Lars Erling Olsen is Professor of Marketing and Dean for Executive programs at BI Norwegian Business School. Previously, Olsen served several years as Dean Bachelor at BI and Head of Department of Marketing at Kristiania University College (Høyskolen Kristiania). Olsen teaches marketing communication, marketing management, brand management and consumer behavior at both bachelor and master levels, including executive education.
Professor Olsen's general expertise lies in marketing strategy/planning and consumer behavior. His specific research interests are brand management/strategy, marketing communication, and attitude/persuasion theory. Olsen's research has been published in among others: Journal of Business Research, Journal of Advertising, Marketing Letters, and Psychology & Marketing.
He has co-authored Norwegian text books on brand management and marketing communication. Books that are widely used in universities and among industry leaders. Professor Olsen has worked in a variety of diffferent marketing projects the last 20 years. He has served as consultant and advisor to leading Norwegian and Nordic brands/companies, and as a popular speaker, he has conducted marketing seminars on a variety of forums and topics. Before joining academia, Olsen worked as a brand manager in the food industry for several years.
Professor Olsen lives in Nordstrand, Oslo with is wife Hege and children Marius and Kajsa.
Purpose –Brand managers can choose among two fundamentally different brand positioning strategies. One is a broad brand strategy, focusing on many favorable brand associations. The other is a narrow brand strategy, focusing on just a few and thus more mentally accessible associations. Building on associative memory theory, the current article examines which of these brand positioning strategies performs better under dynamic market conditions. Design/methodology/approach – Three experiments test the effect of brand positioning strategy on memory accessibility and competitive brand performance. Study 1 tests how brand strategy (broad vs. narrow) affects defensive brand performance. Study 2 tests how broad vs. narrow brands perform differently in a brand extension scenario (offensive brand performance). Study 3 uses real brands and situation-based attributes as stimuli in a defensive scenario. Findings – The results show that a narrow brand positioning strategy leads to a competitive advantage. Narrow brands with fewer and more accessible associations resist new competitors more easily and have higher brand extension acceptance than do broad brands. Research implications – The article shows how to use accessibility as evidence of associative strength and test how accessibility influences competitive brand performance in a controlled experimental context. Practical implications – Brand managers would benefit from a narrow brand positioning strategy in accordance with the USP school of thought used by many marketing practitioners. Originality – The paper demonstrates that narrow brand positioning performs better than broad brand positioning in dynamic markets, and to our knowledge is the first to do so.
Erichsen, Morten & Olsen, Lars Erling (2021)
Pretesting av digital reklame - Nye metoder bør få mer oppmerksomhet
Magma forskning og viten, s. 57- 64.
Annonsører og reklamebyråer bør kontinuerlig søke å effektivisere sine reklamekampanjer. Vår undersøkelse viser at A/B-testing av reklame i digitale medier på mange måter har erstattet pretesting av reklame i disse kanalene. Vi hevder at med inntog av nye og mer avanserte metoder som kunstig intelligens (AI) og nevromåling bør pretesting av reklame i digitale medier få mer oppmerksomhet. Sammen med A/B-testing kan dette bidra til å gjøre reklamekampanjer enda mer effektive. Vi rapporterer funn fra en kvalitativ undersøkelse der vi dybdeintervjuer 19 personer i bransjen. Våre funn gir holdepunkter for at pretesting av reklame gjennomføres i svært liten grad i Norge, til tross for at de fleste respondentene har en positiv holdning til pretesting. Funnene viser også at respondentene ikke er godt nok kjent med nye metoder for pretesting av reklame, og at svært få har tatt dem i bruk. Et viktig formål med denne artikkelen er derfor å bidra til at flere blir oppmerksom på nye metoder for pretesting av reklame og tar i bruk disse metodene sammen med A/B-testing for å optimalisere reklamen.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2018)
Måling av merkeassosiasjoner - Reaksjonstid som metode
Brands in texts: Attitudinal effects of brand placements in narrative fiction
Journal of Brand Management, 19(8), s. 702- 711. Doi: 10.1057/bm.2012.4
Olsen, Lars Erling & Peretz, Adrian (2011)
Conscientious brand criteria: A framework and a case examplefrom the clothing industry
Journal of Brand Management, 18(9), s. 639- 649. Doi: 10.1057/bm.2011.30
Lund, Karl Fredrik & Olsen, Lars Erling (2011)
Moderne kjøpesentermarkedsføring
Magma forskning og viten, 14(4), s. 62- 68.
