Question

Topic: Student Questions

Dissertation In The Area Of Consumer Behavior

Posted by sana.yasin.sahi on 12/7/2014 at 11:41 PM ET 125 Points
I have been reading lots of research papers for deciding one topic for my PhD dissertation but then 50 rough ideas come simultaneously in mind and later I feel these are not so important or may be just not interesting enough. Consumer behavior, its relation with advertising, influence of branding, country of origin etc are some of the domains. Any ideas?
I am hoping for a topic which will have high application in the real business world.
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 12/8/2014 at 8:50 AM Accepted
    Do you have an idea of what you want to do post-graduation? Specific companies you'd be interested in working with? If so, start by studying what issues they have - and even better - reach out to some influencers in the companies to pick their brains to get them to be aware of you.
  • Posted by Gary Bloomer on 12/8/2014 at 9:29 AM Accepted
    Dig deeper.

    What KINDs of customer behaviors? (shopping in store then buying online; shopping online then buying in store; buying and returning; compulsive shopping; layaway shopping; bulk buy shopping; major purchase shopping? There are as many customer behaviors as there are customers.

    What ASPECTS of customer behavior relationships to advertising will you focus on?

    The influence of branding is half a dozen Ph.Ds in itself.

    What specific questions about these areas appeal most to you?
  • Posted by mgoodman on 12/8/2014 at 4:42 PM Accepted
    You need to focus your efforts. Jay's suggestion that you pick something related to what you want to do after you have your PhD is a good one.

    Pick a company and an industry. Select a specific geography. Then look at that company's marketing efforts in your selected geography and the effects on consumer behavior there. Don't try to generalize too much. And don't forget to consider the competitive environment as a factor.
  • Posted by sana.yasin.sahi on 12/9/2014 at 11:21 AM Author
    Appreciate all the replies. Reaching the influencers has not been easy and in my experience management is reluctant to give out any details esp. when the query is about an unsolved current issue.
    Just to dig deeper, kindly respond based on your professional expertise. What issues do you see in your company's marketing division? Has a new marketing tactic failed? If yes then which one? How do you maintain your competitive advantage in this technological era? Do loyal customers live today? etc.
    Previously I worked on the consumer behavior influenced by the traditional advertising (T.V) v/s non-traditional (early 2000). Focus is the Asian countries.
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