Posts Tagged ‘Academic’
December 1, 2014 | 
Author John Lewis will still win the battle of the Christmas ads, says Oxford academic
Oxford (PRWEB UK) 28 November 2014
Professor Nancy Puccinelli predicts that the £7m John Lewis ad featuring Monty the penguin will attract customers to stores and, particularly if the actual shopping experience matches the mood of the ad, encourage them to spend money. However, Boots, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and even Waitrose (owned by John Lewis) may struggle to attract more customers via their adverts or encourage them to spend more.
“The number of story-based advertisements this year suggests that many agencies have been eyeing previous John Lewis ads and trying to emulate them, but they haven’t understood that it’s not just about tugging at viewers’ heartstrings,” said Professor Nancy Puccinelli, Associate Professor in Consumer Marketing at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. “Our research shows that a powerful element in communicating with consumers is getting the right fit between marketing messages and what’s driving their decision-making, whether it’s minimising risk or maximising pleasure.”
In a recent research paper, Puccinelli and her co-authors explained that “Back to School” campaigns often implicitly address the fear that children might be starting school without the right kit. People who base their decision-making on minimising risk are particularly susceptible to this sort of messaging. But at Christmas it is more profitable to appeal to consumers with a “promotion mindset” – those who respond to images of indulgence, and who will be open to switching to premium brands and to spending more to get the most out of their purchasing.
“With this in mind, I think that the John Lewis ad, which doesn’t really focus on specific products but does present an idealised, rather up-market picture of a family Christmas, will do very well,” said Puccinelli. “The current Sainsbury’s 1914 and Boots Boxing day ads are interesting because, while they both feature heart-warming stories, I don’t think they tap into the idea of indulgence, which is what will get consumers spending more in their stores – obviously the main aim of these promotions. The Boots 2011 TV ad spoke more directly to their consumers to optimize pleasure. With this year’s adverts, people will enjoy watching, but won’t necessarily feel the urge to buy much more than a chocolate bar, even if it is one in retro 1914 packaging.”
Puccinelli also believes that the Tesco’s ad, which centres on lighting up a large store car park, fails to create an indulgent feel.
She suggests that even the Waitrose ads could be improved upon. “The Waitrose ad contains a sweet story, but its message seems to be rather a utilitarian one, focusing on good customer service, or preventative one– worried about getting your Christmas baking wrong? Come to Waitrose and we’ll help. More of a focus on the celebratory could help Waitrose convert our enjoyment of the advert into more sales.”
According to Puccinelli’s research, even small adjustments to marketing messages to improve the fit with consumers’ prevailing states of mind can boost sales by up to 186%. Getting it wrong, such as emphasising cheapness (step forward Iceland) or price promotions when people are in the mood to spend money and buy the best, can even have a negative effect.
For further information or to speak with Professor Nancy Puccinelli, please contact the press office:
Kate Richards, PR Coordinator, Saïd Business School
Tel: +44 (0)1865 288879, Mob: +44 (0)7711000521
Email: kate.richards(at)sbs(dot)ox.ac.uk
Jonaid Jilani, Press Officer, Saïd Business School
Tel: +44 (0)1865 614678, Mob: +44 (0)786025996
Email: jonaid.jilani(at)sbs(dot)ox.ac.uk
Notes to Editors
1. About Nancy Puccinelli
http://www.sbs.ox.ac.uk/community/people/nancy-puccinelli
2. About Saïd Business School
Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford blends the best of new and old. We are a vibrant and innovative business school, but yet deeply embedded in an 800 year old world-class university. We create programmes and ideas that have global impact. We educate people for successful business careers, and as a community seek to tackle world-scale problems. We deliver cutting-edge programmes and ground-breaking research that transform individuals, organisations, business practice, and society. We seek to be a world-class business school community, embedded in a world-class University, tackling world-scale problems.
In the Financial Times European Business School ranking (Dec 2013) Saïd is ranked 12th. It is ranked 14th worldwide in the FT’s combined ranking of Executive Education programmes (May 2014) and 23rd in the world in the FT ranking of MBA programmes (Jan 2014). The MBA is ranked 7th in Businessweek’s full time MBA ranking outside the USA (Nov 2014) and is ranked 5th among the top non-US Business Schools by Forbes magazine (Sep 2013). The Executive MBA is ranked 21st worldwide in the FT’s ranking of EMBAs (Oct 2014). The Oxford MSc in Financial Economics is ranked 7th in the world in the FT ranking of Masters in Finance programmes (Jun 2014). In the UK university league tables it is ranked first of all UK universities for undergraduate business and management in The Guardian (Jun 2014) and has ranked first in ten of the last eleven years in The Times (Sept 2014). For more information, see http://www.sbs.ox.ac.uk/
ENDS
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Mary Pat Higley: Pharma Companies Partner with Academic Researchers
New York, NY (PRWEB) September 23, 2012
According to U.S. Politics Today, drug developers and academic medical centers are working together to achieve future pharmaceutical breakthroughs. This partnership has, according to the article, the potential of changing the way that drugs are researched and developed. Mary Pat Higley, a clinical pharmacist and leader in the pharmaceutical field, believes that the pairing of pharmaceutical companies and academic facilities can improve the drug development process.
The article’s insight is gleaned from a panel of professionals called to order by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development. During a roundtable event, the participants on the panel noted that today’s drug developers face two major issues. First, they need to update their business models in order to produce cost-effective products quickly. Second, they need to reexamine and adjust their research processes to create a more effective research and development pipeline.
Professor and Director of the Center for the Study of Drug Development Kenneth Kaitin comments: “The research complexities associated with the most challenging diseases and medical conditions means that few companies have the resources required to discover new molecules and then take them through clinical development and, ultimately, product launch. They are finding, however, that academic medical centers can provide a valuable way to bridge the gap between discovery and clinical development.”
Mary Pat Higley believes that such a partnership can create a more favorable environment for research and development, and lead to better drug production.
“Drug developers need to not only develop new drugs to treat diseases,” asserts Mary Pat Higley, “but to also carry out well-designed studies to test the effectiveness of these drugs on appropriate patient populations. Large academic centers have access to large populations of patients and are often regional centers for referrals. They also have known medical histories, as compared to small research facilities that don’t have access to the full medical record. Knowing extensive medical histories allows them to better screen and match the patients to the protocol criteria. This allows for clinical trials with complete information and clean data and results. Slow IRBs and difficulty getting studies through contracts and grants at large institutions have been obstacles to pharmaceutical companies that are anxious to get their clinical trials completed quickly and their drugs approved and on the market.”
ABOUT:
Mary Pat Higley is a clinical research professional who has developed a noteworthy career by combining her scientific knowledge with her business insight. With over three decades of experience, Mary Pat Higley has built a professional acumen that includes clinical pharmacy, project marketing, sales and marketing, and clinical research. Mary Pat Higley is committed to enhancing patient care and assisting with the improvement of national health. To achieve these goals, she has become a member of the Association of Clinical Research Professionals.
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Posted in Small Business | 
Tags: Academic, Companies, Higley, Mary, Partner, Pharma, Researchers | 
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