Special Research Topics
Data Mining in Marketing
Large amounts of data are only valuable for operational decision support if one succeeds to uncover the inherent non trivial and potentially useful information. Therefore, the main focus of data mining is to identify interesting patterns in large data sets with an acceptable expenditure of time and money. Current discussions about the prospects and limits of data mining show the necessity of a continuous further development of the corresponding tools regarding their beneficial application in marketing practice. A main focus of our research activities has been on machine learning, by putting special emphasis on artificial neural networks.
New Methods in Computer-based Preference Measurement
A further topic of our current research concerns the development of computer-based preference measurement methods for new product planning and the improvement of existing products. Special challenges for preference measurement result from the increasing complexity of new products and the also increasing heterogeneity of many markets. Currently, among other things, we work on adaptive preference measurement approaches, which reduce the time and effort on the part of the respondents and ease the consideration of complex products. Furthermore, we investigate the decision behavior in connection with computer-based preference measurements by means of eyetracking.Furthermore, we focus on the systematic analysis of online customer reviews using econometric methods, e.g. for uncovering hidden preference patterns.
Quantitative Methods in Sales Planning
Efficient and effective sales planning is a crucial factor for successful business management. Objectives of quantitative sales planning are particularly the profit optimized alignment of sales territories or the corresponding determination of the sales force design. The main focus of our research is on the comparative examination and discussion of popular algorithms. Further research investigates whether an adaption of already successfully applied methods from different topics, e.g. machine learning, can be used in the context of sales planning. Beyond, the increasing globalization of markets and the resulting reorganization of sales management are taken into account within the framework of quantitative sales planning.