The fact that household customers are central in the discussion of future sustainable energy systems compels the Swedish electricity retail companies to provide strategies in order to successfully follow the trends on the electricity market. The purpose of this thesis is to complement the electricity retail companies’ understanding of how they are able to enter a sustainable and close business relationship with these customers. The purpose is fulfilled by the analysis of how relationship concepts impact the development of demand response specifically. The information has been collected through a case study of Smart Customer Gotland, via interviews with people who have great experience from the field and via a survey directed towards the customers. The results indicate that there is a major difference in both of the actors’ visions regarding the relationship. The company desires to enter a position where less support and high customization is available. Customers instead want more personal support because of their lack of knowledge and uncertainty of new systems. To succeed, the companies have to consider the fundamental influencing incentives, economy and comfort, while also maintaining the customers’ trust. The most essential parts of the context specific relationship exchange are product exchange, information exchange, and social exchange. These should be directed towards maintaining and increasing the trust from customers. Focusing the resources earlier used for marketing, on these exchanges to make the current customers more satisfied will open up for using word-of mouth primarily from early adopters. Continued work with these early adopters will also increase companies’ knowledge, which is important for the companies to strategically develop its business towards the market of smart energy solutions.

This study departed from a research basis being somewhat lacking in the context of green building certification and especially the two-folded problem, regarding the characteristics of the network of business relationships and how an energy supply company should exploit opportunities in this network context and its relationships. As such, the purpose of this study is to investigate and analyse the network context and its business relationship characteristics, as well as to present recommendations of how an energy supply company can engage green building certification and cope with the business relationships in order to exploit business opportunities. Based on previous research regarding the real estate industry, energy service industry and the construction industry, a well-founded literature base could be extended further by applying theoretical concepts related to business relationship elements and strategy-making. The nature of green building certification and to fulfil the purpose of the study, called for a qualitative research strategy performed through a multiple-case study design. This led to the investigation of four certification projects, subject to certifications in the systems of EU GreenBuilding and Miljöbyggnad, where the most important actors, relationships and project contents constitute the empirical data. The findings of this thesis suggest that the relationships are characterized as having a short-term focus and an avoidance to become interdependent. In this manner elements such as commitment and adaptation are shown as rather shallow, where actions of commitment are not typically short-term sacrifices for a long-term mutual benefit and adaptations mostly occur with respect to specific projects. The adaptive behaviour is also more or less explained as a standardized procedure, avoiding relationship specific investments. Trust is an important element mostly in order to reflect the competence of the counterpart, where previous successful projects indicate the skill and knowledge. Despite the characteristics of the relationships, the benefits of long-term, high involvement, cooperative relationships were highlighted as good aspects to consider in this context. These characteristics, along with outspoken market demands, acted as the basis for the development of recommendations for an energy supply company in terms of a step-wise action framework. In this sense, the first acknowledgement of the framework is that the current position related to green building certification projects of an energy supply company is rather unestablished, with only one exception found. This implies a strategic approach in terms of understanding how to develop and maintain their business relationships, with respect to the previously mentioned characteristics. Through a successful utilization of the action framework (with respect to certain barriers to overcome), this thesis emphasizes a wide range of opportunities such as to have a proactive approach, maintain interactions between projects, to develop the knowledge, to offer a holistic approach and to utilize long-term cooperative relational benefits. The analysis and framework is highly suitable when applied by an energy supply company, but the authors also argue for the findings to be of relevance also for other practitioners in the context of green building certification. In addition, the authors believe that the orientation of this thesis might be a trigger for future similar research approaches, applied in different contexts.

