Prof. Dr. Jan Becker is Professor of Marketing and Service Management at Kühne Logistics University in Hamburg. He studied Business Administration in Kiel and Bayreuth and holds a doctorate and habilitation in Marketing from the Christian-Albrechts-University at Kiel. Before joining KLU in 2011, he taught at the universities of Kiel, Passau, and Rostock. His teaching portfolio comprises several Marketing courses in the bachelor, master, and doctoral programs as well as in the Executive Education.
Prof. Becker’s research focuses on topics such as Customer Relationship Management, Strategic Marketing, as well as Service Management and Electronic Commerce. His research has been published in prestigious international journals such as Journal of Marketing, International Journal of Research in Marketing, Journal of Service Research, Marketing Letters, and Journal of Business Ethics. He is co-editor of Journal of Media Economics. His research has won the 2018 Sheth/Journal of Marketing Award for the long-term contribution to the discipline of marketing, and the 2015 IJRM Best Paper Award. Furthermore, he was finalist for the 2011 MSI/H. Paul Root Award as well as for the 2018 VHB Best Paper Award. Jan Becker is a regular visiting scholar at the Anderson Graduate School of Management, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
With more than 15 years of industry and consulting experience in the field of digital transformation, Prof. Becker regularly engages in research co-operations with firms from various industries on customer management topics such as referral programs, churn prevention, and targeting. A common thread of these projects is the use of advanced analytical methods to support management in decision-making.
Selected Publications
(In press): Marketing inputs and outcome heterogeneity – Using a quantile regression framework in the entertainment industry, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science: .
(2024): Understanding customers’ choice for digital D2C versus multi-brand operations, Journal of Retailing, 100 (2): 256-273.
Abstract: In recent years, the emergence of highly successful digital multi-brand retailers has facilitated an omnichannel distribution strategy to become the norm for brands. Rather than relying solely on these multi-brand retailers, it is necessary for companies’ omnichannel strategy to establish strong brand-owned direct-to-consumer (D2C) webstores. To help D2C brands make decisions regarding distribution channel choices, this paper investigates the circumstances under which customers prefer brands’ D2C webstores over digital multi-brand retailers and how these circumstances vary across phases of the customer journey. The results from an extensive experimental study demonstrate that, depending on the customer journey, brands’ D2C webstores can compete with digital multi-brand retailers, particularly in product categories characterized by deep assortments, the need for extensive product information, exclusive products, or a high degree of personalization.
(2020): Impact of proactive postsales service and cross-selling activities on customer churn and service calls, Journal of Service Research, 23 (1): 53-69.
Abstract: In recent years, service providers have identified the proactive postsales service (PPS) as a viable measure for preempting service failures and their negative consequences. Due to the high costs associated with PPSs, companies are looking for ways to increase their efficiency. To understand how companies can increase their revenues and lower their costs, this study investigates how cross-selling activities and different media types affect the impact of a PPS on inbound service calls and customer churn. Based on a large-scale field experiment in the telecommunications industry, as well as a controlled lab experiment, the results demonstrate the overall effectiveness of the PPS and indicate two mediating effects. While the effect of cross-selling on customer churn and service calls is mediated by the customers’ uncertainty regarding the company’s motives, it is the customers’ perception of privacy invasion that mediates the influence of the contact medium on the effectiveness of the PPS. Our finding that PPS contacts have to be clear in their message and should not be perceived as invasive is an indication of the importance of service-(post)sales ambidexterity.
(2017): The Role of Mere Closeness: How Geographic Proximity Affects Social Influence, Journal of Marketing, 81 (5): 49-66.
Abstract: Geographic proximity has become increasingly relevant due to the growing number of marketing services that use consumers’ geographic locations, thus increasing the importance of gaining insights from this information. In five studies (both field and experimental), the authors analyze the effect of geographic proximity on social influence and demonstrate that not only social proximity but also perceived homophily can trigger social influence. They find that this effect holds under alternative representations of geographic distance and is confirmed for a range of different services and even for physical goods. Furthermore, the authors show that geographic proximity has a relative effect because the social influence of a closer sender is stronger than that of a more distant sender, regardless of the absolute distances. They present managerially relevant conditions under which the influence of geographic proximity not only is comparable to other types of information such as age or gender but also provides sufficient informational value for customers to offset differences among alternatives (e.g., due to higher prices) in trade-off decisions.
(2017): Reward-scrounging in customer referral programs, International Journal of Research in Marketing, 34 (2): 382-398.
Abstract: Rewarding existing customers for the recruitment of new ones has become an increasingly popular acquisition tool for companies. However, when a company rewards the recruitment of a new customer, managers are unaware of whether the rewarded referral was actually necessary or whether “reward-scrounging” has occurred because the referral receiver would have converted anyway. As a consequence, companies risk overestimating the effectiveness of their referral programs, which is why gaining insights into how and when reward-scrounging occurs is crucial. In this study, we employ a large data set from the telecommunications industry to analyze the drivers of reward-scrounging. The results indicate that reward-scrounging reduces the effectiveness of referral reward programs over time and that its likelihood depends on both the referral sender's network position and the company's marketing activities. The findings are used to develop managerial means to alleviate the negative effects of reward-scrounging.
Academic Positions
| Since 2018 | Professor of Marketing and Service Management, Kühne Logistics University, Hamburg, Germany |
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| 2016-2017 | Dean of Research at Kühne Logistics University, Hamburg, Germany |
| 2011-2018 | Associate Professor of Marketing and Service Management, Kühne Logistics University, Hamburg, Germany |
| 2010 - 2011 | Assistant Professor of Marketing and Service Management, Kühne Logistics University, Hamburg, Germany |
| 2008 - 2009 | Visiting Scholar at the University of California, Los Angeles, USA |
| 2007 - 2010 | Assistant Professor of Marketing, Christian-Albrechts-University at Kiel, Germany |
Education
| 2011 | Dr. habil., Christian-Albrechts-University at Kiel, Germany. |
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| 2003 | Dr. sc. pol., Christian-Albrechts-University at Kiel, Germany. |
| 2000 | MSc. in Business Administration (Marketing, Controlling), Christian-Albrechts-University at Kiel, Germany |
| 1996 | BSc. in Business Administration, University of Bayreuth, Germany |
