Selected Publications
The Impact of Superstar and Non-Superstar Software on Hardware Sales: The Moderating Role of Hardware Lifecycle
We propose hardware lifecycle as a key moderator of the impact of superstar and non-superstar software on hardware adoption. A hardware’s earlier adopters, are less price sensitive and have a higher preference for exciting and challenging software. In contrast, later adopters are more price sensitive and prefer simplicity in software. Superstars tend to be more expensive and more complex compared to non-superstars. Therefore, earlier (later) adopters prefer superstars (non- superstars), which leads to higher impact of superstars (non-superstars) on hardware adoption in the early (later) stages of the hardware lifecycle. Using monthly data over a twelve-year timeframe (1995 – 2007) from the home video game industry, we find that both superstar and non-superstar software impact hardware demand, but they matter at different points in the hardware lifecycle. Superstars are most influential when hardware is new and this influence declines as hardware ages. In contrast, non-superstar software has a positive impact on hardware demand later in the hardware lifecycle, and this impact increases with hardware age. Findings reveal that eventually the amount of available non-superstar software impacts hardware adoption more than the amount of available superstar software. The authors provide several managerial implications based on these findings.
In JAMS,
2019
Social Media and Customer-Based Brand Equity: An Empirical Investigation in Retail Industry
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how social media affects US retailers’ customer-based brand equity (CBBE) which is an important indicator of brand success. The authors find strong impacts of owned and earned social media on CBBE across the board. However, they find that owned social media harms CBBE of retailers dealing in hedonic and high involvement products. Whereas owned social media helps general retailers in building CBBE, it reduces CBBE of specialty retailers.
In Admin Sci.,
2018
The Unequal Effects of Partisanship on Brands
Companies that engage in corporate activism risk taking stances that reflect the values of their management but alienate key segments of a politically divided customer base. Our data suggests that company executives should think carefully about customers’ political affiliations and likelihood to engage in positive and negative word-of-mouth.
In HBR,
2018
Improving Consumer Mindset Metrics and Shareholder Value Through Social Media: The Different Roles of Owned and Earned Media
Analyzing daily data for 45 brands in 21 sectors using vector autoregression models, we find that social media brand fan following improves brand awareness, purchase intent, and customer satisfaction. Earned social media engagement volume affects brand awareness and purchase intent but not customer satisfaction, while positive and negative valence have the largest effects on customer satisfaction. Owned social media increases brand awareness and customer satisfaction but not purchase intent, highlighting a nonlinear effect of brand-controlled social media.
In JM,
2018
