The Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way of working for employees and companies around the world. An important part of an organization is the salesforce since they are building relations with customers and making sales. It is therefore important for the salesforce to be motivated in order to be productive and contribute to the organization's increased sales.  This thesis is a qualitative study regarding salesforce motivation and how to motivate salesforce further in the future based on the Covid-19 pandemic changed way of working. We have studied the Middle East regional office of a Swedish B2B company within the security sector called Gunnebo Group. The research was conducted through interviewing seven respondents whom comes from seven different nationalities and based in four different countries. All the respondents are working within the salesforce at the researched organization with the title of Sales Directors. Through the interviews we have gathered data about four different perspectives that can have an impact on the salesforce motivation. These aspects are motivation in general, culture, leadership, and the changed way of working due to Covid-19. In this study we have taken these perspectives in consideration when answering our research question and trying to fulfil the research purpose.  The purpose of this research is to create an understanding of what can motivate the salesforce at Gunnebo Middle East post-pandemic and/or going into 2022. Further, we want to contribute with new knowledge that will help organizations develop as well as prepare for a post-pandemic way of approaching motivation regarding salesforce.  The conclusion of this study is, in order to motivate salesforce further in the future, B2B companies within the security sector need to continue to work with the changes that the Covid-19 pandemic has created and not go back to a pre-pandemic way of working. Further, companies need to maintain the changes and develop the changed way of working through educational programs regarding the use of technological tools as well as customer interaction to increase motivation and performance. It is crucial that the organization does not lose focus on the importance of face-to-face interaction.

From the perspective of suppliers, this thesis explores what value suppliers can gain from delivering to big-science organizations (BSOs). Inspired by the framework of supplier-perceived value (SPV) by Walter et al. (2001), a new model is developed specifically for the BSO-supplier relationship focusing on the indirect functions, especially in the innovation dimension and the market dimension. Based on a quantitative survey contains 38 big-science suppliers in Sweden, three main findings are identified via the analysis of multiple regression and independent t-test: 1) suppliers are more likely to acquire value from enhanced process-development and promoted influence in the extended customer networks resulting from relationships with BSOs; 2) suppliers with long-term experience working with BSOs are reported to have a higher supplier-perceived value than those in short-term relationships; 3) the mismatch between the performed activities/resources of BSO- supplier relationship and the relatively poor supplier-perceived value. Suppliers are offered with opportunities but meanwhile are largely constrained to benefit from the dyad relationship with a BSO; thereby, the possibility to integrate, transform, and apply the outcome in other spaces of the network beyond the contract with the BSO in the future becomes a critical source of value for suppliers. The implications of this study challenge some prevailing opinions about the value of BSOs and add to our understandings of the supplier-perceived value in BSO-supplier relationships.

Sensory marketing is a broad concept that can be used as a marketing tool. The sensory marketing can be used in different ways and in different environments. The most common use for sensory marketing in a B2C environment where the customer can interact with their senses more.But how do B2B companies comprehend sensory marketing in a digital environment. The use of sensory marketing is a hard marketing tool to use when applying it to the digital environment. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis has been to examine how B2B companies can implicate sensory marketing in digital marketing and how it can affect their brand image.  The research questions were to be answered by using qualitative case study where eight different industries within the B2B companies participated in semi-structured interviews.  Using the qualitative method to get a more in-depth understanding of how different industries within the B2B companies use sensory marketing is the right choice for collecting correct data. Later in the thesis the collected data is going to be analyzed and discussed with the theory for the purpose to see similarities and differences.  The conclusion of this explains to those B2B companies that were interviewed for this thesis, that the use of sensory marketing is not a conscious decision. The companies use vision and hearing as a subconscious method of spreading awareness about the companies. Although the B2B companies feel it's hard to imply for the business the choice of using the other sense is not aucurrent for their business.

