E-commerce: eCommerce, which is short for electronic commerce, is the process used to distribute, buy, sell or market goods and services, and the transfer of funds online, through electronic communications or networks. Electronic commerce is commonly referred to as Online commerce, Web commerce, eBusiness, eRetail, eTailing, e-tailing, ecommerce, eCommerce, e-commerce, ecom or EC. The processes involved with conducting business on the Internet and opening an eCommerce shop to sell from have several benefits to both merchants and the customers who buy from them. The biggest benefits of conducting business Online include a cheaper upfront cost to the merchant, it's easier to set up and open the store and it's faster to get an Online business up, running and making sales. Helps Create New Relationship Opportunities: Expanding or opening an eBusiness can create a world of opportunity and helps to establish new relationships with potential customers, potential business associates and new product manufacturers. Just by being in an easy to find location that is accessible to users all over the world, you will be available for others to find and approach you about new opportunities. Customers who don't know you exist will know about you, product suppliers will request you add their items and other businesses will approach you about partnership opportunities. Many of these opportunities would not present themselves without an Online presence or site for them to discover you on their own. Open for Business 24x7: An eCommerce site basically gives you the ability to have unlimited store hours, giving your customers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week access to shop and buy items from you. Some merchants choose to limit their hours to 5 days a week, but orders can still be made over the weekend and customers can still make contact 24/7 via email, phone or fax. In addition, the costs associated with having your store open 24/7 are much less than maintaining a physical storefront or phone operator with 247 operation capability. You can literally take orders and let customers shop while you sleep, take vacations or from remote locations. Increases Brand or Product Awareness: Having an Online business means that you can literally reach out to millions of consumers looking for what you sell anywhere in the world. By reaching out to new markets and displaying your site prominently in front of them, you will be able to help increase your company/domain brand name and also increase awareness about your product line. By giving users 24/7 access in an easy to find location, you will help to create more word of mouth buzz for your eBusiness, in turn helping to promote your brand name and products. Users who haven't heard of you will discover you exist and help spread the word about you. Helps Establish Customer Loyalty: An eCommerce storefront will help create an easier means for your customers to purchase the items you sell and offers a unique way to display and describe your products in a informative, visual and interactive way. The customers you have will become more loyal shoppers each time they visit, making eCommerce great for improved customer satisfaction and visitor loyalty. Now that you offer your products for sale Online, consumers will be able to shop from your catalog more easily, get updates on new items or product discounts and can shop or buy anytime they wish. Potential to Increase Overall Business Sales: An eCommerce store that is an extension of a physical storefront is a great way to boost overall business sales and potentially increase company profits across the board. Companies who already do business from a physical location are typically unaware of how much more they could be making if only they were to expand into their Online marketplaces. Selling Online opens up many opportunities for businesses both new and old. It's a great way to increase sales, especially if you already have a physical store. Potential to Increase Company Profits: As mentioned above, opening an Online extension of your store or moving your business solely Online are great ways to boost sales and potentially profits. Remember, just because SALES increase it does not necessarily mean that company PROFITS will increase also. Online businesses do have a greater chance of increasing sales and profits by opening up an eCommerce store to sell the items they offer. Sales and profits are the lifeblood of any company, so it makes sense to increase them where ever possible and whenever possible throughout the existence of your company. More sales, more profits, bigger budgets, etc. Potential to Decrease Some Costs: In addition to potentially increasing sales and profits, eBusiness owners can also typically reduce the costs of running their business by moving it or expanding it into the Online world. eCommerce stores can run with less employees including sales staff, customer service reps, order fulfillment staff and others. eBusinesses also do not need a physical location in order to stay operational, which can reduce costs related to building leases, phone bills, utility costs and other costs associated with running a brick-and-mortar storefront. Expands Geographical or Customer Reach: As mentioned, owning an eCommerce business typically means no limits as to who and where you can sell your products. Some countries outside the United States have additional regulations, licensing requirements or currency differences, but generally you will not be limited on the customers you can reach out to. Physical storefronts are limited to the city in which they are located, Online businesses aren't limited unless you put geographical limits in place. At the very least, you should consider targeting U.S. buyers, but also consider, Canada, UK, Australia and others. Sell to anyone, anywhere, anytime! Allows for Smaller Market or Niche Targeting: Although your customer reach may expand beyond your local area, you may only wish to target smaller consumer markets and buyer niches for your eCommerce products. Owning an Online store gives the merchant much control over who they target and reach out to notify about the items for sale in their store. Currently, you can target women, men, a generation of users, a particular race and many more smaller niche markets. This is typically done by placing keywords that those niche markets use on a regular basis when shopping for the items you offer. Allows for Easier Delivery of Information: An Online store and Web brochure are great ways to deliver and display information about your company and the products you sell. With an Online presence your customers will have direct access to product information, company information, specials, promotions, real time data and much more information that they can easily find just by visiting your site day or night. Not only does it benefit your customers, but it's also generally easier for merchants to update their site rather than break down an in store display and put up another for the next event. It saves both your customers and you precious time and can help you to plan more updates or better sales as it will be much easier for you to update and take down.
