Electronic Commerce in Private Purchasing Essay

I guess you can say that ecommerce started back in the 70’s with EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer), in the 80’s with EDI (Electronic Data Interchange). The 90’s around 1995 is when the internet move from the federal sector to commercial sector when NSF (National Science Foundation) decommissioned NSFNET and move assets to vBNS (Very-High-Speed Backbone Network Services) which serves as a testing ground for the next generation of internet technologies, which allow ISP (Internet Service Providers) to develop. After the internet was develop we had an explosive growth mostly in â€Å"Dot Coms† ventures many professional left the major firm and job security to join start ups for the promise of millions of dollar. In the mid 2000 when the NASDAQ collapsed in March hundreds of thousands of people lost their jobs, stock values plummeted and thousand of company filed bankruptcy, downsized or were taken over by competitors. The subsequent stock market crash caused the loss of $5 trillion in the market value of companies from March 2000 to October 2002. By the early 2003 companies that were well-conceived internet based companies were proving their values, consumers became confidence in buying over the internet and business began to realize the internet can create true operation efficiencies and increase profit. The explosion in the use of the Internet has paved the way for several path-breaking innovations. One of the most interesting and exciting aspects of this evolution is the emergence of electronic business (e-business) as a mainstream and viable alternative to more traditional methods of businesses being conducted today. E-business is defined as the process of using electronic technology to do business. It is the day and age of electronic business. Also the structure of the Web is rapidly evolving from a loose collection of Web sites into organized market places. The phenomena of aggregation, portals, large enterprise sites, and business-to-business applications are resulting in centralized, virtual places, through which millions of visitors pass daily. Ecommerce redefines the very foundations of competitiveness in terms of information content and information delivery mechanisms. Flows of information over international networks have created an electronic market-space of firms that are learning to exploit business opportunities. E-business has become standard operating procedure for the vast majority of companies. Ecommerce is the subset of e-business that focuses specifically on commerce. Commerce is the exchange of goods and services for other goods and services or for cash payment. There are several different types of ecommerce Business-to-Business (B2B), Business-to-Consumer (B2C), Business-to-Government (B2G), Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C) and Mobile commerce (m-commerce). A B2B system exchanges server programs and encoded files while communicating with other businesses. There are two types of B2B websites: vertical and horizontal. A vertical B2B ecommerce website is designed to meet the needs of a specific industry, and helps build connections between business communities in order to generate new business. A horizontal ecommerce website can be used by any company that is involved in buying and selling products or services. B2B ecommerce strategy can reduce operational costs, increase sales, and strengthen relationships between trading partners. These websites can help expand your presence in the marketplace and lower your procurement costs while handling an unlimited number of products. While B2B ecommerce reduces human intervention, overhead expenses, and errors, it also increases efficiency and advertising exposure and company’s sales team and account managers can concentrate on generating new business. Business to Consumer (B2C) Business to consumer is the second largest and the earliest form of e-commerce. The more common B2C business models are the online retailing companies such as Amazon. com, Barnes and Noble and ToysRus. Other B2C examples involving information goods are E-Trade and Travelocity. The more common applications of this type of e-commerce are in the areas of purchasing products and information, and personal finance management. The market researchers from eMarketers estimate the number of online buyers to be around 900 million worldwide. This brought in the online traders worldwide a turnover of over one billion US$ for the first time. EMarketers estimate the British to be the biggest spenders per head where on average every online buyer spent 3,885 US$ in 2012. US ecommerce and Online Retail sales projected to reach $226 billion, an increase of 12 percent over 2011. 2012: US ecommerce and Online Retail holiday sales reach $33. 