Olsen, Lars Erling & Peretz, Adrian (2010)
Making it fit! : the use of sequential brand extensions to accomplish growth
EMAC Annual Conference proceedings
Brand extensions are attractive to companies because they provide an opportunity to take advantage of existing brand names when entering into new product categories. However, at times brand managers identify growth categories beyond the reach of their brands. In these cases, the current literature recommends introducing a new brand name, even though it is acknowledged that this strategy carries substantial financial risk. This paper proposes an alternative approach, and introduces the conceptual idea that brands may be stretched farther using a series of intervening brand extension – sequential extensions – bridging the gap between the parent brand and the target category. Keywords: brand extension, sequential extensions, associative networks
Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Merkeplasseringer i underholdningsmedier
Døving, Runar & Svensson, Göran (red.). Leksjoner i markedsvitenskap
Samuelsen, Bendik Meling & Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Promising attributes and experiences : attitudinal responses to functional versus experiential ad claims and the moderating role of involvement
Advertisers face several message options when they position a new brand in well-established categories. Functional benefit claims versus experiential claims represent two options. Functional claims focus on tangible attributes and benefits, whereas experiential claims focus on promises of experiences the consumer should expect from the new brand. In this paper, we present the results from two experiments testing the persuasiveness of ads promising experience versus the persuasiveness of ads promising functional benefits of a new entrant. In the first experiment, we found that involvement moderates the effect of claim type on attitude toward a new category entrant in retail banking. This finding was replicated and extended in a second experiment using ski resorts as the context. Our findings suggest that functional benefit claims outperform experiential claims in high-involvement situations and that the strength of message arguments can be just as important as the framing choice. The research also shows that the two advertising claim types elicit different cognitive responses: functional claims trigger mostly semantic memory, whereas experiential claims trigger more episodic memories.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Det viktige første problemet i praktisk posisjonering
Magma forskning og viten, 13(1), s. 55- 62.
Olsen, Lars Erling; Iversen, Nina M. & Hem, Leif Egil (2008)
Feedback Effects of Brand Extensions: The Resistance of Strong Brands
Beta, 1, s. 40- 53.
Samuelsen, Bendik M. & Olsen, Lars Erling (2007)
"Jeg har meninger - sterke meninger - men jeg er ikke alltid enig i dem" om holdninger og holdningsstyrke i merkevareledelse
Magma forskning og viten, 10(2), s. 64- 76.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2005)
Produktplasseringer griper om seg i stadig flere medier
Magma forskning og viten, 8(Årg. 8, nr 5), s. 98- 110.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2004)
Merkearkitektur : relasjoner og sammenhenger i merkeporteføljen
Magma forskning og viten, 7(5/6), s. 24- 36.
Olsen, Lars Erling & Hem, Leif Egil (2004)
Merkeutvidelser: tre spørsmål som bør stilles
Magma forskning og viten, 5/6(7), s. 37- 46.
Olsen, Lars E. & Hem, Leif Egil (2004)
Merkeutvidelser : et forskningsområde innen merkevareledelse
SNF Bulletin, 16(3), s. 15- 18.
