Brand defection in a business-to-business financial service

This research examines the reasons for brand defection in a business-to-business financial service. Three cross-sectional studies examine customers who ceased using a brand in the previous month. The research shows that about 60% of brand defection occurs for reasons that brand managers cannot influence, such as business closure or head office decisions. Hence, retention strategies can have a maximum success rate of 40%. Furthermore, most defection within this 40% relates to dissatisfaction with fees and charges, or the attractiveness of competitors' offers. These reasons limit what brand managers can do to retain these customers other than just matching competitors' offers. On the other hand, most customers who defect because of price issues or reasons beyond management control still have a positive attitude towards their former brand and are likely to consider this brand for future purchases. Only 4% of lapsed customers defect because of service service-related issues. These customers are less positive about their former brand, compared to other lapsed customers. The research provides implications for investments in customer acquisition versus customer retention.     

Exploring business-to-business marketsites

Business-to-business (B2B) marketsites are quickly becoming one of the major issues for companies in their search for opportunities to improve visibility of their trading activities and sources of further cost reduction. The paper begins with a synthesis of potential benefits resulting from participation in marketsites and then provides a number of initial classifications of marketsites. The paper then introduces some of the major inhibitors and enablers of marketsites and views these from a number of perspectives such as the structure of marketsites, the degree of centricity and the types of products purchased through such marketsites. Finally, some recommendations for further research are made.     

The antecedents of relationship commitment in the management of relationships in business-to-business (B2B) financial services

The importance of commitment in the management of long-term marketing relationships is well accepted in the marketing literature. There is, however, uncertainty regarding the antecedents of relationship commitment. The study on which this paper is based focused on four possible antecedents of relationship commitment, namely trust, communication, shared values and attractiveness of alternatives.

The study was conducted in the South African business-to-business (B2B) financial services industry. A web-based approach was used to survey 300 relationship managers, while data from 400 B2B clients were collected using a telephone survey. The relationship-manager data were analysed with regression analysis, while structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to analyse the client data.

The uniqueness of the study is the simultaneous consideration of the perceptions of both relationship managers and clients. As far as could be ascertained, a study of this nature has not yet been conducted in the B2B financial services industry. Based on the perceptions of both relationship managers and clients, the contribution of this study is the confirmation of the important roles of trust, communication, shared values and attractiveness of alternatives in the management of commitment to a relationship from both a customer and a provider perspective.     

The trickle-down effect of trust in business-to-business relationships: How can a supplier ensure cooperation from multiple customers?

Abstract

Although several interfirm cooperation studies have expanded the unit of analysis from dyads to triads (networks), there is scant literature focusing on whether and how a supplier’s relationship with a customer influences its relationships with other customers. Individual relationship dyads are not isolated but interact with one another. Particularly, mutual trust in a supplier–customer relationship dyad may influence other customers’ cooperative behavior. This cross-dyadic influence is called the “trickle-down effect of trust.” A hypothesis for the mechanism by which this effect occurs was generated, focusing on the customers’ demand information offerings as a cooperative behavior. The results of an empirical analysis indicate that (1) a supplier’s mutual trust with its primary customer encourages nonprimary customers to offer their demand information to the supplier and (2) the quality of information from customers helps the supplier to make their new product more meaningful.     

Business-to-business professional service relationships under multiple logics

Trends toward service standardization and formalization appear to be contradicting rather than supporting service-dominant logic. Few studies have tried to understand how organizations deal with these contradictions. This paper explores the presence of contradicting logics in business-to-business professional service relationships. Based on 78 interviews with buyers and sellers, the study shows that the nature of the relationship is defined by the need to balance the contradicting logics at both the individual and firm levels. While individual relationships have traditionally been intimate, more instant relationships and knowledge of context is replacing intimacy under increased formalization and goods-dominant logic to ensure co-production. At the firm level, parallel rather than single relationships are used under a more formalized and goods-dominant logic. These findings add to existing knowledge about the integration of service- and goods-dominant logics and suggest that a revised conceptualization of client–professional relationships is needed.     

