Abstract
In the aftermath of the Cruickshank Report (2000)11. Cruickshank, D. 2000. “Competition in UK banking (A Report to the Chancellor of the Exchequer)”. London: The Stationery Office. View all references and the Competition Commission's investigation (2002)10. Competition Commission Report. 2002. “The supply of banking services to SMEs”. HM Treasury, available at http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk (accessed 2 December 2002)View all references into SME–bank relationships, this paper examines the current state of the small business–bank relationship and ascertains whether the Internet could be used to improve the quality of the relationship. It utilises a qualitative research method, which consisted of 24 interviews with small business owners and relationship managers in banks. The interviews, inter alia, address the following main research questions: what are the needs and expectations of small business owners from their relationships with banks? What do small businesses think about the overall quality of service provided by banks in the relationship context? What was the delivery preference of small businesses and banks in the relationship? What did small business owners and banks think had been the main effects of e-banking on relationship management. The paper incorporates a discussion of the main findings and makes pragmatic policy and practice recommendations based on the results.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 947-961 |
| Journal | Service Industries Journal |
| Volume | 27 |
| Issue number | 7 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published (in print/issue) - 2008 |
Bibliographical note
Reference text: Albrecht, K. 2003. Digitizing the customer: the digital moat. Managing Service Quality, 13(2): 94–6. [CrossRef]2. Baker, M. J. 1993. Bank marketing – myth or reality. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 11(6): 5–11. [CrossRef]
3. Barczak, G., Ellen, P. S. and Pilling, B. K. 1997. Developing typologies of consumer motives for use of technologically based banking services. Journal of Business Research, 38(4): 131–9. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
4. Bhattacharya, R., Devinney, T. M. and Pillutla, M. M. 1998. A formal model of trust based on outcomes. Academy of Management Review, 23(3): 459–74. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
5. Bitner, M. J., Brown, S. W. and Meuter, M. L. 2000. Technology infusion in service encounters. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 28(1): 138–49. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
6. Blankenburg Holm, D., Eriksson, K. and Johanson, J. 1999. Creating value through mutual commitment to business networks. Strategic Management Journal, 20(50): 467–86. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
7. Bryman, A. 2001. Social Research Methods, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
8. Butler, P. and Durkin, M. 1998. Relationship intermediaries: business advisers in the small firm–bank relationship. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 16(1): 32–8. [CrossRef]
9. Cole, R. A. 1998. The importance of relationships to the availability of credit. Journal of Banking and Finance, 22(6–8): 958–77. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
10. Competition Commission Report. 2002. “The supply of banking services to SMEs”. HM Treasury, available at http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk (accessed 2 December 2002)
11. Cruickshank, D. 2000. “Competition in UK banking (A Report to the Chancellor of the Exchequer)”. London: The Stationery Office.
12. Czepiel, J. A. 1990. Service encounters and service relationships: implications for research. Journal of Business Research, 20: 13–21. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
13. Dibb, S. and Meadows, M. 2001. An application of a relationship marketing perspective in retail banking. The Service Industries Journal, 21(1): 169–94. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®], [CSA]
14. Dubini, P. and Aldrich, H. 1991. Personal and extended networks are central to the entrepreneurial process. Journal of Business Venturing, 6: 305–13. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
15. Dyer, J. H. and Nobeoka, K. 2000. Creating and managing a high-performance knowledge-sharing network: the Toyota case. Strategic Management Journal, 21(3): 345–67. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
16. Dwyer, F., Schurr, P. and Oh, S. 1987. Developing buyer–seller relationships. Journal of Marketing, 51(April): 11–27. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
17. Eccles, R. G. and Crane, D. B. 1987. Managing through networks in investment banking. California Management Review, 30(1): 176–96. [Web of Science ®], [CSA]
18. Eisenhardt, K. M. and Martin, J. A. 2000. Dynamic capabilities: what are they?. Strategic Management Journal, 21(10–11): 1105–21. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
19. European Commission. 1994. Growth, Competitiveness, Employment, Luxembourg: EC.
20. Fulk, J. 1993. Social construction of communication technology. Academy of Management Journal, 36(5): 921–50. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
21. Gandy, A. and Chapman, D. C. 1996. The Electronic Bank, London: Chartered Institute of Bankers.
22. Gilbert, D. C. and Choi, K. C. 2003. Relationship marketing practice in relation to different bank ownerships: a study of banks in Hong Kong. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 21(3): 137–46. [CrossRef]
23. Gillen, J., Durkin, M. and McGowan, P. Exploring the role of branding in the development of on-line trust. Proceedings of The Irish Academy of Management Conference. September7–8. pp.120–21. Dublin Institute of Technology.
24. Hansen, E. L. 1995. Entrepreneurial networks and new organisational growth. Entrepreneurship: Theory and Practice, 19(4): 7–20.
