E-commerce business is a combination of different types of business activities on the Internet, such as distribution, advertising, promotion and sale of goods and services. One of the first examples of e-commerce business is considered to be the case of American Airlines and IBM. In 1960, these companies developed a new system for automating the reservation of seats on flights. Thanks to the result of this collaboration – the SABRE system – they reduced the cost of services and increased the flow of passengers.
During the hippie era, in 1971, students from Stanford and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology launch the first ever analogue of online transactions. To do this, they use the ARPANET network, the predecessor of the Internet. In 1981, the British company Thompson Holidays launches the first online shopping system for business. And just four years later, the ecommerce website design company near me, holds the first hearings on e-commerce issues.
Modern e-commerce
The modern history of e-commerce business begins in the mid-90s. Besides, over the past twenty years, e-commerce business has gained global scope thanks to the spread of the Internet. The popularity of social networks, and the development of electronic payment systems. Now everyone from small businesses to corporations find their customer base online. Instead, let’s consider what advantages and disadvantages of e-commerce they face.
Advantages and disadvantages of e-commerce business
- The pros and cons largely depend on the country from which you conduct your online business. Economically strong and stable countries develop more systematically and predictably compared to others. However, it should be noted that the opportunities to “break through” and create your own business from scratch are now much higher for all people than twenty years ago. Let’s take a closer look at the advantages and disadvantages of modern e-commerce.
- In general, the advantages relate to the simplification and automation of business processes and increased profits.
- Reduced costs. To open an online store, you don’t need to rent a space or hire a whole staff. You can also automate many business processes, including lead generation, communication, order processing, data collection, to reduce costs. Ecommerce website design company Dubai can handle this for you.
- Expanding your target audience. Today, most of the world’s population uses the Internet. However, millions of people actively use several social networks and buy online. Precise tools for finding a target audience and targeting advertising allow you to find and contact people who are most likely to be interested in your products and services.
The other Advantages and disadvantages are
- Direct trade. E-commerce allows manufacturers to sell their products directly to the customer. This reduces the number of intermediaries and has a positive effect on the quality of service and prices. Ecommerce web development Dubai ready to help your business.
- Personal communication. Brands that maintain pages on social networks become more open, humane and sensitive, because they are in everyone’s sight and every word they say can affect their reputation. In order to maintain a good reputation, brands respond to complaints and requests from people in the comments, interacting with them directly, personally.
- Accurate analytics. For example, Google Analytics, Yandex Analytics, Facebook Insights, and others collect tons of information about user behavior and interests. In fact, this data can be used to achieve maximum efficiency of your marketing campaigns and increase sales.
- User convenience. Now users in many countries around the world can make purchases without leaving Facebook or Instagram. This makes online shopping extremely convenient for users and at the same time plays into the hands of businesses, because people can make quick, emotional purchases.