Task 3 – Comments on other students’ blogs

Task 3 – Comments on other students’ blogs


Ellisa’s blog on E-commerce and the internet customer
I also chose to do Task 1 on E-commerce and the internet customer as this is also a subject that I found really appealing. The internet has really changed the way in which I shop. I found it interesting that you liked to visit Witchery.com as this a site I know my wife often frequents since we have moved from the city to the country! I am also a big fan of e-bay, but have experienced some problems with some sellers and have found it frustrating that you can’t really follow things up with e-bay. I have never sold anything over e-bay but have purchased a number of things and was interested in reading that you have had success with the ‘paypal’ system which I have always been afraid of using, with my next purchase I may take the plunge!

Christina’s blog on E-commerce and the internet customer
I think the great thing about the internet is that it allows you to purchase items from anywhere in the world and often at a cheaper rate. I know last Christmas my wife was looking to buy some perfume for her mother. She went to the perfumery in the town and discovered that a 50ml bottle of what she wanted would cost $150. Not wanting to send that much she went home and googled the perfume and discovered Strawberry Net, where she purchased the 100ml bottle of perfume for half the price and had it within the week. Hence, my wife is a big Strawberry-Net fan!

Christina's Blog - Web 2.0

I was the same Christina – I had no idea that FaceBook ad Flickr were all related to web 2.0.! I am not a user of social networks because I am also suspicious about the privacy issues, but after this topic and talking about it to people I know I am almost convinced to join. I can see how FaceBook has become a web sensation and why is has made Mark Zucherberg a billionaire. I was surprised at how many people I knew were members. My wife is also concerned about the next generation and has banned our son (who is 6 months old!) from the playing video games….

Cass’s Blog - Security Issues, Networks & Electronic Commerce

It is amazing how unaware some people are about security issues and identity theft. I can not believe how many people put their personal details out on the web for anyone to see. It is sad that the internet has become a new source for devious behaviour and crime. I don’t know if this topic has been beneficial for me as I was going to order a new battery for my digital camera online the other night and I was think about hackers and key loggers and decided to not to order! I’m sure it was a very secure site with SSL, but I was not taking any chances.

Sarah's Blog - Electronic Payments
I also prefer the easy of paying for things electronically. I don't receive my bills online, but I can see how this would be helpful for budgeting purposes. I have never experienced the biller code online with internet purchases – that would take a little bit of the fear out of purchasing on the internet – I’m nervous about my credit card detail going to the wrong place/person. Cash will be hard to replace for small payments – credit card fee some stores charge is excessive. I also find it annoying that some online vendors, like Qantas charge you for using credit cards online.

Task One – Electronic commerce and the internet customer - Topic Three

Task One – Electronic commerce and the internet customer - Topic Three

After studying this topic I fully realised how e-commerce and technology has changed the way we live. We use the internet to do so many of our day to day dealings; our banking, talking to our friend using social networking sites, buying tickets to the theatre, searching for new places to live, looking for new jobs, booking our holidays. Often the internet is the first place we start when thinking about making a purchase.

As stated in Laudon & Traver p. 176 there are four main types on online business models; virtual merchants, multi-channel merchandisers, catalogue merchants and manufacturer-direct firms. All of which are competing in a very competitive market for consumers online dollars.

Early predictions about the success of online trading proved to be incorrect and greatly overestimated the success companies could achieve from e-commerce. Conducting business online presented a whole lot of new challenges for businesses. I can understand the difficulty that pure-play companies have in turning visitors to their sites into customers.

After studying this topic I was interested in the types of products people are purchasing online. According to a Nielsen Report the most popular and purchased items over the Internet are Books (41% purchased in the past three months), Clothing/Accessories/Shoes (36%), Videos / DVDs / Games (24%), Airline Tickets (24%) and Electronic Equipment (23%). Most of these seemed to be products of one size fits all. I firstly thought the most popular items brought over the internet would have been clothing; however the limitation of not being able to try on articles of clothing may limit the number of people buying clothing online.

For myself as an internet customer my biggest concern is with security and reliability. Not so much as whether my credit card details will be misused but whether the goods that I purchased online will turn up. I therefore feel more secure when buying from a company that has a physical presence in the traditional marketplace or buying from a company that lets you track your order the entire way through the delivery chain such as Amazon. As a customer I personally feel more secure when purchasing from Click and Mortar companies or well known companies that trade over the internet such as Amazon or Dell. I also often will only buy from a site if I have heard other people having success with that site.