Provide Customers valuable information about your business is the most important benefit of ecommerce
e-comm is all about carrying out business over the net. cut shorts the traveling and evaluation cost for you. significant for both buyer and seller. google it to have more info or check out following link http://www.ecommerceeducation.com/benefits-of-ecommerce.asp
I ran an eCommerce site back in 2003-2006 , during that time the market wasnt saturated like it is now. Was thinking about setting up another one but would like to know if the business is still good considering ebay reaching its peak and other "social and mulivendor platforms have made their mark.
I think, “E-commerce is the paperless exchange of goods or services through the use of electronic dataâ€. More typical definition of e-commerce is “To sell goods or services on the web.â€
cheap,fast,convenient to customers and easy to maintain to the shop owner. And one more thing,lower cost to start a business.
You don't want to go to any stores for buying your stuffs. Everything you can buy from your home. Also so you can make free space on your home by selling your old unwanted stuffs.
Benefits of eCommerce are: * Expanded Geographical Reach * Expanded Customer Base * Increase Visibility through Search Engine Marketing * Provide Customers valuable information about your business * Available 24/7/365 - Never Close * Build Customer Loyalty * Reduction of Marketing and Advertising Costs * Collection of Customer Data
With ecommerce you have a much greater reach to the market that is special to your products. I guess that the largest barrier that ecommerce has is that we still have a large world population that do not trust ways of payment. Good thing we have paypal.
Actually it's just the same as having a store and selling goods, but this time you just need a website to do that. It's open 24 hrs, and no other extra expenses like a conventional store does. Allyson CMO Goldenspiralstudios.com
To add to everyone's insight. eCommerce also allows for greater flexibility than a traditional business. We can adapt, implement, and manage much faster and efficiently.
I am gona tell you one great use of e-commerce and that is in b2b portals. All the process from communication to payment transaction is done online. So Its a great place for those who need international exposure to their business and products.
E-Commerce advantages: Catalog flexibility and Online fast updating Shrinks the Competition Gap Unlimited Market Place and Business Access Which Extend Customer Base A 24 Hour Store Reduces Sale Cycle Lower Cost of Doing Business Eliminate Middlemen Frees Your Staff Customers will love it More Efficient Business Relationships Workflow automation Secure Payment Systems
The benefits of Ecommerce: Ecommerce allows people to carry out businesses without the barriers of time or distance. One can log on to the Internet at any point of time, be it day or night and purchase or sell anything one desires at a single click of the mouse. The direct cost-of-sale for an order taken from a web site is lower than through traditional means (retail, paper based), as there is no human interaction during the on-line electronic purchase order process. Also, electronic selling virtually eliminates processing errors, as well as being faster and more convenient for the visitor. Ecommerce is ideal for niche products. Customers for such products are usually few. But in the vast market place i.e. the Internet, even niche products could generate viable volumes. Another important benefit of Ecommerce is that it is the cheapest means of doing business. The day-to-day pressures of the marketplace have played their part in reducing the opportunities for companies to invest in improving their competitive position. A mature market, increased competitions have all reduced the amount of money available to invest. If the selling price cannot be increased and the manufactured cost cannot be decreased then the difference can be in the way the business is carried out. Ecommerce has provided the solution by decimating the costs, which are incurred.
Expanded Geographical Reach Expanded Customer Base Increase Visibility through Search Engine Marketing Provide Customers valuable information about your business Available 24/7/365 - Never Close Build Customer Loyalty Reduction of Marketing and Advertising Costs Collection of Customer Data