8 billion, up 13 percent over 2011. B2C e-commerce reduces transactions costs (particularly search costs) by increasing consumer access to information and allowing consumers to find the most competitive price for a product or service, it also reduces market entry barriers since the cost of putting up and maintaining a Web site is much cheaper than building a structure for a firm. And with information goods, B2C e-commerce is even more attractive because it saves firms from factoring in the additional cost of a physical distribution network and for countries with a growing and robust Internet population, delivering information goods becomes increasingly feasible. Electronic commerce and the Internet are redefining how consumers learn, select, purchase, and use products and services. Hence, B2C or Business-to-consumer retail holds significant business opportunities. A manufacturer with a dedicated ecommerce website can use it to increase margins, monetize existing brand loyalty and leverage competitive advantage. At the same time, he can increase awareness for the brand, provide important product information to customers, and gather valuable customer data to improve business prospects. There are a number of benefits which make owning a B2C ecommerce website inevitable for manufacturers. The ecommerce brings the shopping experience to the consumer’s home. By launching a B2C ecommerce website, the manufacturers’ bring the convenience and comfort of shopping to the consumers thereby increasing their prospective customers. When the manufacturer owns the retailing operations also, it can create brand awareness more prominently. By reaching out to new markets the manufacturers can increase their business’s brand name and about their product line. The e-shopping is accessible from anywhere anytime, thus it proves to be a quick and easy mode of providing information. Manufacturers can provide extensive updated information of their product range through their customized ecommerce website design. Consumer-to-consumer (C2C) Consumer-to-consumer (C2C) is the business of conducting goods and services over the Internet to consumers from consumers. Another way to describe C2C is that it conducts e-commerce with consumers and themselves or to a third-party. Before any consumer-to-consumer business can be formed over the Internet, there needs to established of a space where individuals can come together. These â€Å"gathering spaces† are called online or virtual community in which a collection of people come to one site to communicate, connect, and get to know one another. From there, people can establish a multitude of community themes to bring similar minded people. Some examples of communities: * Communities of interest – people who come together over the Internet to share a common interest like professions, sports, hobbies, philosophy, trading, and others. Communities of relations – people who come together over the Internet to share stories of relations such as friends, families, and/or relationships. Some examples of these communities would be like Myspace or Facebook. * Communities of fantasy – people who come together over the Internet to share fantasies over the internet like fantasy football or baseb all. Another example would be a site that allows people to write their own stories of fiction. Another type of online community that establishes a consumer-to-consumer electronic commerce is called an online or electronic auction site. An e-auction is like a regular auction; however,  the  sales of bidding are done online. It is a place where sellers and buyers bid for items listed on the auction sites such as Ebay or Amazon. Two types of auctions that can occur:   * Forward Auction – an auction that sellers use to have buyers bid on their merchandise till the highest bidder wins. * Reverse Auction – like the forward auction, this auction is used by consumers that want to buy goods or services. However, the buyer selects the seller that has the lowest bid. An example of this would be seen in Amazon. com where instead of purchasing a product from them, a person can buy from other sellers. When going into the listing of other vendors, the website usually posts the lowest asking price first. Then, the next lowest price is listed all the way up to the last seller that has the highest price of all the listings. There are many benefits that a consumer-to-consumer e-commerce has. One of the main factors is a reduction in costs. Sellers can post their goods over the internet cheaply compared to the high rent space in a store. The lower expenses lead to smaller, yet profitable customer base. Being in a community of similar interest where buyers and sellers come together leading to more chances of goods and services being sold. Another benefit is that many small businesses can obtain a higher profitability over a C2C compared to a physical store because of the reduction of overhead costs when conducting an e-business. Probably the most positive benefit of the consumer-to-consumer sites is the effectiveness in selling personal items. There are also disadvantages that a C2C e-commerce has. One of the main factors is it is not always the safest and most reliable place to conduct business. Sometimes buyers and sellers are not accommodating to each other when transactional information is needed. In these cases, a proof of purchase can solve liability issues and prevent costly lawsuits for a consumer and small businesses. Another disadvantage is that these types of sites are known for scams, swindles, and people with ill-business intentions. When things go wrong on C2C