When people make predictions about certain events, their enjoyment in watching those events decreases, according to a recent study by W. P. Carey School marketing professors Naomi Mandel and Stephen Nowlis. This is likely the result of "anticipated regret" — the fear that they may be proven wrong. In fact, the anxiety caused by the concern that one might lose may be more powerful than the sting of actually losing.
As companies shift from product to services focus, they face the challenge of a larger, more dynamic and more diverse customer base. Some are turning to universities for assistance from academics to find ways to improve operations or customer relations. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship: professors and graduate students get first-hand access to business realities while companies receive data that can translate to new, innovative strategies. Recently top executives met with a group of marketing academics at the 42nd American Marketing Association Sheth Foundation Doctoral Consortium hosted by the W. P. Carey School of Business.
Everyone needs garbage bags. Women need maxi-pads. Cat people need cat litter. And parents with babies buy diapers. But according to Andrea Morales, an assistant professor of marketing at the W. P. Carey School of Business, the fact that we need these items doesn’t change the fact that we can be repulsed by them. And if retailers were smart, says Morales, they would be sure to keep these undesirable items away from other, less icky products — or else.
Plenty of consumers sip Maxwell House coffee because it’s "good to the last drop," and would proudly answer "yes" if asked, "Doesn’t your dog deserve Alpo?" The brand-building punch of such slogans helps companies turn shoppers into customers. But if brand equity boosts sales to consumers, doesn’t it make sense that it also affects relationships with resource suppliers, corporate partners, government bodies and other constituencies? Cheryl Burke Jarvis, professor of marketing at the W. P. Carey School of Business, thinks that companies are undervaluing brand equity in their financial calculations.
A lot of companies focus on competition, innovation and cost-cutting to drive cash flow. But according to Ruth Bolton, marketing professor at the W. P. Carey School of Business, successful firms understand that cash flow is derived from customers. When customers are more satisfied and loyal, they buy more and remain customers longer. "That delivers more profitability to the bottom line," she says.
IBM’s Customer Obsession Program (COP) is focused on achieving a world-class client experience, service delivery that is consistently the best, and a passionate commitment to the customer. The goal is to communicate to customers that a specific person at IBM cares whether their business does well. In a recent speech at an executive education symposium sponsored by the Center for Services Leadership at the W. P. Carey School, Scott Dougall, general manager of IBM’s GTS Americas Technical Support, explained how "customer-obsessed" service results in customer relationships that drive profitability in the good times and sustain you through the bad.