Olsen, Lars Erling & Haus, Eirik (2022)
At markedssjefen ikke er i ledergruppen er en varslet utvikling
kampanje.com [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling (2020)
Hvis disse råd blir respektert, da er din fremtid som markedsdirektør garantert
kampanje.com [Kronikk]
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2019)
Gillette har gått i purpose-fella
kampanje.com [Kronikk]
Elvegård, Roy; Lervik-Olsen, Line & Olsen, Lars Erling (2018)
BI-studenter lærer om CRM
Kampanje [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling; Samuelsen, Bendik Meling & Peretz, Adrian (2018)
Usikker på Traasdahls teknologiske fremtidsbilde
Dagens næringsliv [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling (2018)
Det er god grunn til å stusse over Statoils navnebytte
Kampanje [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling & Peretz, Adrian (2018)
God og dårlig markedsføring
Dagens næringsliv [Kronikk]
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2018)
Hva markedsføring er
Dagens næringsliv [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling (2015)
6 steg til virale kampanjer
kampanje.com [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling (2015)
Å kvitte seg med merkevarer
kampanje.com [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling (2015)
Keiseren er naken
kampanje.com [Kronikk]
Hem, Leif Egil & Olsen, Lars Erling (2004)
Merker i vekst
Dagens næringsliv [Kronikk]
Hem, Leif Egil & Olsen, Lars Erling (2004)
Kreative påfunn er slett ikke nok
Dagens næringsliv [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling & Haus, Eirik (1)
Reklame kan være god kommunikasjon
kampanje.com [Kronikk]
Sande, Jon Bingen & Olsen, Lars Erling (1)
Grønn markedsføring og offentlige anskaffelser
Magma forskning og viten [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling (1)
En ny digital verden
Magma forskning og viten [Kronikk]
Olsen, Lars Erling (1)
Et bredt fagfelt
Magma forskning og viten [Kronikk]
Haus, Eirik & Olsen, Lars Erling (2022)
Markedsføring - pensum på 1-2-3
[Non-fiction book]. Cappelen Damm Akademisk.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2021)
Når og hvorfor virker innholdsmarkedsføring
[Article in business/trade/industry journal]. Kampanje
Erichsen, Morten & Olsen, Lars Erling (2021)
Pretesting av digital reklame: Nye metoder bør få mer oppmerksomhet
[Popular scientific article]. BI Business Review
Olsen, Lars Erling (2021)
Mye velment posisjoneringsarbeid i markedsavdelinger er feilslått
[Article in business/trade/industry journal]. kampanje.com
Olsen, Lars Erling (2020)
Drikker du Corona-øl?
[Popular scientific article]. BI Business Review
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2020)
Making it fit
[Academic lecture]. 49th EMAC Annual Conference.
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2020)
Make it Fit
[Academic lecture]. 15th Global Brand Conference 2020.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2019)
Hvorfor Vy blir møtt med fy
[Popular scientific article]. BI Business Review
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2019)
Gillette-debatten handler ikke om budskapet, men om avsenderen
[Popular scientific article]. kampanje.com
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2019)
Kan vi barbere oss til en bedre verden?
[Popular scientific article]. BI Business Review
Olsen, Lars Erling; Samuelsen, Bendik Meling & Warlop, Luk (2019)
Broad vs. Narrow brand positioning: Effects on competitive brand performance
[Academic lecture]. 14th Global Brand Conference.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2018)
Trenger vi merkevarer i en digital tid?
[Popular scientific article]. BI Business Review
Olsen, Lars Erling (2018)
Measuring Brand Association Strength: A Response Time Latency Approach
[Academic lecture]. EMAC.
Brand association strength – how closely a brand association is connected to the brand in consumer memory – is of vital importance in brand management. However, finding practical methods in measuring association strength is a problem for many companies. Previous research offers few suggestions on how to measure association strength based on a theoretically and conceptually consistent approach. Traditionally brand association strength is measured in qualitative research, but these results can be very misleading. To tackle this problem, the current paper suggests using response time latencies combined with a three-step analysis procedure to measure strength. This quantitative method is based on the consumer’s actual cognitive accessibility of brand associations, offers more theoretically valid results and is easy to use for brand managers. Two studies are reported to illustrate the methodology and show how brand association strength could be measured, analyzed and reported.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2018)
Gaver i romantikkens tegn
[Popular scientific article]. BI Business Review
Olsen, Lars Erling (2018)
Menn gir gaver på Valentinsdagen for å oppnå fordeler på parringsmarkedet
[Popular scientific article]. Forskning.no
Olsen, Lars Erling (2017)
Merkevarenes gyldne tid
[Academic lecture]. MF- dagen.
