E-Commerce (Electronic Commerce) advantages, disadvantages & features
E-commerce is the business transactions through electronic means such as the internet, telephones, televisions & computers, When the number of internet users grows, e-commerce will be the main way to complete the business transactions.
The purchasers and businesses are affected by E-commerce, The ability to conduct business through the Internet has become a necessity, Everything from food and clothes to entertainment and furniture can be purchased online.
Advantages of E-commerce
Electronic Commerce or E-commerce is the selling and buying of goods or services over the Internet, It offers faster buying/selling procedure, as well as it is easy to find the products, It presents buying/selling 24/7, More services reach to the customers easily, and there are no theoretical geographic limitations.
E-commerce offers low operational costs and better quality of services, there is no need for the physical company set-ups, It is easy to start and manage a business, The customers can easily select the products from different providers without moving around physically.
Electronic Commerce
The entire financial transactions will become electronic, so sooner the conversion will be lower on cost, every transaction through e-commerce payment will be a lot cheaper, It allows you to make the transaction without any needs to the stores, Infrastructure investment, and other common things we find, and the companies only need a well-built website and the customer service.
E-commerce helps us to move better with a higher margin for more business safety, Higher margin means business with more control as well as the flexibility, You can also save time from E-commerce, It helps you to compare the price among the several providers, So, People can save more money while they shop.
E-commerce increases the customer base with a website, a local store can have an international customer base, You can save on staffing a physical shop (or the shops) and the associated costs such as the rent, the electricity, the gas, the water, etc, and the customers can find what they’re looking for without leaving their home.
The customers are no longer limited to the shops nearby and they can even buy from abroad, a greater wealth of information is available online than what a member of staff can provide in the store.
There are many sites that allow the customers to review the products or the services they’ve purchased, increasing the buyer confidence, The organizations can expand their market to the national and the international markets with minimum capital investment.
E-Commerce helps the organization to reduce the cost, It improves the brand image of the company, It helps the organization to provide better customer services, It helps to simplify the business processes and it makes them faster and efficient, It reduces the paperwork a lot, It increases the productivity of the organization.
It is easy to find the reviews, Every product is at the tip of your fingers on the internet, E-commerce saves time as the products are easy to locate and they can be delivered to your door in just days, Instant transactions by e-commerce there is no more waiting for the check to clear or a 30-day wait for certain other types of payment, and the transactions are cleared immediately.
The E-Commerce application provides users more options and quicker delivery of products, The customer can put review comments about the products, and it helps to reduce the cost of the products.
E-Commerce provides the option of virtual auctions, It increases the competition between the organizations, So, The organizations provide substantial discounts to the customers, the customers do not need to travel to shop a product, So, less traffic on roads and low air pollution.
E-commerce can access the services and the products to the rural areas which are not available to them, It helps the government to deliver public services such as health care, education, the social services at reduced cost and an improved way.
Disadvantages of E-commerce
Anyone, good or bad can start a business easily, and there are many bad sites that eat up the customers’ money, There is not any guarantee of product quality, Some mechanical failures can cause unpredictable effects on the total processes.
Because there is a minimum chance of direct customer to the company interactions, The customer is always on a check, There are many hackers who look for opportunities, and E-commerce site service & payment gateways are prone to the attack.
You should check the site’s certificates of security before making the instant transactions online to avoid your personal information to be stolen, E-commerce makes everything easily accessible, The consumer cannot actually touch the products until they are delivered to the door, You should view the return policy before buying, and make sure returning goods is an option.
You have to be aware of the product cost, shipping, handling, and the possible taxes as there are hidden fees that do not show up on the purchasing bill but will show up on the form of payment, There are extra handling fees that may occur with the international purchases.
E-commerce increases the competition, The consumers may be reluctant to buy from a company they haven’t heard of, It offers slow adoption, The companies whose competitors have an online presence may find it difficult to gain the market share.
E-commerce has no human interaction, The returning goods are inconvenient and expensive (if it is a large/heavy item), Some websites may take your money, They have no intention of delivering the goods, And the product may be out of stock.
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