The banking sector in Ghana has witnessed significant improvement in relationship marketing. The purpose of this study is to bring deeper understanding and insight into the practice of relationship marketing and customer retention by banks in Ghana. For this study, 12 out of the 27 banks in Ghana were selected as the sample size. The research explains the role of relationship marketing in customer retention and also demonstrates how relationship marketing is applied and practiced by the banks in Ghana. A qualitative research approach was chosen and deductive research was conducted based on twelve case studies from both local and international banks. The following research questions guided the study: I. What are the major reasons for the adoption of relationship marketing in customer retention in the banking industry in Ghana? II. How is relationship marketing applied to retain customers in the banking industry in Ghana? III. How is relationship marketing practiced to increase loyalty and improve customer retention in the banking industry in Ghana? The findings of the study showed that indeed, all the banks have reasons for adopting relationship marketing in customer retention. The most popular reason for believing in the success of relationship marketing is customer retention. On practice, even though all the banks are similar in terms of their capacity, human behaviour influence relationship marketing and therefore brought differences in practices. The study found that banks apply relationship marketing in their customer retention efforts and all work towards retaining customers in order to make profit as it is more profitable to retain existing customers than to acquire new customers. As human behaviour is of great importance in relationship marketing activities of the banks, it was recommended among other things that banks staff training plan should be strengthened if they want success in their relationship marketing activities. / <p>Validerat; 20110901 (anonymous)</p>

This research study provides a view of the relationship between organizational leaders and relationship executives of financial institutions and their exchange partners. It does so by analyzing data on the networking efforts of 20 executive directors in qualitative interviews and 124 relationship executives in research questionnaires. Network marketing within the financial services sector is becoming increasingly important. We proposed a model that seeks to offer an explanation of Executive network marketing in financial institutions in LDCs where the market system is underdeveloped. The proposed model identified four categories being: firm characteristics, Executives’ personal contact groups, Executives’ business contact groups and issues of commitment and trust in exchange relationships. Multiple factor analysis established the regression model as significant in establishing a formal relationship between the dependent variable (network marketing) and the independent variables (firm characteristics, business contact, personal contact and commitment and trust). It was confirmed that there are differences in Executives’ level of network marketing among the different age groups. Also there were significant differences in the network marketing of the Executives with regard to their level of education. It was observed that there were significant differences in the network marketing of the Executives with respect of their fields of study. Finally it was observed that owner managers were more involved in network marketing than the professional managers and those in partnerships. Not only did the study confirm the research model, but it also revealed that, to a considerable extent, network marketing is practiced by the Executives in the financial services sector in Ghana. The study concluded that business contact networks are the most effective of the Executives’ network marketing in financial services sector in Ghana. It is therefore important that state policies are directed towards enhancing the business environment within the financial services sector. Government should desist from being a regulator and a player in the same market.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate how sustainability can be used in social media marketing to create trust and commitment in B2B relationships with all stakeholders.  Method: Multiple case study with an abductive approach, data collection through nine semi-structured interviews and several sources of secondary data. Conclusion: Sustainability in SMM is used to create a better brand image and contributes to finding new business partners while also improving existing relationships with various stakeholders. However, in a B2B context, the offline activities of physical meetings are still of high importance for creating trust and commitment.

With the constant challenge of successfully appealing to new customers andnurturing the relationships that sports organizations have created with theircustomers, well-thought-out and adapted strategies are required incommunication. Since organizations from the sports industry are characterizedby great competition from other organizations but also from other industriessuch as the entertainment industry, a clear and well-thought-out approach isneeded for how customers are to be engaged and build loyalty. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to research how Swedish ice hockey organizationscultivate relationships with their devoted and occasional fans and whichstrategies they use to influence them as well as the impact the fan engagementhas on their loyalty. The empirical findings in this research derived from a qualitative researchapproach, specifically utilizing semi-structured interviews. The focus of theresearch was on four ice hockey organizations from the top two tiers inSweden, enabling a comprehensive examination of the subject matter. Thenthe results from the interviews that were carried out together with the presentedliterature review were discussed and analyzed to compare and distinguishsimilarities and differences. The conclusion of the degree project drew attention to a clear differentiationbetween occasional and devoted fans, where it appeared that they wereengaged by different factors, namely experience and sporting aspects. Byleveraging this insight and following the modern trends and digitization,organizations can create opportunities to convert new fans into more loyal andengaged supporters and then nurture the relationship on a deeper level.