Olsen, Lars Erling; Samuelsen, Bendik Meling & Andreassen, Tor W. (2017)
Trøbbel i elfenbenstårnet
[Popular scientific article]. kampanje.com
Olsen, Lars Erling (2017)
Slik virker markedskommunikasjonen din
[Popular scientific article]. kampanje.com
Olsen, Lars Erling & Peretz, Adrian (2017)
Markedskommunikasjon
[Non-fiction book]. Fagbokforlaget.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2016)
Slik bygger de ansatte merkevaren din
[Popular scientific article]. kampanje.com
Olsen, Lars Erling (2016)
Mer enn ny vin på gammel flaske
[Popular scientific article]. kampanje.com
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2016)
Avoiding the Pains of Growth
[Academic lecture]. EMAC.
Olsen, Lars Erling; Peretz, Adrian & Samuelsen, Bendik Meling (2016)
Merkevareledelse
[Non-fiction book]. Cappelen Damm Akademisk.
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2015)
Brand Growth, when less is more
[Academic lecture]. Academy of Marketing’s 10th Global Brand Conference,.
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2015)
Growing without getting bigger
[Academic lecture]. 44th EMAC Conference.
Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2015)
Growing without getting bigger
[Academic lecture]. 18th Academy of Marketing Science World Marketing Congress.
Olsen, Lars Erling; Samuelsen, Bendik M. & Gaustad, Tarje (2014)
Same message, different ad framing: The moderating role of need for cognition
Markedsføring i sosiale medier - gammelt kunnskap i ny innpakning
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2012)
Hva med å eksperimentere litt?
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2012)
Bittersøt nostalgi
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Samuelsen, Bendik Meling & Olsen, Lars Erling (2012)
Product placement effects in a movie:Results from a field study
[Academic lecture]. EMAC 41th Annual Conference.
Olsen, Lars Erling & Samuelsen, Bendik Meling (2012)
Offensive and defensive strength in brand associations
[Academic lecture]. EMAC 41th Annual Conference.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2011)
Styrkeprøven
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2011)
Smale merkevarer utløser kjøpslyst
[Article in business/trade/industry journal]. BI Marketing Magazine
Olsen, Lars Erling (2011)
Building Brand Alliances
[Article in business/trade/industry journal]. BI Marketing Magazine
Olsen, Lars Erling (2011)
Vis måtehold med produktplasseringer
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2011)
Hjernen er alene
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2011)
Produktplasseringer i vinden
[Article in business/trade/industry journal]. ANFOs Nyhetsbrev
Olsen, Lars Erling (2011)
Alkoholreklame og drikking
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2011)
Kommunikasjonsplanlegging - 5 steg for å utvikle effektiv kommunikasjon
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling & Peretz, Adrian (2011)
Brands With a Conscience: Identification Criteria and a Case Illustration
[Academic lecture]. Johan Arndts Markedsføringskonferanse.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Feil om Stellaprisen
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Skjult reklame - ja takk!
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Nye virkemidler i markedskommunikasjon - produktet vel plassert
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Posisjoneringens kunst
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Edruelig om alkoreklame
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Reklame og drikking
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Liking og forskning
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling & Peretz, Adrian (2010)
Sequential Brand Extensions
[Academic lecture]. Johan Arndts Markedsføringskonferanse.
Sværi, Sander & Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
The Role of Emotions in Customer Complaint Behaviour
[Academic lecture]. Johan Arndts Markedsføringskonferanse.
Samuelsen, Bendik Meling; Peretz, Adrian & Olsen, Lars Erling (2010)
Merkevareledelse på norsk 2.0
[Non-fiction book]. Cappelen Damm Akademisk.
Olsen, Lars Erling & Peretz, Adrian (2010)
Making it fit! : the use of sequential brand extensions to accomplish growth
[Academic lecture]. 39th EMAC Conference : the six senses : the essentials of marketing.
