No Bad Deed Goes Unrewarded: Charlie Sheen, Meet Behavioral Economics
Charlie Sheen's antics are providing entertaining proof of behavioral economics principles at work in the "real world" of entertainment and consumer behavior, according to the New England Consulting Group, a boutique management consulting firm that examines, analyzes and predicts consumer behavior for marketing-driven businesses.
(Westport, CT) It takes just a flip through People magazine to know that Americans love bad boys (and girls). From The Sopranos to Dallas (how did JR get more popular than Bobby?), Americans have a love/hate relationship with naughty boys and girls.
So, too, it is with Charlie Sheen. “Most will agree that his behavior is unacceptable,” says Gary Stibel, founder and CEO of the Westport, CT based New England Consulting Group, “But as New England Consulting predicted weeks ago, Charlie Sheen’s star is flying higher than ever.”
Stibel adds, “We are not that smart, but we do know who is smart, and we certainly know how to take the risk out of very tough marketing decisions.” For example, New England is able to quantify the risk/reward relationships associated with personalities such as Charles Schwab and Charlie Sheen, sponsorships such as the NFL and NASCAR, using a 10,000 strong ProSumer (Professional conSumer) panel and the crowd sourcing model described in the book, The Wisdom of Crowds. These and other innovative methodologies are used to analyze and predict consumer behavior to address the tough marketing decisions that are all too often made based on anecdotal evidence or surveys focused only on awareness, attitudes and likeability.
Stibel recalls, “When we recommended Kirstie Alley to Jenny Craig seven years ago, we almost got laughed out of the boardroom because she was weighing in at, well, no comment. Yet, Kirstie was celebrity spokes-client for Jenny Craig during its most dramatic growth period, which culminated in the business being sold to Nestlé for more than $600 million in 2006.”
According to Gaurav Kapoor, a managing partner at the New England Consulting Group, “We predict and model consumer response to complex marketing activities such as PR, social media buzz, endorsements and sponsorships. Our ProSumers have the uncanny ability to think like both professionals and consumers, making them a unique source of marketing insights, ideas and predictions.”
According to Stibel, the New England Consulting Group “ought to know because the firm has been associated with almost every major celebrity presenter on the planet and many of the CEOs representing their companies/brands in the media.”
The New England Consulting Group is the world’s premier marketing management consultancy, each of whose partners possess 25+ years of line management and management consulting experience. For a list of New England’s partners and clients, visit www.necg.net or, for more information, contact Diana Sharkey at 203-226-9200 or by email at dms@necg.net or contact the New England Consulting Group’s proprietary Q&A “Convenience Store” 7-11 at 203-226-9200 x711 – questions submitted by 7pm EST will be answered by 11am EST the next morning.
Contact:
Emily H. Laux
Editorial Director
203-226-9200 ext 113
or
Diana M. Sharkey
PR Coordinator
203-226-9200 ext 150
The New England Consulting Group is the world’s premier marketing management consultancy, each of whose partners possess 25+ years of line management and management consulting experience. For a list of New England’s partners and clients, visit www.necg.net or, for more information, contact Diana Sharkey at 203-226-9200 or by email at dms@necg.net or contact the New England Consulting Group’s proprietary Q&A “Convenience Store” 7-11 at 203-226-9200 x711 – questions submitted by 7pm EST will be answered by 11am EST the next morning.
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