This paper looks at two different approaches to the development of standards in sectors with a strong presence of SMEs. A case study explores Covisint, one of the automotive industry?s major electronic markets, as an example of a sector-specific approach to standards setting. This approach eventually failed, and the reasons for this failure are identified and analysed. The committee-based approach to standardisation is subsequently discussed. Theoretical deliberations, together with the outcome of a survey, lead to a number of recommendations how more relevant standards could be produced, and how the role of SMEs in standards setting could be improved.