Syfte: Studien syftar till att öka förståelsen för relevansen av digital marknadsföring på sociala medier för B2B-företag inom järn- och stålindustrin och öka kunskapen om betydelsen av hållbarhet i marknadsföringssyfte på sociala medier för dessa företag. Metod: Studien har utgått från en kvalitativ forskningsansats där empiriinsamlingen består av data insamlat från 11 semistrukturella intervjuer. En kvalitativ riktad innehållsanalys togs i anspråk för att vidareutveckla och bekräfta redan befintliga teorier funna inom den teoretiska referensramen. Medan en hermeneutisk ansats användes för att analysera obekräftade teorier och befintliga teoretiska gap funna inom den teoretiska referensramen. Resultat och slutsats: Resultatet av studien indikerar att marknadsföringsrelevansen på sociala medier skiljer sig mellan börsnoterade och icke-börsnoterade företag, mellan olika positioner i företaget och företagets närhet till slutprodukt. Relevansen av marknadsföring på sociala medier skilde sig inte i rekryteringssyfte ur HR- chefens perspektiv, oavsett om företaget var börsnoterat eller icke-börsnoterat. Hållbarhet har en stor betydelse i marknadsföringssyfte på sociala medier och ger företagen konkurrensfördelar. Studiens bidrag: Chefer i olika järn- och stålindustriföretag och andra tunga tillverkningsindustrier kan ta hänsyn till studiens resultat för att öka sin förståelse för relevansen av digitalmarknadsföring på sociala medier samt betydelsen av hållbarhet i marknadsföringssyfte på sociala medier. Detta för att utveckla sin kommande eller befintliga digitala marknadsföring på sociala medier. Förslag till vidare forskning: Vidare forskning föreslås inkludera fler antal intervjurespondenter och företag i studien för att undersöka resultatet i större utsträckning. / Aim: The study aims to increase the understanding of the relevance of digital marketing on social media for B2B- companies in the iron- and steel industry and increase the knowledge of the importance of sustainability in the marketing purpose on social media for these companies. Method: The study used a qualitative research approach, where the collection of empirical data consisted of data collected from 11 semi-structural interviews. A qualitative targeted content analysis method was used to further develop and confirm existing theories found within the theoretical frame of reference. While a hermeneutic approach method was used to analyse unconfirmed theories and existing theoretical gaps found within the theoretical frame of reference. Result and conclusions: The result of the study indicates that the relevance of marketing on social media differs between listed and non-listed companies, between different positions in the company, and by the company's proximity to the end product. The relevance of marketing on social media did not differ in recruitment purposes from the HR manager's perspective, whether the company was listed or non-listed. Sustainability is of great importance for marketing purposes on social media and gives companies a competitive advantage. Contributions: Managers in various iron and steel industry companies and other heavy manufacturing industries can take the findings into account to increase their understanding of the relevance of digital marketing on social media and the importance of sustainability in the marketing purpose on social media for B2B-companies. For developing their upcoming or existing digital marketing on social media. Suggestion for further research: Further research is recommended to include more interview respondents and companies in the survey to examine the results to a greater extent.

