The Institute for Customer Insights (CIN) was established on January 1, 2025 at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). The four founding chairs at the institute build the foundation of customer-based research at the KIT. With the chair of Cognition & Consumer Behavior led by Prof. Dr. Benjamin Scheibehenne, the chair of Digital Marketing led by Prof. Dr. Ann-Kristin Kupfer, the chair of Information Services and Electronic Markets led by Prof. Dr. Andreas Geyer-Schulz, and the chair of Marketing & Sales led by Prof. Dr. Martin Klarmann, we are able to cover a broad area of research drawing on expertise from various disciplines. Our research bridges the gap between theory and practice providing businesses, policy makers and society with guidance in the age of digital transformation.

Some of our research areas include: 

• Social and environmental influences on consumer decision making
• New technologies in the context of Marketing (like Machine Learning and AI)
• Branding strategies and success factors of media products
• Data acqusition and analysis techniques for research surrounding consumer behaviour and marketing

August 01, 2026: Bachelor Seminar Research Group Marketing & Sales is now open. Please refer to our call for applications for additional information regarding topics, process and deadlines. More information can be found here. 

April 21, 2026: Publication by Ann-Kristin Kupfer on pre-release consumer buzz: Pre-release consumer buzz has become a central driver of new product success, as anticipation and excitement before a new product launch increasingly unfold in visible, social contexts. In their latest article, published in the Journal of Product Innovation Management (VHB A), Timo Mandler, Ann-Kristin Kupfer, Thorsten Hennig-Thurau, Ricarda Schauerte, and Gerrit P. Cziehso examine how observing other consumers’ anticipation for a new product influences individual adoption decisions. By uncovering the mechanisms behind the contagious nature of buzz, the study offers important implications for firms seeking to manage and leverage early consumer interest. The article is freely available here.

March 27, 2026:  Workshops. In the summer semester of 2026, the research groups Marketing & Sales and Digital Marketing are offering two interactive events:  “Digital Marketing and Sales in B2B” and “Online concepts for Karlsruhe city center retailers".  Registration begins in April.

March 26, 2026: Open Positions : Current Student Assistant (HIWI) Positions at our Institute

January 26, 2026:  Master Seminar “Sustainability in Marketing and Sales” – Registration Open.  You can find additional information here. Apply via this link.

January 20, 2026: All exam review sessions (exams held in the winter semester 2025/2026) of the Digital Marketing Research Group will take place at the end of the winter semester 2025/26, expected in March or April 2026. Exact dates will be announced.

January 7, 2026: Please note that Professor Benjamin Scheibehenne from the Cognition and Consumer Behavior Lab will be on a research sabbatical next semester 01.04.2026 - 30.09.2026 and will NOT be on site in Karlsruhe.

October 17, 2025: Applications are now open for our interactive course International Entrepreneurship and Brand Development (EUCOR)(WiSe25/26) for the Winter Semester 2025/26. You can apply via the WiWi-Portal.

October 13, 2025: On Wednesday, October 22, 2025, you will have the opportunity to review your exams. Please register for the exam review in the Wiwi portal, where you will also find all further details regarding the process and organization. Registration is open until October 16th.

September 24, 2025: New Master Seminar in “Digital Marketing” – Registration Open. This year’s seminar places a special focus on the broader realm of avatars, AI systems, and virtual environments. As a literature-based course, it offers insights into cutting-edge academic research on these important and emerging topics. Apply via this link.

August 04, 2025: Special Issue of Registered Reports. Together with Udo Wagner, CIN’s Martin Klarmann will edit a special issue of the Marketing ZFP: Journal of Research and Management. It will be a Special Issue comprising only Registered Reports, which are empirical studies where the data collection and analysis plan is reviewed before data collection starts. The topic of the Special Issue is “Customer Relationship in the Age of Generative AI”. Here you can find the Call for Papers. In this Editorial, Udo Wagner and Martin Klarmann summarize the rules for Registered Reports at the Marketing ZFP.

August 04, 2025: The Bachelor Seminar Application "Adaptive Preference Measurement with Unstructured Data" is now open. You can find additional information here. If you have any further questions, please contact Luisa Weber at luisa weber ∂does-not-exist.kit edu.

August 01, 2025: Please note that the CIN Secretary’s office will be closed from 01 August to 15 August. We will respond to your messages as soon as we return on 18 August. Thank you for your understanding.

July 07, 2025: Bachelor Seminar offered by the Marketing & Sales Research Group. In this seminar, participants will learn how to engage with academic marketing research. The students will closely examine a recent research paper, review the literature cited in it, understand the empirical and statistical methods employed, and interpret the results. Finally, the participants will relate the study to concepts from their coursework and assess its contribution critically. More details in the PDF.