eCommerce
The word eCommerce has come to mean several things. But generally it simply means, 'doing business online'. If you take a phone call from a prospect that somehow found your Web site, you are engaged in eCommerce. And if the bulk of your business is conducted online, using shopping carts and automated credit card processing, you are most definitely involved in eCommerce.
As the WWWeb becomes more and more entrenched in our daily lives, so does eCommerce. Most people living in the industrialized world make use of the Internet to some degree. This trend will continue, in terms of both numbers of users, and to the extent to which people use this it. And eCommerce will continue to expand as people become more and more comfortable buying products and services online.
Some World Wide eCommerce Statistics
| Year |
Users * |
Spending * |
| 1995 |
13.9 |
$296 |
| 1999 |
240 |
$130,545 |
| 2003 |
602 |
1,640,220 |
| * Millions |
| Source: Info World www.infoworld.com |
Ok, so eCommerce is the wave of the future, how do you cash in? In business, noting is easy, and it takes a certain amount of dedication to succeed. The same goes for the online portion of your business. If you take a casual attitude towards eCommerce, those are the kinds of returns that you can expect. However if you approach it with the same dedication that has made you business grow thus far, then you have earned the right to expect its rewards.
This Website is designed to guide its viewers through the process of planning, designing, promoting and maintaining your Website.
Whether you intend to design you eCommerce system yourself, or heir it out to a professional designer, you really should start with a plan. The plan should depict a realistic time frame to implement the range of components that make up our eCommerce system. The following components should be included in your planning.
- Designing a Website
- Your Online Image
- Website Content and Maintenance
- Designing a Website for Search Engine Promotion
- Order Forms and Shopping Carts
- Security and your viewers perception
- Merchant Accounts
- Who will manage your site, your Webmaster
- What is your budget?
The result of your eCommerce efforts can be seen is several ways. Unfortunately rarely can they be measured. However, if new clients are calling from out of the blue and you are now selling to new market places, your eCommerce efforts are probably starting to show.
Example: An attorney that publishes a series of articles, could consider the web site as being successful by the extra number of times the phone rings.
Example: A paintball wholesaler who adds a Website and begins to take orders directly from consumers.
Example: The realtor who attracts prospects via a Website
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