With the increase in fraudulent activity increasing with transactions occurring over the internet I like to know that if I need to I could physically contact business or speak to someone face to face. Brand loyalty is an important factor for me as a consumer when purchasing over the internet. I would rather pay a little more to purchase something from a well established company that take the risk of buying a cheaper product else where. I believe support during and after the sale to be an important success factor with the business to customer business model.

I agree with the use of email as a successful way to market to online users. This seems to me to be the most affective way of marketing to the internet customer. I know from my own experiences that I will often read and follow the link to the URL.

The ‘dissolving of distance’ to me as a consumer of internet products is a great advantage. Living in remote and rural parts of Australia I have found that on many occasions I have purchased and searched for goods over the internet with great success, things that without access to the internet and electronic technology I would not be able to purchase due to my isolated location.

After reading Laudon & Travers (2007), E-Commerce: Business technology and society about the top 15 retail websites in America I was interested in seeing what business sites where popular with Australian users. From the CHOICE website located a list of some of the most popular websites. I noted that many of these popular sites are well known brick and mortar companies that have a well established brand names and presences off the web. This seems to correspond with Laudon & Traver 2007 who quote that the online audience is very sensitive to brand names and is not primarily cost driven.


Popular Australian e-commerce websites
Website
Unique audience
Active reach (%)
www.ebay.com.au
2,617,000
26.0
www.virginblue.com.au
913,000
9.1
www.qantas.com.au
905,000
9.0
www.ticketek.com.au
477,000
4.8
www.tradingpost.com.au
382,000
3.8
www.greaterunion.com.au
375,000
3.3
www.jetstar.com.au
322,000
3.2

Source: Nielsen//NetRatings NetView, home & work panel measurement.
Doing some research on internet buying I was interested in seeing that many of the articles mentioned security and secure sites to be one of the biggest concerns to consumers. The Australian Government has responded to the fast developing industry and developed the Australian E-Commerce Best Practice Model in 2000 which set the standards for Australian customer protection. However this has been superseded by the 2006 Australian Guidelines for Electronic Commerce it aims to provide businesses with guidelines when partaking in e-commerce. It is good to see that the government has recognised the need to protect consumers in this changing retail environment.

I do believe that those businesses with a web and physical presence using a multi-channelled approach will be the most successful e-tailers. As studies such as those Hanchard cites an by Forrester in May 2007 that estimated almost $400 billion of store sales are directly influenced by the web, and that will grow to $1 trillion in the next five years indicate that more and more people are and will search for product information online before they go and purchase offline. I feel this trend will continue until consumer become more confident and secure with purchasing online.

I think personally that the biggest challenge that e-Businesses face is the fact that you cannot replace the social interaction that one has when shopping. Humans are social creatures and enjoy interacting with other people this is something that sitting on a computer cannot replace. Shopping is a legitimate hobby for some people one that can’t be replicated by using a computer.

Overall I found this topic to be very thought provoking and an extremely interesting. It has made me thinking carefully about my actions as an internet customer.

References

Hanchard, S. 2007. Leveraging online consumer behaviour. http://www.insideretailing.com.au/articles-

Laudon, KC & Traver, CG 2007, E-Commerce: Business technology and society [MGT330 Readings 1].
Charles Sturt University.

The Australian Guidelines for Electronic Commerce 2006 http://www.treasury.gov.au/documents/1083/HTML/docshell.asp?URL=australian_guidelines_for_electronic_commerce.htm


The Nielsen Report 2008 Over 875 Million Consumers Have Shopped Online -- The Number of Internet Shoppers Up 40% in Two Years http://www.nielsen.com/media/2008/pr_080128b.html

Task Two – Business to business electronic commerce - Topic Four

Task Two – Business to business electronic commerce - Topic Four


When studying this topic I was surprised to read that business to business e-commerce activities account for 77 to 85% of all e-commerce (Turban, et al p.253). The availability of secure internet connections has significantly changed the way in which businesses operate.