Denna studie undersöker hur B2B-mikroföretag i mediebranschen ser på marknadsföring och relationsbyggande via sociala medier samt nätverkande och word of mouth. Syftet är att bidra till en ökad medvetenhet om hur de nämnda kanalerna kan användas i marknadsföringssyfte samt vilken roll nätverkande och kundrelationer har för B2B-mikroföretag. Studien är en kvalitativ studie med fenomenologin som undersökningsmetod. Den har en induktiv ansats och metoden som har använts för insamlandet av empiriskt material är intervjuer med sju respondenter från sex företag. Resultatet visar att användandet av sociala medier är viktigt för B2B-företag i mediebranschen när det kommer till varumärkesbyggande. Emellertid bör sociala medier främst ses som en portfolio och en informationskanal där företaget visar vad de kan, snarare än en marknadsföringskanal. Resultatet talar för vikten av relationsbyggande och nätverkande som den viktigaste aspekten för B2B-mikroföretag i mediebranschen för att etablera nya kundkontakter och bibehålla befintliga. Kunden bör ses som en samarbetspartner snarare än enbart en kund och för att lyckas krävs långsiktigt relationsbyggande. Slutsatsen är att B2B-mikroföretag bör satsa på nätverkande och relationsbyggande via fysiska möten och word of mouth och använda sig av sociala medier som ett komplement till detta för att kunna visa sin kompetens och stärka varumärket. / This essay examines how B2B micro companies in the media industry looks at social media, networking and word of mouth as a marketing tool and to build relationships with their customers. The study aims to contribute with an increased awareness of how social media can be used for marketing purposes and what impact networking and customer relations have for B2B companies. The study is based on a qualitative method and uses phenomenology as research method. It has an inductive approach and the method used for the gathering of empirical data is interviews with seven respondents from six different companies. The result shows that the use of social media is important for brand building for B2B companies in the media industry, but should primarily be seen as a portfolio where the company shows what they can do and to provide information, rather than a marketing tool. The result indicates that relationship building and networking are the most important aspects for B2B companies to establish new customer relationships and maintain existing ones. The customer should be seen as a partner rather than just a customer and in order to succeed, long-term relationship building is required. The conclusion is that B2B micro companies should focus on networking and relationship building through physical meetings and word of mouth, but use social media as a complement to this to be able to demonstrate their competence and strengthen the brand.

Digitalisering är fenomenet som ständigt växer sig starkare, inte minst i affärsvärlden inom marknadsstrategin business-to-business. Allt fler B2B företag digitaliseras och transaktionshandeln förflyttar sig till nätet, vilket medför nya utmaningar. Digitaliseringen förenklar och minskar administrationen, ökar tillgängligheten samt effektiviserar försäljningsprocessen. B2B-kunder har dock mycket specifika behov och krav som leder till allt större och komplexare processflöden samt komplexare orderscenarier som t.ex. prislistorna och volymorderläggningen. Digitalisering medför nya perspektiv som leder till flera olika prestandan som inte enbart kan utvärderas ur ett ekonomiskt perspektiv utan behöver flera ytterligare perspektiv i utvärderingen så att organisationen innehar bättre insikt i det nuvarande tillståndet i förhållande till de strategiska målen. Finansiella nyckeltal ger alltför lite information med med hjälp utav icke-finansiella nyckeltal kan företaget förutse framtida värden, förbättringsarbeten och effektvinster. En kvalitativ fallstudie utfördes med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer med tre B2B företag med syfte att undersöka hur B2B företag mäter prestationer av sina strategiska initiativ vid arbete med e-handeln. Därmed låg fokuset på att finna en koppling mellan användandet av nyckeltal i förhållande till de strategiska initiativ som företagen förhåller sig till. Företagens årsredovisningar och hemsidor var även ytterligare källor för datainsamling. Resultatet visade att de följande tre företagen alla använder nyckeltal vid det finansiella perspektivet för utvärdering av e-handeln och en del nyckeltal i kundperspektivet. Däremot återfanns ingen användning av nyckeltal vid lärande - och tillväxtperspektivet samt det interna perspektivet. En tydlig brist vid ledningssystemet, i att kommunicera ut bland annat mål till organisationen, var ytterligare något som återfanns ivarje företag. / Digitization is the phenomenon that is constantly growing stronger, not least in the business world in the market strategy business-to-business. More and more B2B companies are being digitized and transactions are moving to the network, which presents new challenges. Digitization simplifies and reduces administration, increases accessibility and streamlines the sales process. B2B customers, however, have very specific needs and requirements that lead to increasingly larger and more complex process flows as well as more complex order scenarios such as the price lists and the volume order. Digitization entails new perspectives that lead to several different performances that cannot be evaluated solely from an economic perspective, but require several additional perspectives in the evaluation so that the organization possesses better insight into the current state in relation to the strategic objectives. Financial key figures provide too little information, but with the help of non- financial key figures, the company can predict future values, improvement work and effect gains. A qualitative case study was conducted with the help of semi-structured interviews with three B2B companies with the purpose of investigating how B2B companies measure the performance of their strategic initiatives when working with e-commerce. Thus, the focus was on finding a connection between the use of key figures in relation to the strategic initiatives that the companies relate to. The companies' annual reports and websites were also additional sources for data collection. The result showed that the following three companies all use key figures for the financial perspective for evaluating e-commerce and some key figures in the customer perspective. However, there was no use of key figures in the learning and growth perspective as well as the internal perspective. A clear shortcoming in the management system, in communicating, among other things, goals to the organization, was another thing that was found in each company.

