E-Commerce: A Revolution in the Way We Do Business

There is no finish line…

– Nike Corporate Motto

Financial business transaction that occurs over an electronic network

Sometimes callede-business

What is electronic commerce (e-commerce)?

M-commerceE-commerce that takes place using

mobile devices

How are e-commerce transactions conducted? Primarily through desktop

computers Wirelessly using handheld Web-

enabled devices

What is a bricks-and-mortar business? Company with a

physical location, such as Wal-Mart or Kmart

What is a clicks-and-mortar business? Company with a bricks-and-mortar

location as well as an online presence Some companies

have onlinepresence without physical locations• E*Trade and

Amazon.com

What is an electronic storefront? Web site

where e-retailer displays its products

Shopping cart allows customer to collect purchases

Also called online catalog

add to cart

What is a shopping bot? Web site that

searches for the best price on a specific product

Also called a shopbot

What is business-to-consumer (B-to-C or B2C) e-commerce?

Sale of products or services from a business to the general public

What is consumer-to-consumer (C-to-C or C2C) e-commerce? Individuals

using Internet to sell products to other individuals• Online

auction, such as eBay

What is business-to-business (B-to-B or B2B) e-commerce?

Sale and exchange of products and service between businesses

Many businesses engage in both B2B and B2C Supply chain creates and distributes products

E-Commerce Stats

What is business-to-employee (B-to-E or B2E) e-commerce?

Sale and exchange of products and service between a business and its employees

Usually through an intranet

What are some advantages of e-commerce?• Global market 24/7• Businesses have access to 459 million people with Internet

access• Lower operating costs• Customers can conduct price comparisons easily• Feedback can be immediate• Changing information can be available quickly• FAQ (frequently asked questions) pages can provide easy

access to customer support• Ability to gather customer information, analyze it, and react• New and traditional approaches to generating revenue• Manufacturers can buy and sell directly, avoiding the cost of

the middleman• Distribution costs for information reduced or eliminated• Options to create a paperless environment

Revenue Streams Sales Subscriptions Banner ads Pop ups Web searches• Paid listings• Paid inclusion• Search engine

optimization

http://www.zetetic.com/domain-name-sales.html

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Building Traffic The 3Cs Approach• Content, community, and commerce

Keywords and Search Engines• Choose name and product names that best

describe business purpose and features• Select descriptive domain names• Business-related keywords can be listed in

the HTML meta tag

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Building Traffic (continued) Marketing• Online advertising methods include

banner ads, pop-up ads, and e-mail

• Offline advertising methods include magazines, newspapers, radio, and television

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Electronic Payment Systems Electronic cash (e-cash or digital cash) • Provides a private and secure method of

transferring funds • PayPal

– Best-known e-cash provider E-cash benefits• Privacy - hides account information from vendors• Convenient if seller cannot process a credit card

Smartcards• Credit cards with embedded microchips

Ecommerce Spending Trends At the end of 2008, worldwide e-commerce

is expected to exceed $470 brillion. By 2010:

- 71% of US consumers will use the Internet to shop

- 50% of ALL retail sales will be influenced by the Internet

Consumer Concerns A recent poll of Americans Found that• 13% had no fears about E-Commerce• 53% had concerns of privacy and security• 20% cited the inability to inspect products

closely over the Internet• 3% do not like to wait for delivery

Limitations Bandwidth or data capacity Comfort Factor Security Privacy

What factors lead to customer loyalty? Best storefronts are

efficient and easy to use

Customers who must wait more than eight seconds for a page to download usually will click to another site

Fun thought…

People are more violently opposed to fur than leather because it's safer to harass rich women than motorcycle gangs.