Bakgrund Under de senaste åren har inköp uppmärksammats allt mer. Ökade kravfrån kunder och högre konkurrens har lett till att företag ser fördelar mednära affärsrelationer. Däremot har medelstora företag influenser frånbåde stora och små företag och det är därmed svårt att veta vad de har förutgångspunkt i affärsrelationer. Litteraturgenomgången visar att detsaknas forskning för enbart medelstora företags inköpsprocess. Av denanledningen är det intressant att undersöka medelstora företagsinköpsarbete inriktat på affärsrelationer med en större leverantör, för attse hur båda parter upplever affärsrelationen samt om medelstora företagoch små företag kan klassas in i samma definition. Syfte Syftet med den här studien är att öka förståelsen för medelstora företagsinköpsarbete, där fokus ligger på deras affärsrelationer med en störreleverantör. Studien avser att öka förståelsen för hur en kund och dessleverantör upplever och hanterar affärsrelationen. Metod Studien har en kvalitativ ansats och bygger på en flerfallstudie medintervjuer från ett leverantörsföretag samt tre kundföretag, för att ökaförståelsen för kundföretagens inköpsarbete samt för att se hur respektivepart upplever affärsrelationen. Slutsats Studiens resultat visar att medelstora företag arbetar mycket med atteffektivisera inköp och ser inköp som en värdeskapande funktion. Därförbör de inte klassas in i samma definition som små företag. För att enaffärsrelation ska fungera bra krävs framförallt förtroende mellanparterna och att makt inte utövas. / Background Purchasing has been more acknowledged during the last couple of years.Higher demands from customers have led to companies seeingadvantages with close business relationships. However, medium-sizedenterprises have influences from both big and small enterprises and it istherefore hard to know what starting position they have in businessrelationships. The literature review shows that research is lacking foronly medium-sized enterprise’s buying process. Therefore it isinteresting to study purchasing in medium-sized enterprises with focuson their business relationship with a larger supplier, to be able to see howboth parties perceive the business relationship and if medium-sizedenterprises can be classified in the same definition. Aim The aim with this study is to gain a greater insight of purchasing inmedium-sized enterprises, with a focus on their business relationshipwith a larger supplier. The study aims to gain a bigger insight of how acustomer and its supplier perceive and manage the business relationship. Methodology The study has a qualitative approach and is built on a case-study withinterviews from one supplier and three customers, to gain a biggerinsight of purchasing and to be able to see how each party perceive thebusiness relationship. Conclusion The results of the study show that medium-sized enterprises work a lot tomake purchasing more efficient and they all believe that purchasing is avalue adding function. Therefore they should not be classified in thesame definition as small-sized enterprises. One of the most importantcomponents in a business relationship is trust and power should not beused.

När nya politiska regleringar införs på en marknad kan det få konsekvenser för alla aktörer på marknaden. Det kan påverka både deras verksamhet och deras relationer. Syftet med denna uppsats är att få en ökad förståelse för hur relationen mellan företag på försäkringsmarknaden förändras inför en större politisk förändring och vilka faktorer som kan spela in. För att undersöka detta intervjuas företrädare för försäkringsbolag och försäkringsförmedlare inför det kommande direktivet om försäkringsdistribution (IDD). För att undersöka hur relationerna förändrats används en modell av relationen som grundar sig i bland annat Anderson och Narus (1990) forskning om relationens beståndsdelar och hur dessa hänger ihop. För att undersöka vilka faktorer som påverkar hur förändringen går till används en modell av Hadjikhani, Thilenius och Pourmand (2009) som förklarar hur politiska förändringar kan påverka företag, både direkt genom lagstiftning och indirekt via andra företag. Slutsatserna som dras är att: Relationerna mellan försäkringsbolag och försäkringsförmedlare påverkas av regleringar såsom direktivet om försäkringsdistribution (IDD) och att relationen börjar förändras redan innan regleringen trätt i kraft. Vilken relation två företag har till varandra influerar till vilken grad företagen utsätts för direkt och indirekt påverkan inför förändringar i politiska regleringar. Graden av indirekt påverkan de olika företagen utsätts för kan påverka relationen mellan företagen. En politisk förändring kan innehålla både stödjande och tvingande element. / When new political regulations are introduced to a market, they can have consequences for all market players. This can affect both the activities and relationships between them. The purpose of this paper is to gain a better understanding of how the relationship between companies in the insurance market is changing as a consequence of a major political change and which factors can be relevant to this change. To investigate this, representatives from insurance companies and insurance brokers are interviewed about the forthcoming Insurance Distribution Directive (IDD). To investigate how the relationships changed, a model of the relationship, based in, among others, Anderson and Narus (1990) model, which deals with the constituents of a relationship and how they relate to each other. To investigate the factors which influence how the relationship changes, a model of Hadjikhani, Thilenius and Pourmand (2009) is used, which explains how political changes can affect companies, both directly through legislation and indirectly through other companies. The conclusions drawn are that: Relationships between insurance companies and insurance brokers are affected by regulations such as the Insurance Distribution Directive (IDD) and that the relationship begins to change even before the regulation is implemented. The relationship between the companies influences the extent to which companies are exposed to direct and indirect influence as a result of political regulations. The degree of indirect impact on the various companies can affect the relationship between the companies. A political change can contain both supporting and compelling elements.

