Forward-looking behavior of consumers is important for modeling consumer response to promotions of frequently purchased consumer products as well as manufacturer‘s optimal promotion schedule. The first essay studies consumer‘s promotion timing expectations and promotion response. In previous studies, consumers‘ price promotion expectations have been modeled using a first-order Markov (FOM) process. However, theoretical analyses and empirical evidence of the timing of promotions suggest that pricepromotions occur in cycles whose periodicity is stochastic. If promotions are cyclical,consumer expectations can be expected to incorporate this cyclicality. Therefore, in contrast to previous studies, we utilize a Proportional Hazard model (PHM) to characterize consumers‘expectation of future price promotion. Consumers are assumed
to incorporate their expectations consistent with this model into their dynamic brand and quantity choices. Using scanner panel data from the canned tuna category, we first empirically show that the PHM fits the price promotion incidence data better. Second,our estimation results indicate that a structural model employing a PHM specification for promotion expectations fits the data better than one that assumes only a FOM price promotion expectation. Third, we show that promotion elasticities are overestimated by a structural model that assumes only a FOM promotion expectation. Fourth, we show using
an analysis of promotion policy changes that a structural model with a FOM expectation can lead to suboptimal managerial decisions. Lastly, we consider policy simulations in which consumers learn about policy change in a Bayesian fashion.