Reflecting on my own work experiences I know realise that the many of the companies that I have worked for have used business to business models of e-commerce, by using the internet and other means of technology to conduct business.

Using the internet and electronic data interchange has streamlined the process for many of the transactions done in the business banking section in which I currently work. For example businesses can assess their accounts online, apply for loans and new accounts, and lock money away into term accounts without entering a bank branch.

I have had hands on experience of business to business many to many: exchange with the First for Farmers network (F4F). This was a centralised ordering and billing site where all rural produce stores could order their suppliers from a range of suppliers online. This site allowed customers to view availability, up to date prices and view a number of different suppliers’ products and order what they needed from the one location. Its biggest benefit for the consumer was it allowed the customers to order from one central location, streamlining the ordering process. Previously the customer would have to contact each individual company and order from each one. This centralised site was also an efficient way for our company to fill orders as we could contact the F4F Network and improve the supply chain process.

The ability for computers to be networked has been incredibility beneficial for businesses to improve communication and adapt their business model to improve supply chains and meet the needs of their customers. I think one of the biggest benefits of e-commerce is that smaller companies now have the ability to align themselves with large businesses using technology.

Task Two – e-Marketplace - Topic Two

Task Two – e-Marketplace - Topic Two


We are living in the information age and therefore businesses need to manage their information efficiently to ensure that they are meeting the needs of their customers and provide competitive advantages. O’Brien cited in MGT2200 Readings 1 defines an information system as an organised combination of people, hardware, software, communications networks and date resources that collects, transforms and disseminate information in an organisation.

Information systems are an integral part of supporting the business process. Information systems are needed to help businesses manage stock, pay employees, make decisions, etc. Information systems help the businesses accurately track their business operations and assist in making decision easier as they help staff make decisions on current and real information, not just sticking a finger in the wind.

For businesses to use IT for strategic advantages they need to embrace the ‘e-opportunities. IT is such an integral part of today’s world. Most households now have access to the internet and use this as a source of information and for locating goods and services.

The way in which organisations are using the internet for business is changing quickly as people become more comfortable with using the Web as source of purchasing goods. Five years ago I would have never dreamed of purchasing the things over the Internet, now it is often my first port of call.

I think the most important thing for businesses to survive in today’s ever changing market is to stay in tune with their customers’ needs and wants. The internet has impacted greatly on consumer’s access to information and goods. It is now very easy to use the internet to purchase good from overseas at a lower price.

E-Markets have already changed the way consumers look at purchasing products they have opened new channels for purchasing goods and services. I know when I am looking to purchase a big ticket item the first thing I do is head to the net and search for where the cheapest place I can buy it is.

Task Two Topic One – Introduction to E-Commerce

Topic One – Introduction to E-Commerce

When I enrolled for this course I was unaware that the definition of e-commerce was so broad. I had though e-commerce was related only to business conducted over or via the internet and did not realise that the definition of e-commerce included any business transaction which was conducted electronically. As Wigand states in his paper ‘Electronic commerce includes any form of economic activity conducted via electronic connections’. You can then understand why e-commerce is such an integral part of today’s businesses.

I was very interested in the section of the Study Guide about the drivers of e-commerce. I was intrigued by the concept of whether the technology or business and consumers where driving the growth of e-commerce. After consideration I drew the conclusion that it is a bit of both. As technology improves and becomes more accessible people are becoming heavily reliant on the automatic transactions and the fast delivery of information.

Before studying this topic I was unaware of the large number of models that encompassed e-commerce. I had really only seen the internet as a vehicle for businesses to sell to individual consumers. I now realise that the internet is a way in which a large number of different business models can reach potential customers

In my own work experience I now realise what an impact e-commerce has had on my daily work habits and how the corporation I have worked for has incorporated e-commerce into their everyday business transactions. Almost everything I do currently in my current banking position relies on e-commerce in its broadest definition. I receive emails, use a mobile phone, access the internet, use a database all these things are essential for businesses in today’s marketplace. I do wonder if e-commerce does impact on some businesses ability to operate efficiently as I know when thing go wrong everything stops at my work place for example when the server goes down we are unable to even use the telephone.

I believe one of the greatest impacts of e-commerce on business is the need for businesses to have a web presence. Having a web presence allows customers to access information about the company 24 hours a day 7 days a week – now stores never need to close!