The Computer Revolution/E commerce/Benefits

With the advent of e-Commerce, or online business there have been a number of beneficial effects on the method that companies, and individuals can conduct business.

Online storefronts

Streamlining approach

If a company chooses to create a website listing its products or services, the need for a physical storefront and corresponding retail staff is often diminished or can even be eliminated. If the company deals in physical inventory there will still need to deal in logistics, storage, and manufacturing, but a large portion of overhead could still be eliminated by eliminating large retail spaces. An example of a company like this would be Amazon.com, which primarily sells through its website. If a company or division deals entirely in products of the digital sort, like say Apple's iTunes digital music store, then there is no warehouse space needed at all. A company need only lean on its datacenter or the cloud for computers to serve the customer.

Complementary approach

There is another approach to the online storefront, where the ability to shop online is used to drive traffic to physical stores. For example, many groceries offer pickup or delivery services where customers shop online, and an employee picks up their items for them. This saves the customer time, while allowing the company to see just what customers are searching for. This also helps reduce shoplifting, while giving customers increased choice and flexibility when they're crunched for time. This can also be seen in other industries, such as pizzerias that allow customers to create an order from a website or smartphone app, freeing an employee from cashier duties to focus on making pizza or delivery.

Small business approach

E Commerce allows small business to have nationwide and even international reach. This can complement a local storefront, or it can eliminate the need one in some cases. There is a proliferation of small businesses online selling everything from T-Shirts to electronic media. One such example of this would be a T-Shirt selling website could be run by a the owner out of their garage, where they store, customize, and ship out their T-Shirts.

Online Payment Services

Online payment services are services that allow people to transfer money and pay bills via the Internet. These transactions can be provided to a local business or online businesses. PayPal and Stripe are commonly used services that people can use at various locations. This service can be used online to make purchases or transfer money. Most banks and businesses also offer online payment services.

There are many different types of online payment forms. Customers pay with their credit card as normal, or can use other options such as direct payments, third parties such as PayPal, store credit, gift cards, mobile based money transfer, cryptocurrency, and promotional coupon codes to name a few options. Many online business offer a few options for customers to pay, though the most popular payment options will vary depending on customer demographics and how they like to pay. For example, a business that primarily services local municipalities will probably be more likely to take direct payments and credit cards, and less likely to accept payments through cryptocurrency and probably doesn't make any gift cards. Keep in mind that every additional payment option adds operational and technical complexity to a website.

E-Commerce in a nutshell

The world or e-commerce includes online retailer and wholesalers and all other financial transactions that happen online. The e-commerce has several business models the most common are the business to consumer also known as B2C this can be an online retailer selling to the consumer. In addition the business to business or B2B, this is typically a business that offers business solutions for other business. And there is also the consumer to consumer or C2C. For detail information see each section for B2B, B2C, C2C.

For the Consumers

An e-commerce website

Benefits of e-commerce for customers are convenience (don't need to leave your house or work to shop), easier comparison shopping (there are many sites you can browse looking for one specific thing, or use shopping bots to do it for you. It would take multiple trips to different stores to check the prices on the same item if there were no e-commerce sites), a higher degree of selection (not limited by what the brick-and-mortar stores have in stock), and the ability to customize products easier (again, not limited by the supply in the brick-and-mortar store, so there are a lot more options to choose from). Another benefit of e-commerce is the ability to shop 24/7. You would not be able to shop at a brick-and-mortar store at one in the morning, but you can buy things off of their websites at that time from the comfort of your home. There are many different types of online payment forms. there is digital cash, pay pal, digital wallet, digital gift certificates, gift cards, and coupons among many more. Digital payment is much more popular and the popularity is growing and growing. The necessity for this is big. Digital payment is used because it is much more secure than paying with a credit card, where some one can copy and use your information, the new forms of online payments offer you the option to buy things remotely without having to worry about your information being compromised or re-used.

The advantages of e-commerce for a consumer are numerous. Being able to shop from just about anywhere by using a computer or even your phone is very advantageous for anyone. It could be full-time working mother with children who might only have the early morning or late evening to shop or someone who prefers to stay in their warm home instead of venturing out in a snowstorm to purchase items that they might want or need. Using the internet is also beneficial as you could have more than one website open at one time to check availability and price as opposed to having to go from store to store.

For the Businesses

A Friendly Hand Shake

E-commerce business models consist of four different types. First business-to-consumer (B2C). This is when businesses sell goods or services to individual consumers. Second there is business-to-business (B2B). This includes any type of e-commerce transactions that take place between two businesses. The third one is consumer-to-consumer (C2C), or person-to-person. This involves individuals that are selling directly to other individuals. Finally there is business-to-government (B2G). This includes transactions between businesses and local, state, and federal governments.

The businesses choosing to do business online have a series of advantages when engaging in e-commerce, too. One of the advantages is a reduced cost of doing the business as some of the expenses that are present with the brick and mortar businesses (such as rent) are being eliminated. The accessibility and convenience of online transactions for the customers is leading to increased customer satisfaction which is another benefit. The business gains access to a worldwide market instead of being limited to a certain geographical area which gives it the advantage of a broader customer base and potential increase in sales.