The drastic growth in the tourism industry is continuously raising questions for destinations regarding competitiveness in today's global market share. For small island destinations, destination management in the terms of marketing is a crucial factor that defines the competitiveness and success of smaller islands in order to remain competitive and economically benefit in the fast growing tourism industry. The purpose of this study was to uncover specific marketing strategies that needed to be incorporated within small island tourism destinations. To fill in the knowledge gap within the marketing of small island tourism, a case study was conducted by examining the challenges and opportunities in two small islands, Öland and Gotland, located in Sweden. The findings of the case study revealed the significance of cultural tourism and its role in the marketing of the destinations. The cultural attributes include the importance of heritage and nature; by providing unique travel attributes that step out of the typical 3S (sea, sun, sand). The findings were looked upon from local residents, businesses, and local tourism organizations which both concluded that cultural attributes are important factors to consider to solve the seasonality challenges with a clear market segmentation in order to continually remain competitive.

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This thesis aims to explore what and how Swedish micro firms use digital media towards relationship initiation in a Business-to-Business (B2B) context. Digital media has been increasingly studied in marketing over time, but it has been predominated by Business-to- Customer (B2C) context, while the Business-to-Business context lacks attention, micro B2B firms even less in particular. Moreover, previous studies show that micro B2B firms lack knowledge of how to leverage digital media and thus they have not fully exploited the benefits in relationship marketing. Therefore, this thesis anticipates gaining a better understanding of the phenomenon of digital media use by micro B2B firms towards customer relationships and focuses on the initiation stage due to its importance in the relationship marketing process as well as the limited knowledge in existing literature.  This thesis employs a qualitative and multi-case study approach to explore the focal phenomenon. Four micro companies which have less than 10 employees from the life science industryparticipate in the empirical study. The data comes from semi-structured interviews and observation of their websites and social media accounts. Each firm has conducted two interviews. The data analysis follows the Gioia methodology, including within case and across cases analysis, as well as the theory elaboration study.  This study shows that Swedish micro B2B firms rely on their own websites, email, and social media mainly LinkedIn to communicate with potential customers, hence fostering relationship initiation. These digital media have been used to trigger the interest of potential customers, establish credibility by knowledge sharing, and create value. The findings contribute to the literature by extending the knowledge of what and how digital media is used by micro B2B firms towards relationship initiation. They are in line with extant literature showing that digital media enables companies to attract customers, engage their participation, and meet as well as provide services online. In addition, they confirm that digital media can enhance their trustworthiness due to increased communication and interaction. Furthermore, the findings identify the processive process of the case firms and their potential customers from unfamiliarity to relationship initiation, which illustrates three levels of interactivity in sequence: message-based level, knowledge-based level, and participant-based level. The progress of interactivity indicates the development of the trust of potential customers.  This thesis sheds light on what digital media micro B2B firms use and how to use towards relationship initiation with unfamiliar potential customers. Also, it provides insights into how micro B2B firms could establish and increase their trustworthiness in the market. Additionally, this thesis extends the managerial implications to the society and other stakeholders.

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Humanity as for now is living in the future and sustainability issues are the daily challenges for the planet, and not a future problem any longer. The trend for sustainable development is pointing in the wrong direction and the pressure on natural resources is increasing. Research suggests stakeholders demand and reward responsibility from companies. The work for sustainable development requires extensive cooperation between companies, and people. Adopting a stakeholder perspective and meeting demands of various stakeholder groups means that companies today have even more relationships that they engage in than before. Companies rely on each other to be able to make an impact. An individual alone cannot make any changes but rather the society needs to act united to deal with these sustainable issues our world faces. Earlier studies emphasize that relationship marketing has the potential to assist sustainable efforts positively. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to understand the role of relationship marketing in the sustainable development context, focusing on customers’ and the network’s view on sustainability. The theoretical framework is based on relationship marketing, co-creation and the key mediating variables of relationship marketing model and was inspired by both the empirical data and previous research. Further, to explain sustainable development, concepts such as stakeholder perspective and triple bottom line were used. To achieve the study’s purpose, empirical data was collected through conducting an inductive qualitative case study using non-probability sampling in the outdoor furniture industry. Data collected consists of field observations and semi-structured interviews. Data was processed and analyzed through transcription and coding. Findings imply strong relationships and cooperation are essential for effective sustainable efforts. The concept of sustainable development is diffuse and difficult to grasp. It was also implied that there is a disconnect in shared core values regarding sustainability between the business network and the market in this case study. However, theory suggests the role of relationship marketing is to push the narrative of sustainability, even if demand is low. Practical implications and recommendations suggest adopting co-creation processes to increase mutual learning and understanding of complex concepts such as sustainable development.