What Marketing Science Institute does

The Marketing Science Institute (MSI) is a non-profit membership organization founded in 1961 and operating as a division of the Advertising Research Foundation (ARF). Headquartered in New York City (Empire State Building, 350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 6705), MSI serves as a structural bridge between academic marketing scholars and corporate marketing practitioners, maintaining 24+ corporate member companies and 25+ academic affiliate institutions. Its member companies include Google, Meta, Adobe, Coca-Cola, Nike, Dell, Comcast, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Eli Lilly, AstraZeneca, Colgate-Palmolive, General Mills, and others, while academic affiliates include Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan, Stanford GSB, Wharton, Yale, NYU Stern, and Northwestern Kellogg.

MSI's offerings are programmatic rather than technology-based. Core services include working paper publications and a free public library with members-only content, research competitions and grant programs, the MSI Scholars and MSI Young Scholars programs, the Alden G. Clayton Award for doctoral students, conferences, webinars, the Marketing Connections podcast, and an Expert Network that facilitates introductions between corporate members and academic researchers. Thematic initiatives cover Marketing Mix Models, Privacy Regulations, Outcomes-Based Healthcare, and Strategic Insights for Navigating Uncertainty. Community platforms include the MSI Insights Exchange and the MSI/ARF B2B Exchange.

MSI's business model is membership-funded: corporate enterprises pay dues for access to research, networking, and academic-industry collaborations, while academic faculty and doctoral students gain access through academic membership. Revenue is not publicly disclosed, pricing tiers are not transparent, and the organization has no external investors, no funding rounds, and no commercial technology product. Governance is scholar-led, with the Executive Director also serving as a university professor.

Name

Marketing Science Institute

Legal name

Marketing Science Institute, Inc.

Website

https://msi.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1961

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Marketing Science Institute is a non-profit membership organization, founded in 1961 and operating as a division of the Advertising Research Foundation, that bridges corporate marketing practitioners and academic scholars through research programs, conferences, working papers, and networking services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

MSI is a nonprofit, membership-based organization that operates as a convening platform connecting corporate marketing professionals with academic marketing scholars. It sells corporate and academic memberships that entitle members to participate in research competitions, working paper submissions, doctoral scholar programs, webinars, conferences, and peer networking forums. The organization does not sell software, products, or consulting services; its offering is access to a curated research community and its published outputs.

Product overview

MSI is a non-profit membership organization that serves as a research and professional development platform for the marketing science community. Rather than offering commercial technology products, MSI provides a suite of programs and services including research support initiatives (MSI Scholars, MSI Young Scholars programs, research competitions, working paper submissions), educational events (conferences, webinars), knowledge-sharing platforms (MSI Insights Exchange, Expert Network, MSI Podcast), and member community forums (MSI/ARF B2B Exchange). MSI operates as a division of the Advertising Research Foundation and connects leading marketing academics with industry practitioners to advance the scientific practice of marketing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Corporate Membership Program Annual membership for marketing professionals in corporate enterprises, providing access to MSI programs, research, networking events, and ARF programming.
• Academic Membership Program Annual membership for faculty at colleges and universities and their doctoral students, providing access to research programs, working paper submission, and scholar initiatives.
• MSI Research Competition Annual research competition with a call for proposals funding scientific marketing research by academic scholars.
• Alden G. Clayton Award Doctoral dissertation proposal competition providing awards to top marketing doctoral students for dissertation research.
• MSI Scholars Program A recognition and engagement program for MSI-acclaimed marketing scholars collaborating with member companies.
• MSI Young Scholars Program Program supporting and showcasing emerging marketing doctoral talent in conjunction with member companies.
• MSI Conferences In-person conferences hosted by MSI convening marketing academics and corporate marketers to discuss research and practice.
• MSI Webinars Live and on-demand webinar series in which academics and industry experts present latest marketing research insights.
• MSI Podcast (Marketing Connections) Podcast featuring expert insights and conversations about marketing research and practice.
• MSI Insights Exchange Knowledge-exchange program providing member companies with curated, actionable marketing insights drawn from MSI research.
• MSI Expert Network (Expert Directory) Member-benefit service that facilitates introductions between member companies and MSI-affiliated academic experts for consultations and collaborations.
• MSI/ARF B2B Exchange Member-only B2B community forum for peer-to-peer exchange among corporate marketing leaders, hosted jointly with ARF.
• Working Paper Submission and Library Submission service and library of working papers in marketing science, with free public access and members-only content.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Advertising Research Foundation (ARF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMSI is a division of the Advertising Research Foundation (ARF). Through this partnership, MSI members have access to all events and programs hosted by the Advertising Research Foundation.
• Adobe Systems Inc.minorOthersCorporate member company participating in MSI's research and networking programs.
• GoogleminorOthersCorporate member company participating in MSI's research and networking programs.
• MetaminorOthersCorporate member company participating in MSI's research and networking programs.
• The Coca-Cola CompanyminorOthersCorporate member company participating in MSI's research and networking programs.
• Nike, Inc.minorOthersCorporate member company participating in MSI's research and networking programs.
• Harvard Business SchoolminorOthersAcademic affiliate institution participating in MSI's research and academic programs.
• MIT Management Sloan SchoolminorOthersAcademic affiliate institution participating in MSI's research and academic programs.
• Yale School of ManagementminorOthersAcademic affiliate institution participating in MSI's research and academic programs.
• Stanford Graduate School of BusinessminorOthersAcademic affiliate institution participating in MSI's research and academic programs.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• American Marketing Association: The largest professional marketing association in North America, AMA serves marketing professionals and academics across industry and scholarship, comparable to MSI's membership-based industry-academia bridge, though broader in scope.
• ESOMAR: Global market research association providing research standards, training, and networking to data, insights, and analytics professionals; directly comparable to MSI as a membership-based research community but with a stronger international footprint.
• Insights Association: North American association for the market and consumer insights industry, offering research standards, advocacy, and member services. Overlaps with MSI's mission of advancing evidence-based marketing practice.
• Academy of Marketing Science: International scholarly association promoting marketing research and doctoral education; shares MSI's academic-industry orientation, though more academic-led and conference-focused.

Broad incumbents

• Advertising Research Foundation: Industry association for advertising and marketing research; MSI's parent organization with overlapping programs and shared member access, providing direct comparison on research dissemination and industry engagement.
• Kantar: Global marketing data, insights, and consulting firm that both consumes marketing science research and produces applied research for marketers; broader commercial scope but intersects with MSI's evidence-based mission.
• Nielsen: Global audience measurement and consumer data company that publishes applied marketing research for member clients; competes for corporate marketing research budgets that MSI member companies allocate.
• Ipsos: Global market research and consulting firm; one of MSI's corporate members but also a producer of applied marketing science, representing both collaboration and substitution.
• Forrester Research: Subscription-based research and advisory firm for marketing, technology, and customer experience; comparable in delivering research-driven insights to enterprise marketing decision-makers.

Regional players

• Market Research Society (MRS): UK-based professional body for market research, insights, and data analytics; comparable to MSI in promoting research standards and professional development, but focused on the UK and European markets.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/MktgScience
• Facebookfacebook.com/MarketingScienceInstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/marketing-science-institute

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Marketing Science Institute