Brand extensions are attractive to companies because they provide an opportunity to take advantage of existing brand names when entering into new product categories. However, at times brand managers identify growth categories beyond the reach of their brands. In these cases, the current literature recommends introducing a new brand name, even though it is acknowledged that this strategy carries substantial financial risk. This paper proposes an alternative approach, and introduces the conceptual idea that brands may be stretched farther using a series of intervening brand extension – sequential extensions – bridging the gap between the parent brand and the target category. Keywords: brand extension, sequential extensions, associative networks
Olsen, Lars Erling (2009)
Høyre i fritt fall
[Popular scientific article]. VG : Verdens gang
Olsen, Lars Erling (2009)
Bortkastet markedsposisjonering
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling; Lanseng, Even Johan, Baalerud, H & Holtmoen, H (2009)
Brands in Text - Attitudinal Effects of Brand Placements in Narrative Fiction
[Academic lecture]. World Marketing Congress.
Samuelsen, Bendik Meling & Olsen, Lars Erling (2009)
The Attitudinal Response to Alternative Brand Growth Strategies: The Moderating Role of Brand Stretch
[Academic lecture]. AMS World Marketing Congress.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2008)
Blårussfloskler
[Popular scientific article]. Dagbladet
Olsen, Lars Erling & Peretz, Adrian (2008)
Fotball for folket
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2007)
Merkevarer og kunst
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2007)
Vinglepetter eller evangelist?
[Popular scientific article]. BI Magasinet
Olsen, Lars Erling (2007)
Dumme forbrukere?
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling & Samuelsen, Bendik Meling (2007)
The Multiple Roles of Fit Between Brand Alliance Partners in Alliance Attitude Formation
[Academic lecture]. Johan Arndts Markedsføringskonferanse.
Olsen, Lars Erling; Iversen, Nina M. & Hem, Leif Egil (2007)
Feedback Effects of Brand Extensions: Are Flagship Products Less Vulnerable?
[Academic lecture]. Johan Arndts Markedsføringskonferanse.
Hem, Leif Egil; Iversen, Nina M. & Olsen, Lars Erling (2007)
A Pleasant Stay Depends on the Host: The Role of Characteristics of the Extension Category on Brand Extension Evaluations
[Academic lecture]. Thought Leaders International Conference on Brand Management.
Peretz, Adrian; Olsen, Lars E. & Samuelsen, Bendik M. (2007)
Merkevareledelse på Norsk
[Textbook]. Cappelen Damm Akademisk.
Lærebok i Merkevareldelse - spesielt tilpasset norske studenter på Bachelornivå og profesjonsmarkedet. Utstrakt bruk av norske eksempler og norsk terminologi.
Olsen, Lars Erling (2006)
Forbud ikke veien
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2006)
Merkevarer som rekvisitter
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2006)
En strategi for å skape vekst - Merkeallianser
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2006)
Tine er tilbake
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2004)
Merkeutvidelser - et forskningsområde innen merkevareledelse
[Popular scientific article]. SNF Bulletin
Olsen, Lars Erling (2004)
Kreative påfunn er slett ikke nok
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2004)
Effektiv reklame er god reklame
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje
Olsen, Lars Erling (2004)
Merker i vekst
[Popular scientific article]. Dagens næringsliv
Olsen, Lars Erling (2004)
Effektiv reklame er god reklame
[Popular scientific article]. Kampanje, s. 51- 53.
Hem, Leif Egil & Olsen, Lars Erling (2004)
Hvordan bør man arbeide med merkeutvidelser?
[Article in business/trade/industry journal]. ?, s. 8- 10.
Academic Degrees
Year
Academic Department
Degree
2011
BI Norwegian Business School
PhD
2003
Norwegian School of Economics (NHH)
M.B.A.
1999
Norwegian School of Economics (NHH)
Bachelor in Economics and Business Administration
Work Experience
Year
Employer
Job Title
2022 - Present
BI Norwegian Business School
Dean Executive
2018 - 2022
BI Norwegian Business School
Dean Bachelor
2013 - 2017
Kristiania University College (Høyskolen Kristiania)
Professor
2012 - 2017
Kristiania University College (Høyskolen Kristiania)
Head of Department, Department of Marketing
2009 - 2013
Kristiania University College (Høyskolen Kristiania)