Titel: Affärsrelationen mellan tillverkare och återförsäljare: ur tillverkarens perspektiv Ämne: Kandidatuppsats i företagsekonomi inriktning affärsrelationer, 15 hp Författare: Lisa berg & Linnea Petersson Datum: 2021-05-24 Nivå: Kandidatuppsats Handledare: Svante Andersson Examinator: Klaus Solberg Problemformulering: Hur ser förtroendet ut inom affärsrelationen mellan tillverkare ochåterförsäljare inom den konkurrensutsatta möbel och inredningsbranschen, utifrån tillverkaresperspektiv? Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att belysa och få djupare förståelse kring hur förtroendetser ut mellan tillverkare och återförsäljare inom den skandinaviska möbel ochinredningsbranschen. Förtroende är en av alla byggstenar i samtliga relationer men styrkan itillit och förtroende kan variera över tid. När återförsäljare och tillverkare, som även agerarleverantör är beroende av varandra i en affärsrelation samtidigt som de är konkurrenter kantilliten och förtroendet i relationen bli komplext. Det är denna komplexa delen avaffärsrelationen uppsatsen syftar till att undersöka och även det frågeställningen har sin grund i. Metod: Denna studie är baserad på en kvalitativ forskningsmetod och har en deduktiv ansatsdär teorin samlats in från vetenskapliga artiklar. Empirin är baserad på semistruktureradesamtalsintervjuer med tre olika skandinaviska möbelföretag. Dessa har tillsammans skapat enabduktiv forskningsansats. Slutsats: Slutsatsen konkretiseras genom förklaring om hur förtroendet mellan tillverkare ochåterförsäljare ser ut. Det som förklaras är att tilliten och affärsrelationen är bristande. Denrelation som länge varit i beroendesituation gentemot varandra har börjat försvinna och medförsämrad kommunikation kan den komma att upphöra inom snar framtid. Detta medhänvisning till analys som genomgående kopplar samman den insamlade empirin tillsammansmed jämförelse till tidigare forskning. Nyckelord: Affärsrelationer, tillverkare, återförsäljare, tillit / Titel: The business relationship between manufacturer and retailers: from the manufacturer's perspective Subject: Bachelor's thesis in business administration focusing on business relations, 15 hp Authors: Lisa berg & Linnea Petersson Date: 2021-05-24 Level: Bachelor thesis for a bachelor's degree in business administration with focus onmarketing. Supervisor: Svante Andersson Examiner: Klaus Solberg Question at issue: What does trust look like in the business relationship betweenmanufacturers and retailers in the competitive furniture and interior design industry, from amanufacturer's perspective? Purpose: The purpose of this essay is to shed light on and gain a deeper understanding ofwhat trust looks like between manufacturers and retailers in the Scandinavian furniture andinterior design industry. Trust is one of the building blocks of all relationships, but thestrength of trust and confidence can vary over time. When retailers and manufacturers, whoalso act as suppliers, are dependent on each other in a business relationship at the same timeas they are competitors, trust and confidence in the relationship can become complex. It is thiscomplex part of the business relationship the thesis aims to examine and also what the issue isbased on. Method: This study is based on a qualitative research method and has a deductive approachwhere the theory is collected from scientific articles. Empirin is based on semi-structuredinterviews with three different companies connected to Scandinavian furniture. These formersteps in combination created an abductive research approach. Conclusion: The conclusion is concretized through an explanation of what the trust betweenmanufacturers and resellers looks like. Further explained is that there is more often an existinglack of trust in the business relationship. The relationship that has been not equally dependentis starting to disappear and that in combination with the lack of good communication. Thedependency situation regarding the relation between the actors has started to fade and with thedeteriorated communication the relationship can within a few years be dissolved. This withreference to the analysis that pervading has connected to the collected empiricism withreference to previous research in the subject. Keywords: business relationships, manufacturer, retailers, trust.

