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Kent Grayson
Kent Grayson

MARKETING
Associate Professor of Marketing
Bernice and Leonard Lavin Professorship

Print Overview
Academic Experience
Kent joined Kellogg in September, 2002. For eight years before that, he was on the marketing faculty at London Business School. From 2000 – 2002, he was also Director of the London Business School Centre for Marketing, a privately funded consortium that facilitates interaction and collaboration between marketing practitioners and academics.

Teaching
Kent teaches marketing management and brand management to MBA and executive audiences. In 2004,2006, 2008, and 2010, he earned the Chairs' Core Teaching Award in marketing at Kellogg. He was a finalist for Kellogg professor of the year in 2010 and was a finalist for the London Business School best teaching award in 1999.

Industry Experience
Over the past fifteen years, Kent has worked on marketing issues with several consumer goods and services companies, including Hilton International, Microsoft, British Airways, Sony, Exxon/Mobil, Electronic Arts, Nissan, and Diageo (Smirnoff & José Cuervo). He has also collaborated on marketing projects with McKinsey & Company and their clients.

In the 1980s, Kent spent four years working in advertising (including two years at a division of Saatchi & Saatchi), during which time he focused on financial services, recruitment advertising, and high-tech accounts.

Academic Research
Kent researches the role of fabrication and fact in consumption. His research looks at such topics as the benefits and drawbacks of trusting a business partner, how consumers decide whether something is authentic or fake, and what happens when a "true" friend tries to sell you something. In a related research area, Kent studies direct selling, which is sometimes known as “pyramid selling” or “network marketing.” For more information, click Vita or Personal Page above.


Areas of Expertise
Brand Management
Consumer Behavior
Trust and Deception
Print Vita
Education
PhD, 1994, Marketing, Northwestern University
MA, 1986, University of Michigan
BA, 1984, English, Communication, University of Michigan, Distinction, High Honors

Academic Positions
Associate Professor, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2002-present
Associate Professor, London Business School, 2000-2002
Assistant Professor, London Business School, 1995-2000
Instructor, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 1994-1995

Editorial Positions
Editorial Review Board, Journal of Consumer Research, 2000-Present
Editorial Review Board, Academy of Marketing Science Review, 1997-2000

 
Print Research
Research Interests
Trust and deception in market exchange, authentic and counterfeit products, brand meaning and management, the role of marketing in achieving corporate goals