e-commerce communities, people can easily spread their stories across the internet which effectively is Word-of-Mouth advertising. Consumer-to-consumer marketing is on the rise, and 2013 will be the year when it explodes into the mainstream, becoming a must-have retail marketing tactic rather than just the mark of the out-there-brand-innovator. Communication is no longer about just businesses talking to anyone; it’s about people talking to people. Forget who’s on the end of the conversation. This is about where it all starts. The future of communications is C2C, or consumer2consumer or people2people. Individuals, whether buying for business or for themselves, are talking to and listening to other consumers. They are setting the agenda, leading the conversation, sharing their views, recommending the best products and deciding whether brands are successful or not. No longer are consumers just taking in information corporations and brands are spewing at them. Now they question and make brands earn their loyalty. Because of social media platforms, like Facebook and Twitter, consumers are now quick to ask brands: What can you do for me? So, today challenge is getting people talking about brands in a positive way, not getting brands to talk to people. With so many touch points, brands must move away from the traditional 1960s formula of one-sided information and start having conversations with consumers. Consumers want brands to be authentic and have a real human voice they can speak with when something goes wrong or right. Business-to-Government (B2G) Business-to-government (B2G) is a variation of the term business-to-business the concept that businesses and government agencies can use central Web sites to exchange information and do business with each other more efficiently than they usually can off the Web. A Web site offering B2G services could provide businesses with a single place to locate applications and tax forms for one or more levels of government (city, state or province, country, and so forth); provide the ability to send in filled-out forms and payments; update corporate information; request answers to specific questions. B2G may also include e-procurement services, in which businesses learn about the purchasing needs of agencies and agencies request proposal responses. B2G may also support the idea of a virtual workplace in which a business and an agency could coordinate the work on a contracted project by sharing a common site to coordinate online meetings, review plans, and manage progress. B2G may also include the rental of online applications and databases designed especially for use by government agencies. This kind of e-commerce has two features: first, the public sector assumes a pilot/leading role in establishing e-commerce; and second, it is assumed that the public sector has the greatest need for making its procurement system more effective. Web-based purchasing policies increase the transparency of the procurement process and reduce the risk of irregularities. To date, however, the size of the B2G e-commerce market as a component of total e-commerce is insignificant, as government e-procurement systems remain undeveloped. Mobile commerce (m-commerce) More and more users are buying tablets and using them for e-commerce due to the convenience it provides. The latest report from eMarketer predicts a surge in tablet commerce, turning the m-commerce into a $50 billion industry next year. The overall mobile commerce spending, including both tablets and Smartphone’s, in 2012 was $24. 66 billion, and this figure represented an 81% increase from the 2011 figures. EMarketer also report predicts total ecommerce spending from tablet devices alone to touch $24 billion by the end of 2013 and then almost double itself in a year to reach $50 billion by the end of 2014. The total mobile m-commerce sales would stand at about $39 billion in 2013. In 2013, 15% of all sales is expected to come from mobile devices, with tablets alone accounting for a dominant 9%. By 2016, tablets alone will account for a significant 17% of all sales. A big reason for the surge is the increasing rate of tablet adoption, as more and more people buy this new device. Traditionally, the ratio of new devices has been four Smartphone’s for every tablet. But Christmas Day 2012 sprang another surprise, when 49% of the 17. 4 million new devices activated were actually tablets. As content delivery over wireless devices becomes faster, more secure, and scalable, some believe that m-commerce will surpass wire line e-commerce as the method of choice for digital commerce transactions. This may well be true for the Asia-Pacific where there are more mobile phone users than there are Internet users. Industries affected by m-commerce include: Financial services, including mobile banking, as well as brokerage services; Telecommunications, in which service changes, bill payment and account reviews can all be conducted from the same handheld device; Service/retail, as consumers are given the ability to place and pay for orders on-the-fly; Information services, which include the delivery of entertainment, financial news, sports figures and traffic updates to a single mobile device.