Bakgrund: Startupföretag bidrar i dagens samhälle med flertalet innovationer, vilket storföretag kan ta del av genom öppen innovation. När företagen samarbetar med varandra kan parterna tillsammans främja innovation och ta del av ny kunskap. Startupföretag får hjälp med kommersialisering av affärsidén och storföretag kan behålla sin marknadsposition genom användningen av ny teknik. På grund av den stora asymmetrin organisationerna emellan är det av intresse att ge en förklaring för vad som påverkar en affär mellan startupföretag och storföretag, för att möjliggöra fler lyckade samarbeten.  Syfte: Syftet med studien är att utifrån startupföretags perspektiv undersöka faktorer som påverkar en lyckad affär mellan startupföretag och storföretag inom högteknologiska branscher.  Metod: Studien utfördes med en kvantitativ metod där empirin samlats in med hjälp av enkäter via en tvärsnittsdesign. Vidare har studien utgått från det positivistiska perspektivet där en deduktiv ansats använts. En hierarkisk logistisk regressionsanalys genomfördes för att analysera hur tidigare erfarenhet av storföretag, matchad via stödfunktion, avtalsdesign, förtroende, kommunikation, indirekta värden och direkta värden samvarierar med en lyckad affär mellan storföretag och startupföretag.  Slutsats: Studiens resultat visar att ökad omsättning, avtalsdesign, tidigare erfarenhet av kontraktering, stödfunktioner, kostnadseffektivitet och indirekta värden har ett statistiskt signifikant samband med lyckad affär. Ökad omsättning, ett detaljerat avtal, tidigare erfarenhet av kontraktering och matchning via stödfunktion ökar sannolikheten för en lyckad affär. När vikt läggs vid kostnadseffektivitet och indirekta värden minskar sannolikheten att affären blir lyckad. Genom att ta studiens faktorer i beaktning kan både startupföretag och storföretag öka sannolikheten att det blir en lyckad affär. / Background: Startups contribute in today's society with multiple innovations, which large companies can take part of through open innovation. By collaborating, both companies can enhance innovation and take part of new knowledge. Startups receive help with the commercialization of their business idea and large companies can keep their market position through the use of new technology. Due to the large asymmetry between the organisations, it is of interest to create a broader explanation of what affects the deal between startups and large companies, in order to enable more successful collaboration.  Purpose: The purpose of the study is to examine different factors that affect a successful deal between startups and large companies in high-tech industries from the startup perspective.  Methodology: The study used a quantitative research method where the empirical data has been collected by questionnaires. The study is based on a positivist philosophical standpoint with a deductive approach. A hierarchical logistic regression analysis was performed to analyze how the factors previous experience with large companies, matched by a support function, contract design, trust, personal chemistry, communication, indirect values and direct values affects the deal between large companies and startups.  Analysis and conclusion: The result of the study shows that increased revenue, contract design, previous experience of contracting, support functions, cost efficiency and indirect values have a statistically significant correlation with a successful deal. Increased revenue, a detailed contract, previous experience of contracting and matched by a support function increases the probability to perform a successful deal. When focus shifts to cost efficiency and indirect values, the probability of the deal being successful decreases. By taking the factors into account, both startups and large companies can increase the probability that it will be a successful deal.

This thesis has its point of departure in the identified knowledge gap, which includes the importance of the information systems (IS) outsourcing relationship for studying the success of IS outsourcing. This research study, therefore, is structured with the belief that the disregard of the client-IS supplier relationship when studying IS outsourcing is paradoxical. Paradoxical since the impact of the relationship on the overall IS outsourcing can make the difference between success, less success and even failure. In contrast to the majority of prior research, which has focused IS outsourcing in its entirety, this research study percieves IS outsourcing as a process. Because prior research shows that the success or failure of IS outsourcing is connected to its implementation, this thesis focuses the post-contract stage of the IS outsourcing. The purpose chosen and addressed is to develop a conceptual framework for describing and explaining the degree of successful outcome of the IS outsourcing process using a relationship perspective. To approach this purpose, a literature review study is conducted. The literature review study includes the integration of three theoretical fields: IS, interorganisational business relationships and IS outsourcing. The knowledge domains of particular interest are 'strategies, approaches and frameworks for the IS life cycle', 'the interaction approach' and 'IS outsourcing success'. The purpose is focused through the identification of key conditions, dimensions and interrelations among dimensions. These identified elements, constituting the core elements of the conceptual framework, are a result of the conducted literature review study. The key conditions are identified according to their influence on the degree of successful outcome of the IS outsourcing process from a relationship perspective. Due to the large amount of key conditions identified, they are categorised into nine dimensions: Atmosphere, Behaviour, Contract, Environment, Interatction, IS, Management, Organisation and Outcome. The identified interrelations among these dimensions are fruitful since they provide insights and a favourable point of departure for studying the degree of successful outcome of IS outsourcing processes. The main contribution of this thesis is the conceptual framework for the IS outsourcing process. The key conditions, dimensions and interrelations constitute the conceptual framework as a result of their potential for describing and explaining the degree of successful outcome of the IS outsourcing process from a relationship perspective. The application of the conceptual framework provides managers with core elements to be considered during IS outsourcing decision-making and subsequent design of IS outsourcing. Its usage, moreover, is believed to support managers during the operationalisation of the post-contract stage of IS outsourcing processes. Finally, the conceptual framework is a fruitful 'tool' for future empirical research. Fruitful in the sense that it can provide useful and important insights into how different key conditions infuence the degree of successful outcome of IS outsourcing processes and how these key conditions are interrelated.

