Brands and Branding →
- 09 Jun 2015
- Sharpening Your Skills
Sharpening Your Skills: Social Media
Sharpening Your Skills culls the HBS Working Knowledge archive to deliver insights around important business topics. This week: developing a social media strategy. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 18 May 2015
- Research & Ideas
Advertisers Get Serious About Playing With Their Brands
In social media marketing, companies often try to engage consumers with a playful approach. But play is serious business that can backfire if not done correctly. John Deighton and Leora Kornfeld discuss three "rules of play." Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 02 Mar 2015
- Research & Ideas
‘Retail Revolution’ Excerpt: The Scale of the Ecommerce Threat
With ecommerce becoming a much bigger part of the economy, a tipping point is fast approaching for many retailers. An excerpt from, Retail Revolution: Will Your Brick-and-Mortar Store Survive? on why even big names like Walmart are coming under pressure from the likes of Amazon. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 15 Dec 2014
- Research & Ideas
Deconstructing the Price Tag
A new study by Bhavya Mohan, Ryan Buell, and Leslie John has an important conclusion for retailers: Explaining what it costs to produce a product can potentially increase its sales. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 03 Nov 2014
- Research & Ideas
Brand Lessons From the Nobel Prize
What makes the Nobel Prize so coveted? Stephen Greyser and Mats Urde discuss the first field-based study exploring the prize from a brand and reputation perspective. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 30 Oct 2014
- Working Paper Summaries
The Nobel Prize: A ‘Heritage-based’ Brand-oriented Network
This study examines the Nobel Prize as a true heritage brand in a networked situation and explores its identity, reputation, and stewardship. It is the first field-based research on the Nobel Prize as a brand. The authors define a heritage brand as one where its past is leveraged into its positioning and value proposition for the present, and the future. A networked situation is one where several organizations join together to create a new entity with its own strategy and identity. Overall, the authors develop and articulate a new approach to and framework for examining and analyzing corporate brand identity and reputation, and apply it to the Nobel Prize. Key concepts include: This study investigates and illuminates what the Nobel Prize is and how it works in practice. The Nobel Prize's brand core identity—"for the benefit of mankind"—is rooted in its past (the will of Alfred Nobel), informs and guides its present, and strengthens its relevance for the future "as the world's most prestigious award." The research examines, explores, and seeks to understand the Nobel Prize—its brand, identity, and reputation—as well as how and why it has the character it does. The Nobel Prize is a "networked brand" with the Nobel Prize at the hub of a network of four other independent collaborating organizations. They have a shared goal of sustaining and reinforcing the meaning and values of the Nobel Prize, while each maintains its own identity and other goals. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 29 Sep 2014
- Research & Ideas
Why Do Outlet Stores Exist?
Created in the 1930s, outlet stores allowed retailers to dispose of unpopular items at fire-sale prices. Today, outlets seem outmoded and unnecessary—stores have bargain racks, after all. Donald K. Ngwe explains why outlets still exist. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 20 Aug 2014
- Research & Ideas
Why the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is a Social Media Blockbuster
Most companies should envy the financial and brand awareness brought about by the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. The campaign's key ingredient, says John Deighton, is that participants enhance their personal capital in performance of a good deed. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 04 Jun 2014
- What Do You Think?
Does Internet Technology Threaten Brand Loyalty?
Internet technologies may not kill off brands, but they certainly magnify both the bad and good decisions of marketers. Jim Heskett's readers weigh in on this month's question. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 28 Apr 2014
- Research & Ideas
Football Stars Debate ‘The Social Capital of the Savvy Athlete’
NFL players Richard Sherman, Arian Foster, Larry Fitzgerald, and Domonique Foxworth discussed Twitter pros and cons on marketing and race relations at Harvard Business School. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 19 Mar 2014
- Research & Ideas
A Brand Manager’s Guide to Losing Control
Social media platforms have taken some of the marketing power away from companies and given it to consumers. Jill Avery discusses the landscape of "open source branding," wherein consumers not only discuss and disseminate branded content, they also create it. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 24 Feb 2014
- Research & Ideas
Busting Six Myths About Customer Loyalty Programs
Low-margin retailers argue they can't afford customer loyalty programs, but is that true? Rajiv Lal and Marcel Corstjens make the case that such programs are profit-enhancing differentiators. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 16 Dec 2013
- HBS Case
D’O: Making a Michelin-Starred Restaurant Affordable
Under the leadership of Chef Davide Oldani, the Italian restaurant D'O balances Michelin-star-level quality with affordable prices. In the following story and video, Professor Gary Pisano explains how Oldani does it. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 05 Dec 2013
- What Do You Think?
Is Walmart Defying Economic Gravity?
Summing Up Can Walmart sustain its half-a-trillion-dollar enterprise much longer? Jim Heskett's readers see a conflict between the company's immense size and its business model. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 29 Nov 2013
- Working Paper Summaries
Surfacing the Submerged State with Operational Transparency in Government Services
As Americans’ trust in government nears historic lows, frustration with government performance approaches record highs. We propose that Americans’ views of government can be reshaped by increasing government’s operational transparency—that is, the extent to which citizens can see the often-hidden work that government performs. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 14 Oct 2013
- Research & Ideas
Blockbuster! Why Star Power Works
Anita Elberse discusses her new book on the benefits of a blockbuster strategy—investing big money into a few top products. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 30 Sep 2013
- Research & Ideas
Do Mergers Hurt Product Quality?
Albert W. Sheen finds that while mergers lead to product price decreases, they generally have little effect on product quality over time. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 23 Sep 2013
- Research & Ideas
Status: When and Why It Matters
Status plays a key role in everything from the things we buy to the partnerships we make. Professor Daniel Malter explores when status matters most. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 21 Aug 2013
- Research & Ideas
What Went Wrong at J.C. Penney?
J.C. Penney CEO Ron Johnson went bold in his attempted rescue of the fading retailer, but his top-to-bottom makeover failed. Marketing expert Rajiv Lal explores what went wrong and why JCP has an even more difficult road ahead. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
Do CEO Activists Make a Difference? Evidence from a Field Experiment
Corporate leaders are speaking out on social and environmental issues that are largely unrelated to their companies’ core businesses. Does such CEO activism actually change citizens’ opinions about these public issues—or their consumer attitudes toward these CEOs’ companies? Focusing on Apple CEO Tim Cook’s denunciation of potential discrimination resulting from Indiana’s proposed religious freedom law, this study finds that CEO activists can frame issues in ways that do influence public opinion, and to the same extent as political leaders. Moreover, while CEO activism risks alienating consumers who disagree with the CEO’s public stance, this study finds that Cook’s statements increased consumers’ intent to purchase Apple products, especially among those who agreed with Cook’s statements.