Free Essays on History Of Music

History Of Music Music has been around sense the dawn of time. When man first started to discover music it was not the kind of music we have today. All it consisted of was grunts, moans, and banging things. Music has evolved just as much as the people that created it. From Chromagnum men to musician and from grunting too classical music, rock, and rap. The first people imitated music from nature. They mimicked the sound from their every day life. It had no rhythm, beat, or tune it was just noise, but later turned into what we now call music. Ancient people used music for much more than entertainment they used it in every day life. They would yell and scream during battle, blow a horn as a warning, have ceremonies to honor the dead or bring the rain, signal danger, to show your importance in society, it was also used as a healing power. On the front lines of battle would be a soldier that would be holding a drum or a flute. When this was a common act the instruments would be spread around to different cultures after a battle. This brought on a new way of looking at music. Around the 16th century people started to collect instead of play music. A persons hands and feet were the first of all the instruments and is still the most common, because every one has them. A persons hands and feet were readily available, and easy to use. The drum is the second most common percussion instrument. Like most of the other instruments the drum was found by accident when someone hit a hallow log with a stick. The hallowed out stumps then became drums that were decorated. Drums were used for war or for signaling over long distances. The drum was a common instrument because it was so easy to use; all they had to do was strike it. The second percussion instrument was the rattle. The rattle was found later in the time when humans started to grow plants. It was found accidentally when someone picked up a dried out gourd of some sort... Free Essays on History Of Music Free Essays on History Of Music History Of Music Music has been around sense the dawn of time. When man first started to discover music it was not the kind of music we have today. All it consisted of was grunts, moans, and banging things. Music has evolved just as much as the people that created it. From Chromagnum men to musician and from grunting too classical music, rock, and rap. The first people imitated music from nature. They mimicked the sound from their every day life. It had no rhythm, beat, or tune it was just noise, but later turned into what we now call music. Ancient people used music for much more than entertainment they used it in every day life. They would yell and scream during battle, blow a horn as a warning, have ceremonies to honor the dead or bring the rain, signal danger, to show your importance in society, it was also used as a healing power. On the front lines of battle would be a soldier that would be holding a drum or a flute. When this was a common act the instruments would be spread around to different cultures after a battle. This brought on a new way of looking at music. Around the 16th century people started to collect instead of play music. A persons hands and feet were the first of all the instruments and is still the most common, because every one has them. A persons hands and feet were readily available, and easy to use. The drum is the second most common percussion instrument. Like most of the other instruments the drum was found by accident when someone hit a hallow log with a stick. The hallowed out stumps then became drums that were decorated. Drums were used for war or for signaling over long distances. The drum was a common instrument because it was so easy to use; all they had to do was strike it. The second percussion instrument was the rattle. The rattle was found later in the time when humans started to grow plants. It was found accidentally when someone picked up a dried out gourd of some sort...

Antoni Gaudi essays

Antoni Gaudi essays Antoni Gaudi was a Spanish architect, born on 25th June 1852 in Reus. He attended secondary school in the Colegio de los Padres Escolapios also in Reus in 1863. Gaudi also attended preparatory courses in 1869 to enable him to study architecture at the Faculty of Natural Science at Barcelona University. In 1873 Gaudi studied architecture at the Escola Provincial dArchitectura in Barcelona and just before finishing his studies he was awarded a public contract to design street lamps for the City, which were installed in 1879. On the 15th March 1878, Gaudi received his diploma. Gaudi died in early 1926. Gaudis earliest architectural work was the Casa Vicens, built in 1878, which was a private home in Barcelona. Gaudi has also created other works, such as the Sagrada Familia, Casa Batllo and the Casa Mila. They all show Gaudis style, described as a blend of Neo-Gothic and Art Nouveau. Gaudi was inspired by mosaics but has interpreted them in his own way. Instead of flat, angular shapes, Gaudi creates smooth, shaped and curved 3D forms, and there are virtually no straight lines. Gaudi also includes shapes from natural forms, such as lizards, snakes and mushrooms. These forms can all be found in Park Guell. Gaudis rounded, unique wavelike style also reminds me of movement, although not straightforward, but a slow, wavy movement. His work and style also remind me of space, as most of his works are large especially the Casa Mila. The Casa Mila is my favourite of Gaudis buildings. It is also known as La Pedera or the Quarry, as it is a large stone and iron building, and is a pale colour with ironwork details. The outside is very smooth and wavy and has been described as a moving landscape by Josef Wiedermann. The stone is rounded and reminds me of a large cliff by the sea, as the walls appear to have been eroded by the elements. ...

