Michael is passionate about the extraordinary world of the ordinary consumer. He brings humor and arresting visuals to his keynotes to show how everyday behaviors are much more meaningful than you thought – and an essential pathway to grabbing the attention and loyalty of your customers. The marketing guru Philip Kotler summed it up when he stated, "Solomon has the mind of a scientist and the writing flair of a journalist.
Michael "wrote the book" on understanding consumers. Literally. Hundreds of thousands of business students have learned about Marketing from his books including Consumer Behavior: Buying, Having, and Being — the most widely used book on the subject in the world. Michael's latest bestseller, The New Chameleons: How to Connect with Consumers Who Defy Categorization, takes a deep look into this new generation of consumers who increasingly take for granted that products and advertising will blend their multiple brand identities rather than market to them as a specific subculture.
Michael's mantra: We don't buy products because of what they do. We buy them because of what they mean. He advises global clients in leading industries such as apparel and footwear (Calvin Klein, Levi Strauss, Under Armour, Timberland), financial services and e-commerce (eBay, Progressive), CPG (Procter & Gamble, Campbell's), retailing (H&M), sports (Philadelphia Eagles), manufacturing (DuPont, PP&G) and transportation (BMW, United Airlines) on marketing strategies to make them more consumer-centric. He regularly appears on television shows including The Today Show, Good Morning America and CNN to comment on consumer issues, and he is frequently quoted in major media outlets such as The New York Times, USA Today, Adweek and Time.
As a Professor of Marketing (in the Haub School of Business at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia) and an industry consultant, Michael combines cutting edge academic theory with actionable real-world strategies. He helps managers get inside the heads of their customers so they can anticipate and satisfy their deepest and most pressing needs – today and tomorrow. An executive at Subaru said it best: "The man is a scholar who is current and street-wise."
Michael is passionate about the extraordinary world of the ordinary consumer. He brings humor and arresting visuals to his keynotes to show how everyday behaviors are much more meaningful than you thought – and an essential pathway to grabbing the attention and loyalty of your customers. The marketing guru Philip Kotler summed it up when he stated, "Solomon has the mind of a scientist and the writing flair of a journalist.
Michael "wrote the book" on understanding consumers. Literally. Hundreds of thousands of business students have learned about Marketing from his books including Consumer Behavior: Buying, Having, and Being — the most widely used book on the subject in the world. Michael's latest bestseller, The New Chameleons: How to Connect with Consumers Who Defy Categorization, takes a deep look into this new generation of consumers who increasingly take for granted that products and advertising will blend their multiple brand identities rather than market to them as a specific subculture.
Michael's mantra: We don't buy products because of what they do. We buy them because of what they mean. He advises global clients in leading industries such as apparel and footwear (Calvin Klein, Levi Strauss, Under Armour, Timberland), financial services and e-commerce (eBay, Progressive), CPG (Procter & Gamble, Campbell's), retailing (H&M), sports (Philadelphia Eagles), manufacturing (DuPont, PP&G) and transportation (BMW, United Airlines) on marketing strategies to make them more consumer-centric. He regularly appears on television shows including The Today Show, Good Morning America and CNN to comment on consumer issues, and he is frequently quoted in major media outlets such as The New York Times, USA Today, Adweek and Time.
As a Professor of Marketing (in the Haub School of Business at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia) and an industry consultant, Michael combines cutting edge academic theory with actionable real-world strategies. He helps managers get inside the heads of their customers so they can anticipate and satisfy their deepest and most pressing needs – today and tomorrow. An executive at Subaru said it best: "The man is a scholar who is current and street-wise."
Step on the G.A.S. (Gratification, Agency & Stability): Consumer Behavior in The New Normal
You'll...
The Many Faces of AI: Persuasive Salesbots and Tomorrow's Customer Experience
Everyone is buzzing about Artificial Intelligence these days, as well as they should. Machines that "think" for us already are transforming how we work, play - and shop. McKinsey tells us that some 29 million U.S. homes used some form of smart technology last year, and that number grows by over 30 percent a year.
Many organizations now deploy robots, avatars and chatbots to perform tasks we used to ask flesh-and-blood people to do. This suddenly makes the age-old question...
Walk a Mile in Your Customer's Shoes
The customer is king (or queen). Yet the best product or service will fail if consumers don't have a positive encounter when they consume it. That's because what you sell is NOT a product - it's an experience that consists of the core offering plus everything that goes with it. This includes the physical or digital environment where shoppers find it, the people who sell it, and even how others react to the...
We Really ARE What We Wear: How The Psychology of Fashion Influences Consumer Behavior
That insight is crucial for any industry that touches consumers. Customers literally choose from thousands of options - and most of them have very little to do with functionality. However, that doesn't make these decisions unimportant by any means. The selection of a watch, a bracelet, a pair of glasses or many other items reflects deep-seated values and beliefs about appearance and the consumer's identity. We can think of the body as a canvas, where the shopper...