25. Haubrich, S. J. 1989. Financial intermediations, delegated monitoring and long term relationships. Journal of Banking and Finance, 13(1): 9–20. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
26. Hill, J. and McGowan, P. 1996. Developing a networking competency for effective enterprise development. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 3(3): 148–57. [CrossRef]
27. Hirschman, E. C. 1986. Humanistic enquiry in marketing research: philosophy, method and criteria. Journal of Marketing Research, 23: 237–49. (August) [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
28. Hogg, G., Laing, A. W. and Winkleman, D. 2003. The professional service encounter in the age of the Internet. Journal of Services Marketing, 17(5): 476–94. [CrossRef]
29. Ibbotson, P. and Moran, L. 2003. E-banking and the SME/bank relationship in Northern Ireland. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 21(2): 94–103. [CrossRef]
30. Jayawardhena, C. and Foley, P. 2000. Changes in the banking sector – the case of Internet banking in the UK. Internet Research: Electronic Networking Applications and Policy, 10(1): 19–30. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
31. Johnson, M. D., Nader, G. and Fornell, C. 1996. Expectations, perceived performance and customer satisfaction for a complex service: the case of bank loans. Journal of Economic Psychology, 17(2): 163–82. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
32. Lang, B. and Colgate, M. 2003. Relationship quality, on-line banking and the information technology gap. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 21(1): 29–37. [CrossRef]
33. Lee, J. 2002. A key to marketing financial services: the right mix of products, services, channels and customers. Journal of Services Marketing, 16(3): 238–58. [CrossRef]
34. Lee, J. and Allaway, A. 2002. Effects of personal control on adoption of self-service technology innovations. Journal of Services Marketing, 16(6): 553–72. [CrossRef]
35. Lincoln, Y. and Guba, E. 1985. Naturalistic Enquiry, London: Sage Publications.
36. Llewellyn, D. T. 1996. Banking in the 21st century: the transformation of an industry. LUBC Research Paper No. 105
37. McGowan, P., Durkin, M., Allen, L., Dougan, C. and Nixon, S. 2001. Developing competencies in the entrepreneurial small firm for use of the Internet in the management of customer relationships. Journal of European Industrial Training, 25(2): 126–36. [CrossRef]
38. Meuter, M. L., Ostrom, A. L., Roundtree, R. I. and Bitner, M. J. 2000. Self-service technologies: understanding customer satisfaction with technology based encounters. Journal of Marketing, 64(3): 50–64. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
39. Michell, P., Reast, J. and Lynch, J. 1998. Exploring the foundations of trust. Journal of Marketing Management, 14(1–3): 159–72. [Taylor & Francis Online]
40. Miles, M. B. and Huberman, M. 1994. Qualitative Data Analysis, London: Sage Publications.
41. Moriarty, R. T., Kimball, R. C. and Gay, J. H. 1983. The management of corporate banking relationships. Sloan Management Review, : 3–15. (Spring)
42. Nielsen, J. F. 2002. Internet technology and customer linking in Nordic banking. International Journal of Service Industry Management, 13(5): 475–95. [CrossRef]
43. O'Donnell, A. and Cummins, D. 1999. The use of qualitative methods to research networking in SMEs. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 2(2): 42–55.
44. Peterson, M. A. and Rajan, R. G. 1994. The benefits of lending relationships: evidence from small business lending. Journal of Finance, XLIX(1): 97–112.
45. Perrien, J., Filiatrault, P. and Ricard, L. 1996. The implementation of relationship marketing in commercial banking. Industrial Marketing Management, 22: 141–8. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
46. Price, L., Arnould, E. and Curasi, C. 2000. Older consumer's disposition of special possessions. Journal of Consumer Research, 27(September): 179–201. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
47. Priluck, R. 2003. Relationship marketing can mitigate product and service failures. Journal of Services Marketing, 17(1): 37–52. [CrossRef]
48. Ratnasingham, P. 1998. Internet-based EDI trust and security. Information Management and Computer Security, 6(1): 33–37. [CrossRef]
49. Rexha, N., Kingshott, R. P.J. and Aw, A. S.S. 2003. The impact of the relational plan on adoption of electronic banking. Journal of Services Marketing, 17(1): 53–67. [CrossRef]
50. Ricard, L., Prefontaine, L. and Sioufi, M. 2001. New technologies and their impact on French consumer behaviour: an investigation in the banking sector. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 19(7): 299–311. [CrossRef]
51. Solomon, M. R., Surprenant, C., Czepiel, J. A. and Gutman, E. G. 1985. A role theory perspective on dyadic interactions: the service encounter. Journal of Marketing, 49: 99–111. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
52. Spiggle, S. 1994. Analysis and interpretation of qualitative data in consumer research. Journal of Consumer Research, 21(December): 491–502. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
53. Szmigin, I. T.D. 1993. Managing quality in business to business services. European Journal of Marketing, 27(1): 22–35. [CrossRef]
54. Thornton, J. and White, L. 2001. Customer orientation and usage of financial distribution channels. Journal of Services Marketing, 15(3): 168–85. [CrossRef]
55. Turnbull, P. W. and Gibbs, M. L. 1987. Marketing bank services to corporate clients: the importance of relationships. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 14(4): 7–19.
56. Tyler, K. and Stanley, E. 1999a. Marketing financial services to businesses: a critical review. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 17(3): 98–115. [CrossRef]
57. Tyler, K. and Stanley, E. 1999b. UK bank–corporate relationships: large corporates' expectations of service. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 17(4): 158–70. [CrossRef]
58. Tyler, K. and Stanley, E. 2001. Corporate banking: the impact of boundary spanner effectiveness. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 19(6): 246–61. [CrossRef]
59. Uzzi, B. 1999. Embeddedness in the making of financial capital: how social relations and networks benefit firms seeking financing. American Sociological Review, 64(4): 481–525. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®], [CSA]
60. Uzzi, B. and Gillespie, J. J. 2002. Knowledge spillover in corporate financing networks: embeddedness and the firm's debt performance. Strategic Management Journal, 23(7): 595–618. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
61. Uzzi, B. and Lancaster, R. 2003. Relational embeddedness and learning: the case of bank loan managers and their clients. Management Science, 49(4): 383–99. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
62. Webster, F. 1992. The changing role of marketing in the corporation. Journal of Marketing, 56(October): 1–17. [CrossRef], [Web of Science ®]
63. Zineldin, M. 2000. Beyond relationship marketing: technologicalship marketing. Marketing, Intelligence and Planning, 18(1): 9–23. [CrossRef]