How to Deal with Bad Lab Partners

How to Deal with Bad Lab Partners Have you ever taken a lab class and had lab partners that didnt do their share of the work, broke equipment, or wouldnt work together with you? This situation can be really hard, but there are steps you can take to make things better. Talk to Your Lab Partners This may be harder than it sounds, if your problem is that you and your lab partners dont speak the same language (which is relatively common in science and engineering), but you can improve your working relationship with your lab partners if you can explain to them whats bothering you. Also, you need to explain what you would like them to do that you feel would make things better. Be prepared to compromise, since your lab partner may want you to make some changes, too. Keep in mind, you and your partner may come from very different cultures, even if youre from the same country. Avoid sarcasm or being too nice because theres a good chance you wont get your message across. If language is a problem, seek an interpreter or draw pictures, if necessary. If One or Both of You Dont Want to Be There The work still has to get done. If you know your partner wont do it, yet your grade or your career is on the line, you need to accept that youre going to do all of the work. Now, you can still make sure it is evident your partner was slacking. On the other hand, if you both resent doing the work, its reasonable to work out an arrangement. You might find you work better together once you acknowledge you hate the task. Willing But Unable If you have a lab partner who is willing to help, yet incompetent or klutzy, try to find harmless tasks that allow the partner to participate without damaging your data or your health. Ask for input, let the partner record data and try to avoid stepping on toes. If the clueless partner is a permanent fixture in your environment, its in your best interest to train them. Start with simple tasks, clearly explaining the steps, reasons for specific actions, and desired results. Be friendly and helpful, not condescending. If you are successful in your task, youll gain a valuable ally in the lab and possibly even a friend. Theres Bad Blood Between You Maybe you and your lab partner had an argument or theres past history. Perhaps you simply dont like each other. Unfortunately, its not always possible to escape from such a situation. You can ask your supervisor to reassign one or both of you, but youll run the risk of getting a reputation of being hard to work with. If you decide to ask for a change, its probably better to cite a different reason for the request. If you absolutely must work together, try setting boundaries that limit how much you actually have to interact. Make your expectations clear so both of you can do the work and retreat. Take it to the Next Level Its better to try to work out problems with your lab partners than to seek intervention from a teacher or supervisor. However, you might need help or advice from someone higher up. This might be the case when you realize you cant meet a deadline or complete an assignment without more time or changing the work dynamic. If you decide to talk to someone about your problems, present the situation calmly and without bias. You have a problem; you need help finding a solution. This may be difficult, but its a valuable skill to master. Practice Makes Perfect Having trouble with lab partners comes with the territory. The social skills you can master dealing with lab partners will help you, whether youre only taking one lab class or are making a career out of lab work. No matter what you do, youll have to learn to work well with others, including people who are incompetent, lazy or just dont want to work with you. If you are making a career of science, you need to recognize and accept youll be a member of a team.

Compose a report listing the possible ways in which your electronic Essay

Compose a report listing the possible ways in which your electronic files could be lost, stolen, or corrupted, and explain the steps you would take to minimise these threats - Essay Example The most common is intentional action where we purposely delete or remove electronic files from storage or system. The others ways that data may be lost unintentionally could be caused by neglect, failure, force of nature, and theft. a. Neglect – electronic files are often lost because the hardwares that stores them are often neglected. Either the disk or memory stick has been misplaced or the hardware itself was not taken cared of resulting to the corruption of data that was stored in it. b. Hardware, software or systems failure – this often happen when there is an power outage where the work in progress was not saved and thus lost. Files that has been corrupted either by a defective disk or deleted by scan disk are deemed to be hardware and system failure resulting in data loss. c. Force of nature – electronic files can be destroyed by nature too. This can happen when the hardware where the file was stored was destroyed either by a flood, earthquake or other forces of nature. d. Theft – the loss of data by theft is deliberate and often contains sensitive information which has economic value. Loss of data to theft is no different to losing other tangible things to thieves only that the object that was stolen was information. The possibility of losing electronic data cannot be totally eliminated but there are precautionary steps that can be undertaken to prevent such loss. The different type of losing data requires different precautionary measures. In the above category of losing data, the following precautionary measures can be undertaken to minimize the loss of electronic files. a. Neglect – to prevent the loss of data due to neglect, the hardware and the software that contains and enables the electronic file should be taken cared of. A simple maintenance will do such as regular cleaning of the disk that contains the file, scanning system for virus and avoiding usage abuse of