Psychological comfort in service relationships: A mixed-method approach

Psychological comfort reflects the customer's peace of mind and a sense of ease during a service encounter that helps in maintaining strong relationships. However, the role of psychological comfort (PC) in retail service relationships is not fully explored. To fill this research gap, this study presents a unique conceptual model grounded in the stimulus organism response (S–O-R) framework to empirically explore the stimulating effect of customer experience on psychological comfort (PC), which influences relationships quality and customer retention as the response. To evaluate the model a quantitative survey was administered on 432 bank customers followed by in depth interviews of 10 bank employees. It was found that customer experience stimulates customer's PC that leads to relationship quality and retention as the response. It was also found that relationship duration influences the customer experience-PC relationship. The theoretical and managerial implications of the findings are discussed.     

The business-to-business relationship dimensions in financial services markets

This paper discusses the nature of financial business relationships by drawing on the IMP Group’s theory of industrial relationships. It discusses, among other aspects, the interaction process between banks and their corporate clients, the longevity of relationships, the interdependence between both sides, and the atmosphere of financial services relationships. The conclusions are thought to be interesting and useful for the managers of firms and financial services when setting relationship marketing policies and for academic research on business-to-business services relationships. The field research was done in Portugal and the case method was used.

Can economic bonus programs jeopardize service relationships?

Research findings on the impact of economic bonus programs on service relationships are contradictory. While some studies find positive effects of economic bonus programs on customer’s relational behavior, other studies demonstrate negative effects. Building on self-determination theory, Dholakia (J Market Res 43(2):109–120, 2006) points at a possible explanation for these conflicting results, arguing that economic marketing programs have negative effects on self-determined customers when the program is perceived as controlling by them. By testing the effect of four different kinds of economic bonus programs on loyalty in an experimental setting using a nationwide representative sample of 768 participants, this research is the first that provides empirical evidence that economic bonus programs can indeed endanger service relationships by reducing customer’s self-determination. Implications of our findings for the abundance of economic bonus programs offered to service customers these days are highlighted.     

Attachment styles and customers' long-term relationships in a service context

The main objective of this study is to use attachment styles theory to explore long-term relationships in a service context using the mobile market as a case study. Attachment theory focuses on the primary link between maternal loss or deprivation and later personality development. This theory was extended to adult life and commercial contexts. Three attachment styles (secure, avoidant, and anxious) were used as the independent variables. Commitment and trust, as constructs of any relationship, were employed as the mediating variables, while intention to stay and cooperation were adopted as the dependent variables, as indicators of long-term commercial relationships. A random sample of 1024 members of an online panel participated in the online survey. Structural equation modelling was performed to measure the validity of the constructs through confirmatory factor analysis, and to assess the hypothesized model as a single theoretical structure using path analysis. Associations were found between most of the study variables. Significant mediation effects were found between attachment styles and long-term relationship indicators, intention to stay, and cooperation, with trust and commitment as the mediators. This study employs a unique theoretical model that has not been previously tested. The model and findings demonstrate that primary psychological structures play a role in creating and maintaining long-term relationships.     

Emotions in negotiation

In this article, we discuss the ways in which emotions influence the course of negotiation. Emotions play a role in the development of relationships among negotiators; they also facilitate or hinder coordination of strategic exchanges. These functions highlight an interplay between information-processing and emotional expressions: intentions are inferred from statements made and nonverbal gestures sent. They are understood as part of an expression game that emphasizes interaction dynamics. They are also understood in terms of the organizational contexts surrounding negotiation. These are some of the themes that surface in the articles contributed to this special issue. An overview of the articles calls attention to key points but also expands on the themes suggested by the authors. The work reported in this issue provides a basis for a continuing research agenda on emotions in negotiation.     

Structural relationships among organisation service orientation,employee service performance,and consumer identification

Numerous studies have examined relationship behaviour linking enterprises and consumers from the enterprise perspective rather than the consumer perspective, including consumer approval and relationship maintenance. To redress this imbalance, this study investigates three issues linking the enterprise and consumer perspectives. The first issue involves analysing the influence on the consumers that arises from integrated internal and external environmental resources using service orientation business strategies. The second issue involves exploring the foundations of the relationship factors based on consumer identification that serves to establish consumer relationships. The third issue involves discussing consumer and staff evaluations and experiences of the service. The following opinions can be induced based on the analytical results. Both internal and external environmental characteristics positively affect the service orientation of business. Service orientation positively impacts consumer perceptions of employee service performance. Consumer perceptions of employee service performance have positively impacted consumer identification.     

