Abstract
Auditors represent what may be called a "traditional" profession in the sense that specifically authorized bodies tightly control their knowledge base as well as the quality of their services. Clear criteria stipulate the educational and experiential background of an auditor, and only those that have become certified in this way may engage in the auditing of organizations. Auditors thus have the kind of well-defined knowledge base that other services discussed previously, such as management consultants, financial advisors and providers of interactive media solutions, are lacking, and which complicated the purchasing process for the buyer, creating uncertainty concerning both the need for advisory services as well as the selection of providers. This chapter focuses on the purchase of advisory services from auditing firms and devotes special interest to the question of whether the more solid knowledge base of auditors creates different patterns in the purchase of these services as opposed to the other, previously discussed services.