The Asthma Trap Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Asthma Trap - Essay Example The cause of asthma is not known but there are a few factors or social forces that can safely be said are the major causes of asthma. Genetic factor is one of the most common factors that say that it is hereditary and runs in the family. Next is the environmental factor that suggests that pollen, house dust mites, animal dander and tobacco smoke if present in the environment are allergens that trigger asthma. Irritants in the workplace like chemicals, dust, gases etc are major causes of asthma in adults that are due to the occupation which gives exposure to such allergens as in the paint factory or where dealing with raw cotton is done etc. A healthy lifestyle is very important as if dietary habits are not correct then asthma is likely to happen due to increased intake of processed foods and high use of salt. Less exercise and leading a very sedentary life is also one of the causes as reduced exercise means less stretching of the airways due to which abnormal contraction is observed even upon exposure to the minor irritants. Asthma is related to multiple factors which are beyond patients' control. Asthma has become the most common chronic illness among children in USA, affecting some 6 million kids, and its prevalence is growing at a rate that some public health experts find alarming. Since 1982, according to the National Center for Health Statistics, the number of asthma sufferers in the United States has doubled. Sara Corbett Like any other disease asthma too burdens the patients and their families both emotionally and financially. Particularly asthma in children takes a toll on the entire family as parents miss work to care for their children and struggle to pay hospital bills, children's grades fall off as absenteeism from school increases hence lower productivity at work. Patients dependent on inhalers have to carry it with them all the time and using it in public makes them conscious and socially misfit and some patients due to this often go into social recluse. Asthma burdens the patient financially as well. According to a study childhood asthma costs the nation $3.2 billion annually in health care expenses also the constant fear of a severe attack and the fear of death is always associated with asthma. According to the National Institutes of Health, more than 5,000 Americans die this way every year. Sara Corbett My brother is asthmatic and I personally have seen him going into social hermit and avoiding social gatherings because of the fear of asthma attacks or public usage of inhalers when suffering shortness of breath. As a child he felt chained while playing with kids his age who freely used to bike or used to indulge in strenuous activities as my brother took every step very cautiously because of asthma attack fear as in the past he had suffered when he was just having fun with people his age and doing things of his age. An interesting finding is that factors such as race, ethnicity, gender and socioeconomic can influence child health and have its impact on asthma. Let's discuss each factor: Gender Boys as compared to girls are more prone to asthma. However, in adolescence it's the reverse and asthma is more severe in females and is under diagnosed and undertreated. This change is seen around the time of puberty and could possibly be due to hormonal changes and differences in environmental

Innovation versus Invention Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Innovation versus Invention - Essay Example Novelty is the introduction of a new idea into the world. While dealing with innovation, an idea does not have to be new except in a specific situation. When a company introduces an idea to the world, it is said to be innovative regardless of whether it is new to the industry or not. Basically, an invention is novel and potentially practically applicable whereas an innovation is usually practically applicable and hence introduced into the market. In terms of stages, invention is seen as an early stage while innovation is the end stage where the introduction of the ideas is presented to the end user. Innovation is categorized into two namely, product or service and process. Product or service innovation is about launching of new and improved products or services to the market. Some of its advantages to man include higher prices and profitability, added value, increased market shares and improved public relations. Process innovation deals with better and efficient ways of producing existing products and better ways of delivering existing services. This has benefited mankind in terms of reduced costs, improved quality of services and more responsive customer services. One example of innovation that has impacted man’s existence is the application of Bluetooth technology in mobile and computer devices for faster, cheaper and more convenient transfer of files and information.