Nerd Alert: Life After Brand Death

Welcome to Nerd Alert, a series of special episodes bridging the gap between marketing academia and practitioners. We're breaking down highly involved, complex research into plain language and takeaways any marketer can use. In this episode, Elena and Rob explore what happens when a brand disappears, and which competitors stand to gain the most when a brand gets permanently pulled from the market. Topics covered:[01:45] "Filling the Void: How Competing Brands Can Capitalize on a Brand Deletion"[02:20] Why brands get deleted and how often it happens[04:00] Who actually benefits when a brand disappears?[05:30] The highest-return move competitors can make[07:10] When raising prices backfires[08:20] What manufacturers should stress-test before deleting a brandTo learn more, visit marketingarchitects.com/podcast Resources: Keller, Kristopher O., and Harald J. van Heerde (2026), "Filling the Void: How Competing Brands Can Capitalize on a Brand Deletion." Working paper, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and University of New South Wales. Get more research-backed marketing strategies by subscribing to The Marketing Architects on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.