Fading relationships in business markets: an exploratory study

Abstract

This paper addresses an important but until now modestly researched question, i.e. why long-term buyer-seller relationships originally built on reciprocity and mutual trust fade away. In an exploratory study of a firm experiencing that major, long-term customers had gradually disappeared, it was found that neither the firms' sales representatives nor its management were able to understand the changes taking place due to experience-based, rigid mental models trapping their thinking and subsequent behaviours. Contrary to what is usually believed, it was observed that strong social ties between relational actors hampered rather than eased the flow of information. Theoretical and managerial implications are emphasized.

Keywords:

• Relationships
• Termination
• Mental Models