Social media is a fast growing platform when it comes to marketing. It is, however, used to a greater extent by business-to-consumer (B2C) companies than by business-to-business (B2B) companies. Because of this there has been considerably less research done concerning marketing on social media for B2B, compared to B2C.  This study explores why social media marketing is less common in B2B than B2C. This was done by conducting eleven one-on-one interviews with people who work at different B2B companies, and who have influence over their respective company’s marketing process. To analyse and evaluate the findings of this study the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was used. By identifying the external variables that deter B2B companies from using social media the perceived usefulness and ease of use were analysed in order to explore what affects the difference in social media acceptance for marketing between B2B and B2C companies.  The findings of this study show that the perceived ease of use is the dominant factor that deters B2B companies from using social media for marketing purposes. This is however not the reason for the difference between B2B and B2C. The difference can instead be explained by a more negative perception of the usefulness of marketing on social media. This negative perception is a result of the characteristics of social media, the industry the company is operating within, as well as the company’s products and customers. / Sociala medier är en snabbt växande plattform när det kommer till marknadsföring. Det används dock i större utsträckning av business-to-consumer (B2C) företag än av business-to-business (B2B) företag. På grund av detta har det gjorts betydligt mindre forskning gällande marknadsföring på sociala medier för B2B än vad som har gjorts för B2C. Denna studie utforskar varför marknadsföring på sociala medier är mindre vanligt i B2B än B2C. Detta har gjorts genom att genomföra 11 intervjuer, öga-mot-öga, med personer som arbetar på olika B2B-företag och som har inflytande över sitt respektive företags marknadsföringsprocess. För att analysera och utvärdera resultaten från denna studie användes Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), en modell som mäter acceptansen av olika tekniska plattformar. Genom att identifiera de externa variabler som hindrar B2B-företag från att använda sociala medier analyserades användbarheten och användarvänligheten, som den uppfattas av dem intervjuade, för att undersöka vad som påverkar skillnaden i sociala media acceptans i marknadsföringssyfte mellan B2C- och B2B-företag.  Resultaten av denna studie visar att den upplevda användarvänligheten är den dominerande faktorn som hindrar B2B-företag från att använda sociala medier för marknadsföringssyften. Detta är dock inte orsaken till skillnaden mellan B2B och B2C. Skillnaden kan istället förklaras av en negativare uppfattning av användbarheten av marknadsföring på sociala medier. Denna negativa uppfattning är ett resultat av egenskaperna hos sociala medier, den bransch som företaget är verksam inom, samt företagets produkter och kunder.

