MIDLANDS STATE UNIVERSITY
FACULTY OF BUSINESS SCIENCES
DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCES
E-COMMERCE BM138/BM108
MS V. HLATSHWAYO
[email protected]
0719
E-COMMERCE DEFINITION
► E-commerce is the use of the Internet, the World Wide Web (Web), and mobile apps and browsers
running on mobile devices to transact business. (Laudon and Traver, 2016)
► E-Commerce is about buying online or the ability to transact online. This includes online shopping
(e-tailing) and internet banking.
► E-commerce is the purchasing , selling & exchanging of goods and services over computer networks or
the Internet through which transactions or terms of sale are performed electronically.
► Electronic commerce refers to all electronically mediated transactions between an organization and its
stakeholders.
► By this definition, non-financial transactions such as customer requests for further information would
also be considered to be part of e-commerce
E-Commerce is divided into buy-side and sell-side ecommerce.
► Buy-side e-commerce refers to transactions to procure resources needed by an organization from its
suppliers.
► Sell-side e-commerce refers to transactions involved with selling products to an organization’s
customers
E-COMMERCE
► E-Commerce is about conducting commercial transactions via the web or getting involved in selling
and buying items over the internet. It also covers monetary transactions. Some other online
e-commerce activities include:
► Ticketing over internet
► Paying different taxes
► Online payments
► Products purchased or sold online
► Online Accounting Software
► Online Customer Support
► Meanwhile, also find examples of E-Commerce sites. They include Flipkart, Paytm Mall, Amazon,
Myntra and more
PROCESS OF E-COMMERCE
► A consumer uses Web browser to connect to the home page of a merchant's Web site on the Internet.
► The consumer browses the catalog of products featured on the site and selects items to purchase.
► The selected items are placed in the electronic equivalent of a shopping cart.
► When the consumer is ready to complete the purchase of selected items, she provides a bill-to and
ship-to address for purchase and delivery
► When the credit card number is validated and the order is completed at the Commerce Server site,
the merchant's site displays a receipt confirming the customer's purchase.
► The Commerce Server site then forwards the order to a Processing Network for payment processing
and fulfilment
E-BUSINESS
► E-Business encompasses executing all types of business transactions and services via the web.
This includes procuring raw materials, online education, commercial transactions, monetary
transactions on the internet and more. This indicates an online presence of all types of
businesses and services.
► Examples are E-Commerce companies and their additional internal business activities such as
classifieds, auction sites, software or hardware developer sites, etc. The E-Business online
activities, in the meantime, include:
► Setting up an online store
► Supply chain management
► Online commercial transactions (buying and selling products)
► Customer Education
► Monetary Business Transactions
► E-Mail Marketing
E-commerce vs. E-busines
► We use the term e-business to refer primarily to the digital enablement of
transactions and processes within a firm, involving information systems under
the control of the firm.
► E-commerce includes commercial transactions involving an exchange of value
across organizational boundaries
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN E-COMMERCE AND E-BUSINESS
E-COMMERCE E-BUSINESS
Carrying out commercial transactions online Conducts all kinds of business activities and
services over the internet
Buying/ selling, monetary transactions online Online presence of the business
A sub-set of E-Business, it is also a narrow A super-set of E-Commerce. Business
concept transactions are supported in E-Business
Limited transactions Transactions are not limited
Involves use of only one website Multiple websites and CRMs, ERPs that connect
different business processes are used
Mandatory use of internet Internet, Intranet or Extranet are used
It is more relevant in B2C, Business to customer This is more appropriate to B2B or Business to
context Business context
Also cover external or outward business Covers internal as well as external business
processes activities or processes
WHAT IS THE INTERNET?
► The Internet is a Global network of computers. It is ubiquitous(GLOBAL/UNIVERSAL). Organisations
can provide a wide range of services over the Internet.
► Mobile. Many cell phone and smartphone providers offer voice plans with Internet access
► WiFi Hotspots
► Dial-Up Broadband
► DSL Cable
► Satellite ISDN
There are two types of networks that form the Internet. These are
► Intranet
► Extranet
INTRANET
► An internal network confined to an organization. It runs internally within the organization and is
accessed by employees of that particular organisation.
► Use a browser such as Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Google Chrome etc. for information to be
accessed.
► An intranet connects departments and branches of a single organization Importance of the Intranet
► Ensures efficient service delivery in that customers may be served from any branch of the
organisation. Intranets therefore assist everyone within the organization to be customer focused.
► It is used to store information relating to customers, suppliers or staff of an organization i.e.
customer databases
Intranet
► Businesses may use intranets to manage inventory levels. E.g. hotel sector rooms available and
ready for occupation
► Can compare sales between branches and thus enabling decision makers to be in a position to
implement appropriate strategies to improve sales
► Inter-branch transfers of stock may also be achieved through the use of the Intranet.
ACTIVITY
► LOOK FOR EXAMPLES OF INTRANETS
► WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF COMPANIES USING INTRANETS?
► WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE INTERNET AND INTRANET?
EXTRANET
► It provides controlled access to authorized people outside of the company. Much like the intranet, it
allows for private communication, document and knowledge sharing, and transfers between crucial
external partners and an organization.
► An external network that links an organisation to its value chain members e.g. suppliers of raw materials,
manufacturers and distributors. E.g. Tongaat Hulett and OK Zimbabwe Supermarkets
► Extranets can also link players within the same sector. E.g. Zim switch Makes use of the WAN.
► Extranets allow procurement of raw materials and supplies online thus minimizing stock outs. Assists a
supplier to effectively manage inventory levels of its product with distributors.
► Manufacturers can be informed of the type of products to be produced in terms of size, colour e.t.c. e.g.
Levi Strauss and Wal-Mart.
► Ensures efficient service delivery Examples of extranets: RTGS, Zim switch
THE BUSINESS, INTRANET & EXTRANET
INTRANET
EXTRANET
YOUR BUSINESS
DEFINITIONS
► Web browsers e.g. Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome and Microsoft Internet Explorer are
software that provide an easy method of accessing and viewing information stored as
web documents on different webservers
► Uniform (universal) resource locator (URL) This is a web address that is used to locate
a web page on a web server. A web address is constituted as follows
http://www.domainname.extension/filename.html
► Domain name refers to the name of the web server and is usually selected to be the
same as the name of the company
► Extension indicates the type and country of origin for the institution.
DEFINITIONS
► File name takes you directly to the page you want to view
Examples of common extension names
► .com represents an international company
► ac.zw is a Zimbabwe based academic institution (e.g.www.msu.ac.zw).
► co.zw represents a company based in Zimbabwe such as www.econetwireless.co.zw
► .org.zw represents a not-for-profit making organisations in Zimbabwe (e.g. www.highlandersfc.org.zw).
► .net is a network provider such as www.demon.net
► .gov.zw/govt.nz
E.g. http://www.msu.ac.zw/elearning
DEFINITIONS
World Wide Web
► The World Wide Web is a medium for publishing information and providing services on the Internet.
It is accessed through web browsers, which display site content on different web pages. The content
making up web sites is stored on web servers.
Web servers
► Web servers are used to store web pages accessed by web browsers. They may also contain
databases of customers or product information, which can be queried and retrieved In simpler
terms this is the main computer in an organisation storing all information files
