He was the creator of the Bass diffusion model that describes the adoption of new products and technologies by first-time buyers.
In 1959, Bass was made a Fellow at Harvard University's Institute of Basic Mathematics For Application to Business.
In 1974 he was appointed as Loeb Distinguished Professor of Marketing at the Krannert Graduate School of Management of Purdue University.
His research contributions over a 52-year career in academics and private consulting ranged widely over a broad set of marketing issues.
Using models and advanced statistical techniques often adapted from economics and the social sciences, he made fundamental contributions that changed the way marketing was taught in universities and applied in business.