Making; Insurance Industry; Technology Industry