Table 4 Customer ecosystem actors Actor... | Emerald Publishing

Table 4

Customer ecosystem actors

Actor	Description	Actor unit	Example from informant data
*Focal customer*	The subjective and active individual making-sense of the experience with the business offering. Can be a user, co-user or payer of the business offering	Human Single	“When I started using it, I had more structure in my training Then, I was also more interested to follow up all the time, but now, I’ve been running very little, so I’ve had very little structure in my life, and now, I experience that it is no longer that important if I have a sports watch or not, but that may change in the future”
*Focal provider*	A seller, supplier, deliverer or enabler of a business offering, including the offering per se and other firm-related aspects	Non-human Collective	“company,” “firm,” “brand” or “organization” “Suunto,” “Runkeeper,” “Sports Tracker”
*Other providers*	Other commercial providers can be a (co-) seller supplier, deliverer or enabler of a similar offering or support the business offering of the focal provider. Can be a collaborator with or competitor to the focal provider	Non-human Collective	“I regularly read a lot about different activity trackers. There is this website which tests each and every type”
*Co-customers and peers*	Other individuals (co-) using the same business offering as the focal customer or individuals engaging in similar business-offering related activities as the focal customer	Human Single or Collective	“I know there are probably people out there that use it, but basically, I’m isolated from any other than these four people that use it. It doesn’t feel like I’m part of a group that much”
*Family and friends*	The focal customer’s closest unit of social actors can be a user, co-user or buyer of the business offering OR a non-user of the business offering The user’s parents, siblings and friends	Human Single or Collective	“The reason that I stopped carrying it so much is because none of my friends really use it. If there were lots of people using it, we could all compare times”
*Strangers*	Actors unknown to the focal customer that implicitly or explicitly influence the focal customer. Can be both users and non-users of the offering	Human Single or Collective	“I guess I just felt that I was pushing myself harder, and I felt like I was even competing against someone that I did not know”

Actor	Description	Actor unit	Example from informant data
Focal customer	The subjective and active individual making-sense of the experience with the business offering. Can be a user, co-user or payer of the business offering	HumanSingle	“When I started using it, I had more structure in my training Then, I was also more interested to follow up all the time, but now, I’ve been running very little, so I’ve had very little structure in my life, and now, I experience that it is no longer that important if I have a sports watch or not, but that may change in the future”
Focal provider	A seller, supplier, deliverer or enabler of a business offering, including the offering per se and other firm-related aspects	Non-human Collective	“company,” “firm,” “brand” or “organization”“Suunto,” “Runkeeper,” “Sports Tracker”
Other providers	Other commercial providers can be a (co-) seller supplier, deliverer or enabler of a similar offering or support the business offering of the focal provider. Can be a collaborator with or competitor to the focal provider	Non-human Collective	“I regularly read a lot about different activity trackers. There is this website which tests each and every type”
Co-customers and peers	Other individuals (co-) using the same business offering as the focal customer or individuals engaging in similar business-offering related activities as the focal customer	Human Single or Collective	“I know there are probably people out there that use it, but basically, I’m isolated from any other than these four people that use it. It doesn’t feel like I’m part of a group that much”
Family and friends	The focal customer’s closest unit of social actors can be a user, co-user or buyer of the business offering OR a non-user of the business offeringThe user’s parents, siblings and friends	Human Single or Collective	“The reason that I stopped carrying it so much is because none of my friends really use it. If there were lots of people using it, we could all compare times”
Strangers	Actors unknown to the focal customer that implicitly or explicitly influence the focal customer. Can be both users and non-users of the offering	Human Single or Collective	“I guess I just felt that I was pushing myself harder, and I felt like I was even competing against someone that I did not know”