Research

The Chair for Marketing and Innovation is dedicated to research topics that are of high management relevance and meet the scientific requirements of international top journals. On one hand, we achieve this through the theoretical foundation of our research work. As a team with heterogeneous scientific backgrounds, we pursue an interdisciplinary approach and include theories from psychology, sociology, economics, and business informatics in our work. On the other hand, we attach great importance to the use of sophisticated and up-to-date quantitative-empirical research methods.

Research at the chair focuses on the following areas:

Online Marketing
Technology and Innovation
Value-oriented Customer Relations Management
Pricing of Services

We are currently collaborating with the University of Augsburg, Boston College, Florida State University, the University of Groningen, the University of Hohenheim, the Economics University of Katowice, the University of Liège, the University of Paderborn, the University of Warwick, the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, The FHS St. Gallen, and the ETH Zurich.

The Internet has become a significant economic factor in recent years. In addition to the classical field of ecommerce, free E-Services are particularly popular nowadays. Social networks, search engines, news pages, and many other e-services can be used at no cost. But how can service providers, customers, and advertising partners work together in a productive and effective way? How can we measure and assess customer productivity in the field of free services? Do personalization and individualization have an impact on customer behavior? What role do mobile devices play in the recommendation behavior of users? How can we assess advertiser contacts in the Customer Journey?

Project "Fre(E)S – Produktivität bei kostenfreien E-Services" (Supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research)

Project "DIGIVATION - Digitalisierung durch Dienstleistungsinnovationen (Supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research)

Project "Beyond the Dyad: Effects of Business Network Data Exchange on the Privacy Calculus Revision" (Supported by DFG)

Project "DaGeWe:How Data-Driven Start-Ups Really Tick: Passau Project Examines Strategies and Business Models" (Supported by the Bavarian Research Institute for Digital Transformation)

Selected Publications:

Anderl, E. M., Becker, I., v. Wangenheim, F. & Schumann, J. H. (2016). Mapping the customer journey: Lessons learned from graph-based online attribution modeling. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 33(3), 457–474. (VHB-R 2024: A)
Bidler, M., Zimmermann, J., Schumann, J. H., & Widjaja, T. (2020). Increasing Consumers’ Willingness to Engage in Data Disclosure Processes through Relevance-Illustrating Game Elements. Journal of Retailing, 96(4), 507-523. (VHB-R 2024: A)
Hüttel, B.A., Schumann, J. H., Mende, M., Scott, M., & Wagner, C. (2018). How Consumers Assess Free E-Services: The Role of Benefit-Inflation and Cost-Deflation Effects. Journal of Service Research, 21(3), 267-283. (VHB-R 2024: A)
Schumann, J. H., v. Wangenheim, F., &. Groene, N. (2014). Targeted Online Advertising: Using Reciprocity Appeals to Increase Acceptance Among Users of Free Web Services. Journal of Marketing, 78(1), 59-75. (VHB-R 2024: A+)

Innovative information and communication technologies enable us to develop new (virtual) services, which allow companies to serve their customers through digital channels or to provide them with ways to access their services anywhere and anytime. This creates new challenges and research questions in the field of marketing:

How can we measure the success factors of technology and innovations over the long term? How can we stimulate the consumer’s acceptance of technological innovations? How do customers change their opinions and expectations towards (virtual) suppliers? How do different communication and sales channels interact and how can they be managed successfully?

Project PREMIUM – Plug-In-, Range-Extender- und Elektrofahrzeuge unter realen Mobilitätsumständen: Infrastruktur, Umweltbedingungen und Marktakzeptanz (Supported by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Construction and Reactor Safety)

Selected Publications:

Schumann, J. H., Wünderlich, N. V., & v. Wangenheim, F. (2012). Technology Mediation in Service Delivery: A New Typology and an Agenda for Managers and Academics. Technovation, 32(2), 133-143. (VHB-R 2024: B)
Wünderlich, N. V., Schumann, J. H., v. Wangenheim, F., & Holzmüller, H. H. (2011). Management und Marketing ferngesteuerter Dienstleistungen: Konzeptionelle Verortung, betriebswirtschaftliche Herausforderungen und künftige Forschungsaufgaben. Zeitschrift für Betriebswirtschaft, 81 (9), 977-1001. (VHB-R 2024: B)

An increasing number of companies are aware that long-term profitable customer relations are their most important success factor. The identification of drivers of the development, consolidation, broadening, and deepening of customer relations is, therefore, a relevant research field. The Chair of Marketing and Innovation is interested in the following topics in this research field:

Do multi-partner loyalty programs have an impact on the purchasing behavior of customers and, if so, to what extent? What role do they play in the event of a service error? Do roll conflicts of customer service staff have an impact on customer behavior and the relationship between companies and their customers? Which factors influence this role conflict and how can they be reduced? Do control beliefs of customers have an impact on their integration behavior and, if so, how can this be influenced by the company?

Selected Publications:

Schumann, J. H., Wünderlich, N. V. & Evanschitzky, H. (2014). Spillover Effects of Service Failures in Coalition Loyalty Programs: The Buffering Effect of Special Treatment Benefits. Journal of Retailing, 90(1), 111-118. (VHB-R 2024: A)
Büttgen, M., Schumann, J. H., & Ates, Z. (2012). Service Locus of Control and Customer Co- Production Behavior: The Role of Prior Service Experiences and Organizational Socialization Activities. Journal of Service Research, 15(2), 166-181. (VHB-R 2024: A)
Michel, S., Kreuzer, M., Kühn, R., Stringfellow, A., & Schumann, J. H. (2009). Mass-Customized Products: Are They Bought for Uniqueness or to Overcome Problems with Standard Products?. Journal of Customer Behaviour, 8(4), 307-327. (VHB-R 2024: C)

Compared to products, services are characterized by a much greater variability of possible pricing models. Current scientific research has not yet provided sufficient research to meet the variety of this topic, which offers highly relevant and exciting research opportunities. Questions from a scientific point of view are, for example: How do customers perceive different price models? Which possibilities do companies have to influence customer preferences for different models? What influence does modern information and communication technology have on the development of price models and the perception and behavior of customers?

Selected Publications:

Schumann, J. H., v. Wangenheim, F., &. Groene, N. (2014). Targeted Online Advertising: Using Reciprocity Appeals to Increase Acceptance Among Users of Free Web Services. Journal of Marketing, 78(1), 59-75. (VHB-R 2024: A+)
Uhrich, F., Schumann, J. H., & v. Wangenheim, F. (2013). The Impact of the Consumption Goal on Flat-Rate Bias: Can ’Hedonizing’ a Service Increase Customers’ Propensity to Choose a Flat Rate? Journal of Service Research, 16(2), 215-229. (VHB-R 2024: A)