Articles
Grayson, Kent, Devon Johnson and Der-Fa Chen. 2008. Is Firm Trust Essential In A Trusted Environment? How Trust in the Business Context Influences Customers. Journal of Marketing Research. 45(2): 241-256.
Abstract
Grayson, Kent. 2007. Friendship versus Business in Marketing Relationships. Journal of Marketing. 71(4): 121-139.
Abstract
Johnson, Devon and Kent Grayson. 2005. Cognitive and Affective Trust in Service Relationships. Journal of Business Research. 58(4): 500-507.
Abstract
Grayson, Kent and Radan Martinec. 2004. Consumer Perceptions of Iconicity and Indexicality and Their Influence on Assessments of Authentic Market Offerings. Journal of Consumer Research. 31(2): 296-312.
Abstract
Grayson, Kent and David Shulman. 2000. Indexicality and the Verification Function of Irreplaceable Possessions. Journal of Consumer Research. 27(1): 17-30.
Grayson, Kent and Tim Ambler. 1999. The Dark Side of Long-Term Relationships in Marketing Services. Journal of Marketing Research. 36(1): 132-141.
Grayson, Kent. 1998. Customer Responses to Emotional Labor in Discrete and Relational Service Exchanges. International Journal of Service Industry Management. 9(2): 126-154.
Coughlan, Anne and Kent Grayson. 1998. Network Marketing Organizations: Compensation Plans, Retail Network Growth, and Profitability. International Journal of Research in Marketing. 15(5): 401-426.
Iacobucci, Dawn, Amy Ostrom and Kent Grayson. 1995. Distinguishing Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction: The Voice of the Customer. Journal of Consumer Psychology. 4(3): 277-303.
Deighton, John and Kent Grayson. 1995. Marketing and Seduction: Building Exchange Relationships By Managing Social Consensus. Journal of Consumer Research. 21(4): 660-676.
Iacobucci, Dawn, Kent Grayson and Amy Ostrom. 1994. Customer Satisfaction Fables. Sloan Management Review. 35(4): 93-96.
Abstract
Book Chapters
Johnson, Devon and Kent Grayson. Forthcoming. "Sources and Dimensions of Trust in Service Relationships." In Handbook of Servies Marketing and Management, edited by Dawn Lacobucci & Teresa Swartz, 357-370. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Tybout, Alice and Kent Grayson. 2010. "Identifying Market Segments and Selecting Targets." In Kellogg on Marketing, 2nd ed. , edited by Alice M. Tybout and Bobby J. Calder, 26-55. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Grayson, Kent. 2000. "Counterfeit Brands: Fooling Others or Fooling Ourselves." In Brand New, edited by Jane Pavitt, 98-101. London: V&A Press.
Grayson, Kent and David Shulman. 2000. "Impression Management and Services Marketing." In Handbook of Servies Marketing and Management, edited by Dawn Lacobucci & Teresa Swartz, 51-68. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Grayson, Kent. 2000. "Why Do We Buy Counterfeits?." In Brand New, edited by Jane Pavitt, 98-101. Princeton University Press.
Grayson, Kent and Svetlana Kirillova. 1999. "Monitoring the Market Misleaders." In Financial Times Mastering Marketing, London, UK: Financial Times.
Grayson, Kent. 1999. "The Opportunities and Dangers of Playful Consumption." In Consumer Value: A Framework for Analysis and Research, edited by Morris B. Holbrook, 105-125. London, UK: Routledge.
Grayson, Kent and Richard Berry. 1999. "The Strategic Advantages of Direct Selling." In Financial Times Mastering Marketing, London, UK: Financial Times.
Grayson, Kent. 1998. "Commercial Activity at Home: The Private Servicescape." In Servicescapes: The Concept of Place in Contemporary Markets, edited by John F. Sherry Jr., Chicago, IL: NTC Business Books.
Grayson, Kent. 1998. "The Icons of Consumer Research: Using Signs to Represent Consumers' Reality." In Representing Consumers, edited by Barbara Stern, 27-43. New York, NY: Routledge.
Grayson, Kent. 1996. "Examining the Embedded Markets of Network Marketing." In Networks In Marketing, edited by Dawn Iacobucci, Thousand Oaks: CA: Sage.
Iacobucci, Dawn, Kent Grayson and Amy Ostrom. 1994. "The Calculus of Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction: Theoretical and Empirical Differentiation and Integration." In Advances in Services Marketing and Management: Research and Practice, edited by Teresa A Swartz, David E Bowen, and Stephen W Brown, vol. 3, 1-67. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
Other
Grayson, Kent. "A Comparative Study of Retail Workers, Franchise Managers and Direct Sellers." September.
Link
Books
Grayson, Kent. 2000. A Comparative Study of Attitudes and Practices of Retail Workers, Franchise Managers, and Direct Sellers in Germany and the United Kingdom. London, UK: London Business School.
Grayson, Kent and Tim Ambler. 1996. Value for Money? The Relationships between Marketing Expenditure and Business Performance in the UK Financial Services Industry. Berkshire, UK: The Chartered Institute of Marketing.
Cases
Grayson, Kent and Sachin Waikar. 2011. Sony Targets Laptop Consumers in China: Segment Global or Local?. Case 5-311-500 (KEL614).
Abstract
Grayson, Kent, Eric Leiserson and Sachin Waikar. 2009. Fiserv Takes on the E-Billing Market: How Can We Get Them to Turn Off Paper?. Case 5-309-506 (KEL487).
Abstract
Sawhney, Mohanbir and Kent Grayson. 2009. Ontela PicDeck (A): Customer Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning. Case 5-309-505(A) (KEL450).
Abstract
Sawhney, Mohanbir and Kent Grayson. 2009. Ontela PicDeck (B): Customer Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning. Case 5-309-505(B) (KEL451).
Abstract

 
Print Teaching
Teaching Interests
Marketing management, brand management, market segmentation
Full-Time / Part-Time MBA
Marketing Management (MKTG-430-0)

This course counts toward the following majors: Marketing, Marketing Management

This course takes an analytical approach to the study of marketing problems of business firms and other types of organizations. Attention focuses on the influence of the marketplace and the marketing environment on marketing decision making; the determination of the organization's products, prices, channels and communication strategies; and the organization's system for planning and controlling its marketing effort.

Doctoral
PhD Seminar in Consumer Behavior (MKTG-520-3)
This seminar confronts students with significant problems, issues and theories at the leading edge of the marketing field. Presentations and discussions are designed to stimulate thinking on important areas of research and the development of new theoretical viewpoints.

Consumer Behavior: Information Processing and Decision Making (formerly MKTG-520-1) (MKTG-540-0)
This objectives of this course are twofold. First to introduce topics in consumer behavior, familiarize students with research in psychology and marketing related to consumer behavior, and provide an understanding of how theories and frameworks are developed. Students will focus on understanding current theoretical and methodological approaches to various aspects of consumer behavior, as well as advancing this knowledge by developing testable hypotheses and theoretical perspectives that build on the current knowledge base. Secondly to provide selective coverage of the research carried out in the area of consumer decision making. In addition to analyzing extant research, the course will cover some methodological issues that are essential for students to be successful in the field of consumer research.

Research Philosophies in Marketing and Consumer Behavior (formerly MKTG-520-3) (MKTG-542-0)
This course will enhance students’ ability to understand the philosophical assumptions underlying research methods in marketing and consumer behavior. The first half of the course focuses on consumer behavior from a methodological perspective with the focus being on the broader, more fundamental issues of what should be the goal of consumer research, and what good theory looks like, and how research can be applied. The second half of the course focuses on a particular research tradition in marketing and consumer behavior that will not only to introduce students to an important research tradition in marketing, but also to do so using the analytic frameworks offered during the first half of the course.