This research article will explore the effects of how a societal crisis like covid-19 has affected the real estate agent's ability to create and maintain trust in their clients. The real estate agent's job involves meeting a lot of people physically, in the office, at the customer's home, or at viewings. This is to mediate housing but also to act as an advisor and guide the parties in their housing situation, which is why high demands are placed on communication. This study discusses how digitalisation and a new pattern of social behavior have contributed to a different way of working. This, mainly from a broker's perspective, but also highlights the individual as well as the organization's importance in changing business relationships. The study also addresses issues such as lack of interpersonal communication skills as a result of the pandemic's pressure on social distancing and the development of digitalisation. The work is based on a qualitative survey with semi-structured interview techniques in collaboration with active brokers from Spain and Sweden. The results of the study show that in a societal crisis, it is important that the industry, as well as the broker, is adaptable in its approach when there is a change in demand and the external environment. The study emphasizes that being knowledgeable, responsive, and honest are important components of the broker's actions to create trust. Most important of all, during the pandemic, has been to create security through feedback and to constantly maintain a dialogue with the customer, in order to maintain trust during these critical times. Finally, the study shows many similarities regarding the cornerstones of building trust during the Pandemic, with few differences between Sweden and Spain such as that foreign brokers, during and even before the pandemic were used to more personal contact with their buyer customers. The main differences that are illustrated are that even before the covid-19-pandemic, Spain had an edge over digital solutions, which made it easier for brokers in Spain to meet societal restrictions, and that about 30 percent of the properties were sold entirely at a distance.

Purpose: This study aims to provide a better understanding of the importance of mastering foreign languages in building international business relationships as well as whether English should be considered an interlingua in international negotiations. Theoretical framework: This study ́s theoretical framework consists of the disciplines Business-to-Business (B2B) marketing and psychic distance. In B2B marketing a sustainable business relationship is built on the customer experience which in turn rests the four pillars of trust, integrity, communication, and interdependence. Psychic distance includes the subdisciplines cultural distance, inter-organizational distance, and linguistic distance. Method: This study employs a qualitive research with an abductive approach. The empirical material was collected through semi-structured interviews. The respondents consisted of four employees at Business Sweden, who are working in different markets, and two Swedish export companies in the manufacturing industry. Conclusion: The study shows that the choice of language mainly affects communication and trust between the parties. The perceived integrity is affected more by the parties' socio- pragmatic skills than their linguistic skills. Mutual dependence affects the parties' attitudes towards language choice rather than vice versa. The study also shows that despite the English status as Lingua Franca, misunderstandings can still arise that are based on the communicators' cultural background. / Syfte: Denna studie syftar till att ge ökad förståelse för betydelsen av behärskningen av främmande språk vid skapandet av internationella affärsrelationer samt den funktion som engelskan fyller vid internationella förhandlingar. Teori: Uppsatsens teoretiska referensram utgörs av begreppen Business-to-Business (B2B) marknadsföring och psykiskt avstånd. En hållbar affärsrelation i B2B marknadsföring bygger på kundupplevelsen eller företagens uppfattning av varandra. Denna kundupplevelse bygger i sin tur på fyra grundpelare: förtroende, integritet, kommunikation och ömsesidigt beroende. I psykiskt avstånd ingår kulturellt avstånd, interorganisatoriskt avstånd och språkligt avstånd. Metod: Denna studie är baserad på en kvalitativ med en abduktiv ansats. Det empiriska materialet samlades in via semistrukturerade intervjuer. Respondenterna utgjordes av fyra anställda på Business Sweden, som är placerade på olika marknader, samt två svenska exportbolag inom tillverkningsindustrin. Slutsats: Studien visar på att språkvalet främst påverkar kommunikationen och förtroendet mellan parterna. Den upplevda integriteten påverkas mer av parternas sociopragmatiska kompetenser än deras språkliga kompetenser. Ömsesidigt beroende påverkar parternas attityder gentemot språkvalet snarare än vice versa. Studien visar även på att trots engelskans status som Lingua Franca kan det fortfarande uppstå missförstånd som grundar sig i kommunikatörernas kulturella bakgrund.

