CV

Leif Brandes is currently Professor of Marketing at the Faculty of Economics and Management at the University of Lucerne. Prior to joining the University of Lucerne, he was first an Assistant Professor and then Associate Professor of Marketing and Behavioral Science at Warwick Business School, the University of Warwick (UK). Prior to that, he was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Yale School of Management, Yale University (US).

Leif’s research focuses on customer word of mouth, biases in individual judgment and decision-making, and the effects of firm’s voluntary information transparency on customers. More recently, he has also become interested in the influence of new technologies (Augmented Reality, Blockchain, NFTs) on value creation and product competition. His research has been published (or accepted for publication) in top-tier academic journals, including the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Marketing Research and Management Science. His research has been featured, among others, by BBC Radio (UK), Harvard Business Manager (DE), The Independent (UK), Ivey Business Journal (CAN), Wall Street Journal (US), the Washington Post (US), or Neue Zürcher Zeitung (CH).

He teaches courses related to Marketing Management, Business Strategy, Managerial Decision-Making and Marketing Analytics. He is also the initiator of the ‘Marketing Challenge Series' at the University of Lucerne. In this teaching format, he has collaborated with firms such as Advitos, B.Braun, Eichhof, Gübelin, L’Oréal, and Sonect. Professor Brandes holds a PhD in Business Administration from the University of Zurich, and a Master of Mathematical Finance from the University of Konstanz (Germany).

Curriculum Vitae Leif Brandes (PDF)
 

Selected Publications

Hofstetter, R., de Bellis, E., Brandes, L., Clegg, M., Lamberton, C., Reibstein, D., Rohlfsen, F., Schmitt, B.H., & Zhang, Z. J. (2022). Crypto-Marketing: How Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) Challenge Traditional Marketing. Marketing Letters (ABS: 3/VHB: B). Forthcoming.
Link: https://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4055610

Brandes, Leif and Yaniv Dover (2022). Offline Context Affects Online Reviews: The Effect of Post Consumption Weather. Journal of Consumer Research (ABS: 4*/ VHB: A+). Forthcoming.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucac003

Brandes, Leif; Godes, David and Dina Mayzlin (2022). Extremity Bias in Online Reviews: The Role of Attrition. Journal of Marketing Research, 59(4), 675-695. (ABS: 4*/ VHB: A+)
Link: https://doi.org/10.1177/00222437211073579

Brandes, Leif and Donja Darai (2017). The Value and Motivating Mechanism of Transparency in Organizations. European Economic Review, 98, 189 – 198. (ABS: 3/ VHB: not rated)
Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroecorev.2017.06.014

Brandes, L., Nüesch, S., & Franck, E. (2016). Death-related publicity as informational advertising: evidence from the music industry. Marketing Letters, 27(1), 143-157. (ABS: 3/VHB: B)
Link: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-014-9322-1

Bartling, Björn; Brandes, Leif and Daniel Schunk (2015). Expectations as Reference Points: Field Evidence from Professional Soccer. Management Science, 61, 2646 – 2661. (ABS: 4*/ VHB: A+)
Link: https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.2048

Publications

Achievements

Teaching

Current courses of Prof. Dr. Leif Brandes
Previous courses of Prof. Dr. Leif Brandes

Written Assignments

Finding your topic

The chair keeps a list of topics, which is published on the website at the beginning of each semester. The current topic list of the chair can be found here.

The topics are related to the research interests of Prof. Brandes' research assistants and serve as an orientation.

Own suggestions for topics are possible, but must fit to the corresponding research focus of the assistant.

Research focus:

• Branding / Brand Personality
• Augmented Reality
• Emotions / Attitude Formation
• Online Word of Mouth 
• Transparency

Applying for your topic

Apply for the topic of your choice with a short motivation letter of max. 200 words. The letter of application should express the motivation for the topic and state the specific research question. Please write the application letter in English and make sure that the research question is precise and has been narrowed down to a level that allows for coverage of the topic in sufficient depth in the context of the seminar or bachelor thesis.

Send your application to the respective research assistant (Itir Bozkurt, Thomas Scheurer, Flavia Tinner)  by March 15 (spring term) and October 15 (fall term). You will receive feedback on your application within one week after the deadline.

Please note that both the term paper and the bachelor thesis are conceptual in nature (i.e. literature-based). In exceptional cases and after consultation with the supervisor, empirical analyses may be conducted. Case studies are not accepted.

Preparing your research proposal

Once your research question has been accepted, you will have a month to write your research proposal. Prior to writing the research proposal, the chair will offer a Q&A session in which you can ask general questions about the work, and general expectations on the part of the chair will be clarified. 

Deadline for submission of the research proposal is April 15 (spring term) and November 15 (fall term). The research proposal will be sent to the respective supervisor via email (PDF format). When preparing your research proposal, please refer to slide 5 of the presentation on formal requirements of the chair.

Discussion of your research proposal

After submitting the research proposal, an appointment for a personal meeting will be arranged in consultation with the supervisor. This meeting will take about 15 minutes.

Supervision of the thesis

Term paper: During the processing time of the term paper, a maximum of two emails with questions will be answered. An additional personal meeting is not planned until further notice.

Bachelor thesis: The type of individual support (personal meetings, questions via e-mails, etc.) during the processing time of the Bachelor thesis will be agreed upon with the supervisor at the beginning.

Master thesis: Interested students can write an e-mail to Prof. Dr. Leif Brandes (leif.brandesremove-this.@remove-this.unilu.ch) and the respective research assistant in CC. After acceptance of the application, the type of individual supervision (personal meetings, questions via e-mail, etc.) will be discussed with the supervisor during the processing time of the Master's thesis.

Submission of the thesis

Term paper: The deadline for submitting the term paper is September 15 (spring term) and April 15 (fall term). The term paper is sent to the respective supervisor in electronic form (PDF; incl. registration form) via e-mail.

Bachelor thesis: The deadline for submitting the bachelor thesis is in December (for start in spring) and in May (for start in fall). The exact deadlines for the submission of the Bachelor thesis are published by the Dean's Office. The Bachelor thesis will be sent to the Dean's Office in electronic form (PDF; incl. registration form) via email (wf-pruefungen@unilu.ch).

Master thesis: The deadline for submitting the Master thesis is in December (for start in spring) and in May (for start in fall). The exact deadlines for the submission of the Master thesis are published by the Dean's Office. The Master thesis will be sent to the Dean's Office in electronic form (PDF; incl. registration form) via email (wf-pruefungen@unilu.ch).

Further information and materials

Further information and tips on writing the research proposal and a scientific paper as well as information on literature research and formalities can be found in the Presentation on Formal Guidelines for Term Papers and Bachelor Theses of the Chair.

For all theses at the chair the following formal guidelines of the chair apply.

The preparation of the thesis also complies with the following guidelines of the Faculty of Economic Sciences:

• Guideline on written assignments
• Guideline Bachelor Thesis

Open Positions

We are currently looking for motivated students who would like to gain research experience. By actively participating in future-oriented research projects, students majoring in economics can earn up to 9 ECTS.