Virtual relationships : from an industrial perspective

This thesis aims to provide a better understanding of how virtual relationships can be described in a business-to-business setting. This purpose is achieved by exploring, describing and somewhat explaining how the virtual relationship process can be described, how the benefits and risks with virtual relationships can be described, and how the people involved in a virtual relationship can be described. Case studies are performed on Frontec AB, Effnet AB and MoDo Paper AB. The process was concluded to involve mostly information search and exploration of the relationship. The main benefits was found to be lower marketing costs and increased customer retention, while the main risk was found to be unreliable soft- and hardware. The people involved matched the proposed roles in the Buying Team very well, while some deviations existed in the Buying Center. Finally, a defition of virtual relationships is given, as well as implications for managers, theory, and future research.Validerat; 20101217 (root