What constitutes a business model: the perception of financial analysts

In this paper, we review the literature on the business model concept. We distinguish between the various business model frameworks according to whether they concern generic descriptions of the business or whether they are more specific in their descriptions. The empirical part of the paper is a case study of financial analysts’ perceptions of the term business model and how they describe a specific firm’s strategy in relation to the business model frameworks. The analysis indicates that the particularities of strategy and competitive strengths mobilised by the analysts in their understanding of the case company can be seen as elements of a business model. It is concluded which business model typologies are most similar to the analysts’ understanding and how these incorporate elements of both a narrow and a broad comprehension of the concept.