How can companies build strong

relationship with business

customers

Close relationship are driven in part by supply

chain management, early supplier involvement

and purchasing alliance

B2B marketers use

social media to

communicate with

existing and

prospective

customers

Company

blogs

Online press

release

Forums or

discussion

groups

Building trust is one prerequisite to

healthy long term relationship

Forces influencing

the development of

a relationship

between business

partners

Availability of

alternatives

Importance

of supply

Supply

market

dynamics

Complexity

of supply

Buyer supplier relationship can be

categorised into eight categories

Basic buying

and selling

Simple routine

exchanges with

moderate level of

cooperation and

information

exchange

Bare bones

These relationships

require more

adaptation by seller

and less

cooperation and

information

exchange

Contractual

transaction

Exchanges are

defined by formal

contract and

generally have low

levels of trust ,

cooperation and

information

exchange

Customer

supply

In this, competition

rather than

cooperation is

dominant form of

governance

Cooperative

system

Partners are united

in operational ways

but neither

demonstrates

structural

commitments

through legal or

adaptive means

Collaborative

In this, much trust

and commitments

lead to true

partnership

Mutually

adaptive

Buyers and sellers

make many

relationship specific

adaptations but

without necessarily

achieving strong

trust or

cooperation

Customer is

king

In this cooperative

relationship, the

seller adapts to

meet the

customer’s need

without expecting

much adaptation in

exchange

Business relationship: Risk and

opportunism

Vertical coordination

can facilitate stronger

customer-seller ties

but at the same time

may increase the risk

to the customer’s and

supplier’s tailored

expenditure for each

other

Transaction theory

from economics

maintains that

because of risk

involved in specific

investments ,they

lock firms into a

particular

relationship

When buyers can’t

easily monitor

suppliers

performance,

OPPORTUNISM

takes place. It is

some sort of

cheating or under

supply relative to an

implicit or explicit

contract

Strong solidarity

norms typically

causes customers

and suppliers to

strive for joint

benefits. Their

specific investments

shift from

expropriation to

bonding.

New technology and business

customers

Top firms use

technology to

improve the way

they do business

with their B2B

customers

•Business marketers must form

strong bonds and relationship with

their customers and provide them

added values.

•Some customers may prefer

transactional relationship

•Technology is aiding the

development of strong business

relationship

SUMMARY