Research Paper Electronic Commerce
Imminent was very successful in country but the immersion of what is known today as the internet. The 1 sass is where e- commerce really found its wings and began to soar. Sir Tim Burners-Lee had been working with computer code and developed a system to share information across a network efficiently (Demanding, 2011). This network roved to be the kick start to a more global approach to communication and business relations. This movement coincided with the emergence of computer availability In businesses and households around the world.
Now as businesses connect with other businesses and consumers over a cyber space, the opportunity to impact communities and nations on an economic global scale had become a little easier. E-commerce had officially taken off and businesses were taking advantage. Business to Business E-commerce Businesses plunged into commercial transitions with one another through this new nee;org. Business to business e-commerce is simply e-commerce between businesses. The complexity in business to business e-commerce stems from the natural realm of general business practices.
The ability to link value chain activities between suppliers and other business customers presents a considerable amount of competitive advantage (Lee, Lee, & pack, 2003, p. 1). This advantage involves speed, efficiency, and tracking in the shipping process for goods and prompt communication regarding services between company ices. The wholesale and retail markets have benefited greatly from the immediate access that each gain from electronic transitions. Lee, Lee and pack (2003) breaks business to business e-commerce down into two different types for adoption; basic and collaborative (p. ). Basic business to business e-commerce surrounds day to day business documents as they transfer between companies. These documents range from simple invoices to complex contracts that outline future business ventures. The automation in the movement of these documents optimized business to business relations and reallocated many of the hours that personnel used to develop and communicate these documents. To utilize business to business e-commerce outworks for this alone greatly undersells the ultimate capacity for this new technology.
Lee, Lee and Pack (2003) argue that this while this style of business to business e-commerce gains some benefit, the benefit attained is in no way significant (p. 2). Basic business to business e-commerce is driven by efficiency in the transmission of business but the true essence of business to business e-commerce lies in the collaborative aspect of the relationship. The beauty in this new found communication tool was not necessarily in the technological advancement but the matter in which businesses networked using the technological tool.
Now instead of just sending and receiving information from one business to the next, businesses are using the network to developed shared systems that monitors products and services that they share to To ensure both the supplier and seller have what they need to conduct business. The supplier has a system that allows then to see when levels are low for their seller and prepares shipments based on set inventory levels while the seller dictates when and where they receive items from their suppliers.
The access that is enabled from a collaborative business to business e-commerce system opens many competitive advantages in the racetrack as businesses competitive to be both faster and more reliable. This type of business to business e-commerce is preferred over basic e- commerce and is widely used today to expand business networks. Business to Consumer E-commerce Business to consumer e-commerce introduces a virtual storefront for consumers and offers online space for buying goods and services.
Businesses used the techniques they perfected in business to business transactions, along with global networks that they have established to reach consumers with products that are overall less expensive and more convenient for consumers. The costs that were associated with storefronts and sales associates were replaced with logistic cost that in most cases reduced the cost of goods sold for businesses. This option has become increasingly popular for the small business section, particularly businesses that are looking to expand.
The ability to reach an unlimited amount of customers in today’s technology filled market brings very lucrative opportunity to engage in business on a global scale. With the reduction in face-to-face contact, customer service and relationship management becomes that much more important. The ability to provide customers with a simple yet pleasant hopping experience to include dependable and reliability delivery Of goods and services, can propel a business from average to superior within their particular market.
This should not change with the utilization of self-service technology in things like kiosks and automatic teller machines (Atoms) as they aid in the delivery of business. (Johnson, 2001 , p. 662). While considerable time can be saved in the e-commerce arena, time should never be traded for delivering the services expected from the customer. In the e-commerce environment, proper customer relationship management can be a very useful tool in communicating the and interpreting customer satisfactions and concerns.
As transactions take place over the internet, user choices, activities, and experiences are being evaluated for future customer improvement efforts. Business websites can be constructed and engineered to accommodate the ever changing needs and interests of the customer. The issue, as pointed out by Irradiating (2008) is the lack of customer relationship management being used in today’s business world.
He discloses several advantages that stem from using customer relationship management which include; reduction of customer communication costs deduction of overhead from internet based self-service activities overall cost savings to include integrated delivery systems and production Increase sales through e-marketing (Burr, A. , Rolland, & Ward, 2007). Customer relationship management can only optimized when the technology and customer relationships are productive and positive (Irradiating, 2008, p. 1 In business to consumer e-commerce, technology will continue to drive the delivery system in which consumers connect and interact with businesses. The importance of managing the consumer base and establishing a lasting relationship will be paramount in the longevity the business. Consumer to Consumer e-commerce Perhaps the most innovative type of e-commerce, exist between consumers as they buy, sell, and trade goods and services through electronic mediums. Leonard and Jones (2010) stamped this segment as the fastest growing due to the popularity Of the Internet (p. 186).
Auction sites like eBay have dominated this segment and most of the information regarding e-commerce for this segment has surrounded the auction transactions that take place but this segment has so much more to offer. As the internet has opened a market that eliminates the need for corporate businesses, store fronts, and sales preventatives, consumer to consumer e-commerce stands to be the most optimistic in the future. Websites like Scraggliest opens a community where consumers communicate and exchange goods and services without the need of a website designer, advertising costs, and maintenance fees.
Consumers create accounts and manage their ads as they explore items and services that they could use. Although this community in particular has garnered its share of criticism as skeptics site the dangers lurking behind each ad, it has been displayed that this type of electronic medium can sustain local economies ND even people through these financially tough times. Harvey (2012) recaps the documentary “Scraggliest Joe” as a 29 year old man lived entirely from the ads he placed on Scraggliest. Though the movie was not action packed, it displayed the type of environment that you rarely associate with internet communities(p. ). This proves that technology, contrary to popular believe, can bring people closer together. E-commerce is at its best in a network and while most businesses seek to save time, travel, and ultimately money, consumer to consumer e-commerce presents a forum, virtual meeting place in an attempt to bring them closer together. The surge of social media sites that have reconnected old friends and given families and the opportunity to experience things that they wouldn’t otherwise experience has cemented a marketplace where trends drive business.
Users share daily activities and while these sites can drive commerce between users,they also endorse brands, businesses and corporations with pictures, virtual “check-ins” and general knowledge. Johnson (2001) labels these sites under online communities and validates the lack of market research that has been done in this new and growing section of consumer to consumer e-commerce. Legal Environment of E-commerce The invention of the internet sparked an technological surgeons in the business world where electronic systems have been injected into almost every faucet of our lives.
The legal realm in which business is conducted via electronic mediums has taken some time to catch of with the boom of e- commerce. Laws, by nation, tend to develop and move at a slow pace. In the age of the internet, the legal environment has found it very difficult to keep pace with the ever changing world of e-commerce. Friend (1999) identifies one cause stating, “The fundamental differences here, indeed, are principally (a) technological and (b) spatial” (p. 6). Friend, 1999). Laws are built with borders in mind where as the Internet and the e-commerce environment exist In a virtual space.
There is not a government or agency from around the world that exist in a forum to dictate electronic commercial policies that WOUld affect the global market. Many countries have been very cooperative in the pursuit of common e-commerce law but the shear reality lies in the fact that no governing body can control what each individual county does. For e- commerce it is important that the legal system understands the environment that it operates and adapts a technological approach to the resolution of issues that arise.
