How can firms nurture loyal customers in the long term? What is the most profitable way of releasing movie series and book chapters online? How can we inspire mass creativity? These are just a few of the timely questions asked by Professor Mengze Shi, HKUST’s Yuk-Shee Chan Professor of Business, whose research on the quantitative modeling of consumer decisions and behavior has game-changing implications for sectors as diverse as online publishing and competitive sports.
In an age of digital transformation and economic instability, it has never been more important for businesses to understand the people who matter most to their success: customers. Firms need to know exactly how customers interact with their services, products and marketing. “By running data analysis of consumers’ decisions and behavior,” explains Professor Shi, “we can understand their relationships with platforms in the long term and help firms design optimal marketing interventions.”
For example, his research suggests that the mere act of completing a customer satisfaction survey can maintain trust and inspire customers to buy more from a company—an effect that may last for months and even years. Another innovative project shows how digital book platforms can boost their profits by releasing chapters sequentially rather than all at once.
These and innumerable other pioneering findings have gained Professor Shi global recognition and shaped an illustrious research career. He has published 30 papers, many in top-tier marketing journals, since graduating from his Ph.D., and his work has received many prestigious research grants, both in Canada (where he previously served as Ellison Professor of Marketing at the University of Toronto) and at HKUST. As well as serving the academic community as a distinguished editorial board member, Professor Shi has inspired a generation of future marketing researchers as a teacher and curriculum developer.
In July 2022, this outstanding scholar was appointed Chair Professor of Marketing at HKUST—a perfect fit with the strategic focus on business analytics of both the Department of Marketing and the School of Business and Management.
Professor Shi’s research has far-reaching implications for the wider landscape of business. As buying and selling become ever more technologically driven, he notes, “attention has become our own asset as consumers.” In an unpredictable world, Professor Shi is providing an invaluable foundation for relationship management that benefits consumers and marketers alike.