Social media usage in the B2B sector is increasing at a slower rate than B2C and the research literature sends a unanimous message; B2B firms would benefit in multiple ways using social media as a tool when establishing and entertaining business relationships. The concept of trust is proved to be of great importance in the construction of these relationships. With guidance of this thesis’ practical contribution,the model The Hourglass of Trust, displaying three categories of trust; creation, maintenance and destruction, this thesis will simultaneously highlight the theoretical contribution: aspects affecting trust, as well as the managerial contribution: aid B2B insocial media strategy planning for improved opportunities to build better business relationships on social media. A key finding and theoretical contribution, is the activity of switching channels from social media to other marketing channels such as email. Some B2B marketers use social media only as a storefront, a one-way promotion tool to create trust in order to reach an audience, create leads, stimulate interest or in the initial contact with another firm and then switch to the usage of other channels like email once the relationship has moved past the trust creation category. This finding is of particular interest since Sweden is a country built upon social trust and has a high social media penetration which may beviewed as counter intuitive when social media is used as a one-way-communication channel such as a storefront. B2B marketers in the empirical findings view social mediain a more positive light than earlier research, stating it is a powerful tool for building long-term business relationships. A second key finding is that personal values are associated with trust creation and trust maintenance in B2B, turning the spotlight from inter-organizational to interpersonal trust. Future research is encouraged to explore the reason for the switching of channels in B2B SMEs in Sweden as well as further explore the concept of trust in a B2B social media context testing the proposed model, The Hourglass of Trust (Fig. 2). / Användande av sociala medier inom B2B-sektorn ökar i lägre takt än inom B2C och forskningslitteraturens bidrag är unisont; B2B-företag skulle gynnas av att använda sociala medier som verktyg på flera sätt när de etablerar och underhåller affärsrelationer. Konceptet förtroende visar sig ha stor betydelse för att bygga affärsrelationer. Med ledning av uppsatsens praktiska bidrag, modellen The Hourglassof Trust (Fig. 2), som illustrerar tre kategorier av förtroende; skapande, underhåll och förstörelse, belyses uppsatsens teoretiska bidrag; aspekter som påverkar förtroende. Aspekterna kan bidra till den strategiska planeringen av B2B-marknadsföring i sociala medier och öka möjligheten att bygga bättre affärsrelationer. Ett huvudfynd och teoretiskt bidrag handlar om hur företag byter kanal från sociala medier till andra marknadsföringskanaler såsom mail. En del B2B-marknadsförare använder sociala medier enbart som ett skyltfönster, ett enkelriktat marknadsföringsverktyg för att skapa förtroende genom att nå ut, skapa leads, stimulera intresse eller endast i den inledande kontakten med ett annat företag för att sedan byta kanal och använda till exempel mail istället när relationen tagit sig förbi kategorinskapande av förtroende. Detta fynd är av särskilt intresse då Sverige som land bygger på socialt förtroende där sociala medier även har ett stort genomslag vilket gör att det kan betraktas som motsägelsefullt då sociala medier används som en kanal för envägskommunikation, likt ett skyltfönster. De empiriska resultaten visar att B2B-marknadsförares attityder är mer positiva till sociala medier än tidigare forskning visat och anser att det är ett kraftfullt kostnadseffektivt verktyg för att bygga långsiktiga i affärsrelationer. Ett andra huvudfynd är att personliga värderingar associeras med att skapa och underhålla förtroende i företagsrelationer, vilket vänder strålkastarljuset från interorganisatoriskt förtroende till interpersonellt förtroende. Vidare forskning uppmuntras att undersöka orsaken till att svenska B2B SMEs byter kanaler samt vidare undersöka B2B-förtroendet på sociala medier med hjälp av Hourglass of trust.