Add. Divide. Two words that we would not normally group together. Yet, these two words bind my research over the past five years. The analytical technique used to add or divide changes. The sample or population differs. The common theme centers on adding or dividing. Hence, my research appears important because I am contributing to the body of knowledge related to segmentation, a crucial element to marketing strategy. Hunt refers to a market segment as the location where competition between a network of firms occurs. Thus, the overarching purpose of my research is to apply analytical techniques to provide insights into segments and, in turn, allow firms to better compete.
 
Working with Annie Mackowick on her distinction project, we applied a little used variable, household life cycle, to divide the market of people who purchase season tickets for a major professional sports league team. The household life cycle incorporates three separate variable – age of head of household, presence and, if applicable, age of child in the household, and marital status. This variable has not been applied in a leisure domain; hence, the value of the project.
 
We identified differences in purchasing patterns among the stages or levels of the household life cycle. Post hoc analysis provided additional insight. Annie presented the paper at the Marketing Management Association’s Spring conference and to executives from the major professional sports league team. We will submit a journal article to the Journal of Sport Management.
 
Working with Hannah Elaides on her distinction project, we examined “cash for clunkers” government programs to determine if the programs were an effective form of public policy. We analyzed data from three countries, Canada, Germany, and the United States, and could divide the programs into three types. Length of the program appeared as the key explanator for determining success of these public policy programs. We will submit to the Public Policy and Marketing conference. Based on the feedback from the conference, we will submit a manuscript to the Journal of Public Policy and Marketing.
 
Finally, I worked with two colleagues to extend a previously published paper that grouped higher education institutions based on a set of characteristics. In the previous paper, we adopted a student perspective. In this paper, we took an administrative perspective. Incorporating variables that a higher education institute could change, we want to find a more prescriptive alternative to the descriptive Carnegie classification system. We continue refining our model that reasonably divides the higher education market by adding similar higher education institutes based on a defensible logic.
 
In each of these papers, we incorporate different analytical tools such as Analysis of Variance or cluster analysis because the applied tool can answer the research question. Through these different analytical tools, I gain insight into how to divide the market based on a variable or sets of variables and how to add members or observations to those divisions.
 
Adding. Dividing. In my research, these two words fit together like peanut butter and chocolate. Through the analysis and process of adding and dividing, I can provide insight and understanding of how a network of firms can better compete market segment by market segment.