I am a consumer sociologist. I study consumers and institutions in times of change. I bring my background in sociology to marketing, in order to find actionable strategic insights to improve the customer experience and develop strong customer relationships. I study this in a wide range of vital consumer contexts, such as health care, credit, and education. I also believe in using the power of marketing for social good, for instance, using services marketing principles to improve the outcomes of community-based social enterprises. I teach consumer behavior, services marketing, and qualitative methods at the undergraduate and MBA levels.
My three current areas of study:
1. The marketization of institutions and public spaces (e.g. religion, health care, finance/credit, higher education, community)
2. Cultural change and consumer identity (e.g. the datafication of society and the quantification of the consumer; meeting Covid challenges; consumers leaving identity-salient institutions; the consumer health care experience)
3. Marketing for social enterprises (e.g. bringing services marketing principles to social enterprise ventures to increase customer acquisition and retention)
–BD