The role of certification in service relationships: Theory and empirical evidence

In this paper we draw upon multiple theoretical perspectives and develop a conceptual framework regarding the role of certification signals in service relationships. The central premise of this study is that sellers who use certification display for making promises also institute appropriate mechanisms for controlling service providers. Furthermore we hypothesize that the degree of certification display and agent screening is moderated by the relative costs of certification and screening respectively. We empirically test our model by analyzing data from a mail survey of automotive service managers. Our results support the theoretical notion that building customer relationships involves making and keeping promises in service delivery.     

您的广告具有何种情感冲击力?

情感=精神的波动或感觉（牛津大辞典）情感是十分重要的,因为就像第一印象一样,它影响和决定着人们接下来会有什么样的反应和行动,或者决定着人们会不会有任何反应。由于对广告的第一印象通常会更感性,而不是理性,我们需要在理性之外探索,以便更好了解消费者对产品或广告信息的情感和印象。     

Exploring satisfaction in business-to-business services: a path-analytic approach

In this article, we propose a path-analytic approach to model the relationships among overall satisfaction, satisfaction with higher order performance domains and the lower order performance attributes for business-to-business services. The model is estimated using data from the business customers of a large provider of electronics products and services. Our results show that overall satisfaction in such contexts may be driven by satisfaction on multiple higher order performance domains and the relevant lower order performance attributes may not drive satisfaction. An adoption of our modeling approach can help service providers make resource allocation decisions across performance domains and identify the micro-level performance levers that they can pull to manage satisfaction levels of their business clients.     

How business-to-business salespeople deal with buying center dissenters

Salespeople routinely sell to multiple members with influence over the purchasing decision in the customer organization. Given these buying center members’ varying needs, wants, perspectives, and motivations, dispositions toward a sales discussion can be heterogeneous. Salespeople may encounter situations in which members of the buying center react positively to the sales discussion, with the exception of a dissenter who exerts a negative impact on the salesperson in the interaction. Through a qualitative research design, this article provides insight into salespeople’s approaches in dealing with a dissenter in the buying center. The findings provide an integrated understanding of salespeople’s experiences of dissent encounters in business-to-business selling. In-meeting mitigation and post-meeting remediation strategies are advanced along with influencing situational factors. In illustrating how salespeople handle dissenters, the article contributes to scholarship, provides managerial guidance, and advances avenues for future research.     

Drivers of sales and marketing collaboration in business-to-business selling organisations

This paper focuses on identifying and exploring the antecedents and consequences of collaboration between the sales and marketing functions within organisations and empirically tests the resulting model. There is evidence to show that collaborative sales and marketing functions have benefits to an organisation in terms of improved business performance, but many organisations have not yet achieved collaborative internal functions. The study identifies five antecedents to collaboration between sales and marketing and tests the proposition that greater collaboration between sales and marketing is linked to benefits in terms of improved business performance.     

Buyer behavior in business-to-business services: The case of foreign exchange

Empirical regularities in buying behavior observed in mostly consumer markets have been linked into a comprehensive model, the Dirichlet. No attempt has yet been made to see if this model applies to services in general or to business-to-business services in particular. In this paper, we examine the purchasing behavior of large multinational corporations from four countries who purchase foreign exchange contracts from the major banks. We highlight similarities to the patterns of buying behavior observed in consumer markets. Implications for the management of business-to-business services firms are discussed.     

Forging relationships to coproduce: A Consumer Commitment Model in an extended service encounter

Consumer commitment is essential to ensure the service success in extended and complex services, wherein the service drop-out rates are often appalling. To build a more robust consumer commitment theory and provide solutions for the critical issue of high service drop-out rates in complex and extended services, this study develops a model of consumer commitment and tests it using survey data from consumer clients in a national debt management program in the U.S. The results reveal that calculative commitment only leads to consumers’ intention to remain, whereas affective commitment leads to a broader range of coproduction behaviors (i.e., individual initiative and civic virtue). Moreover, besides consumers’ relationship investment, perceived organizational support enhances both types of consumer commitment. It also increases consumer compliance. This study contributes to the consumer commitment theory by examining additional drivers and behavioral outcomes of commitment and by revealing the differential effects of different types of commitment on behavioral outcomes.     

Trust as a key factor in successful relationships between consumers and retail service providers

Previous research has shown that trust plays a key role in the development of stable relationships between a service provider and its customers, and many authors have devoted considerable attention to identifying its antecedents and consequences. The aim of this study is to investigate these issues in the context of retail travel agencies, a service setting where new information technologies are questioning personal relationships and where the concepts of service quality and customer loyalty have become critical for differentiating from competitors.