In today's business, organizations are working with external stakeholders to develop a better product. Customers are one such stakeholder with whom organizations collaborate to develop a product fulfilling their needs. This process of Co-Creation facilitates organizations to get closer to their customers. Also in the study made in the year 2016 for the 19th annual global CEO survey, 90% of the CEOs have claimed Customers to be their main priorities. Further in the literature has also debated the process of customer co-creation being complex and studies have been made to understand the Ups and Downs of the process. Problem Background: Based on the opportunity in the field of Co-Creation growing rapidly and literature arguing on both Success and failure of the process, we in our thesis aim to address the gap of identifying the factors that influence the Customer Co-Creation Process. The Purpose of our thesis was to Identify the Factors for Organizations that Influence the process and suggest to imply those factors during the process of Co-Creation for a better result.  To answer our research question we chose a qualitative approach by interviewing a total of 5 members from different organizations and different businesses in a semi-structured interview format. We chose to do research from both Customer and Organizational perspective, we formed 2 cases out of the 4 interviews and one as an expert in the field of New Product Development. The main findings of our research shows 6 Main Influencing Factors and 12 Sub Factors within 6 main factors that enrich the process of co-creation. The factors are Communication (Feedback & Highlighting the need to Customer), Management (Environment, Relationship Management, Flexibility /Exploratory, Leadership, Rewards/Incentives, Selection of Customer), Transparency, Commitment & Trust (Secrecy Concern, Sharing of IP), Consistency, Training (Employee and Customer). Our research shows the factors on the application during the co-creation process can influence the process to a better output. We have suggested the organizations in our Organizational Implications on how these factors can influence the process to a better output. Thus, answering our research question.

In 2016, online travel sales increased 8%, resulting in profits increasing to over 565 billion U.S. dollars. Traditional travel agencies in brick-and-mortar storefronts are facing challenges related to competing with online travel agencies (OTAs), attracting new customers, and retaining existing customers. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the e-commerce processes, business models, and strategies that leaders of traditional travel agencies use to compete with OTAs. The study sample consisted of 8 travel professionals from 3 small travel agencies located in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The conceptual framework for this study was Rogers's diffusion of innovation theory. Data for the study were derived from semistructured interviews, review of travel agency documents and websites, and review of interview transcripts. Data analysis and methodological triangulation included coding, organizing, interpreting, and summarizing data to identify themes. Four themes emerged: the effect of e-commerce on travel agents' performance, competing with online travel agencies, marketing strategies to attract and retain customers, and e-commerce processes used in travel agencies. Fifty percent of travel agents' business declined, and performance decreased because customers used OTAs or e-commerce websites to purchase vacations. Travel agents specialized in niche' travel destinations to compete with OTAs. Travel agents differentiated products and services to attract and retain customers. Leaders may use the findings to develop strategies, improve business processes, and profitability, thereby, increasing revenues, creating jobs, and providing income for families.

In communication and marketing there have been a shift from a transaction focus with emphasis on persuasion to a relationship focus referred to as a two-way communication with increased interactivity. Traditional companies are challenged to understand how their business can take advantage and adapt to the digital changes and opportunities when it comes to communication and building relationships and gain the ability to anticipate and deliver what customers expect them to. B2B companies have a slower adaption to digital media and digital changes compared to B2C companies and when it comes to digital channels there is many opportunities to discover. B2B companies still feel dependent on traditional communication when it comes to building relationships but the digital trend pressure companies to get involved and keep up digitally. The constantly expanding digital landscape force B2B companies to find a way to utilize digital platforms and channels in order to create strong digital relationships with retailer and audience The purpose of this study is to investigate and gain an understanding how B2B wholesalers communicate and build digital relationships with retailers. A qualitative method is used featuring a single-case study with Company X a B2B firm operating in the wholesale trade business as a producer and a wholesaler. Data used in the study is collected from semi-structured interviews with employees from the sales and marketing department. Digital marketing is one of the most emerging tools within communication, that B2B businesses not yet use to its full potential but are eager to discover the opportunities and advantages B2C companies adapted for a long time. B2B businesses use digital tools to support and strengthen the communication and relationship with retailers however findings reveal traditional tools is still the prefered communication method in B2B. Our findings suggest how there are still qualities lacking in digital communication that can only be achieved through traditional communication with psychical meetings. Empirical suggestion on how a B2B company can adopt techniques from B2C and apply it in a B2B context.