The Evolution of E-Business
"The Evolution Of E-Business"
The growth of the Internet in the past 10 years has been phenomenal. Companies large and small have embraced the Internet as a tool that can potentially expand their business beyond the traditional boundaries, which can give them a competitive advantage in the market place. The Internet and E-business websites seemed to many companies in the mid nineties as an elaborate, expensive and unnecessary company brochure. But the rapid evolution of e-business and Internet usage has seen their opinion dramatically change. In fact, companies now realise that they must participate in the e-business revolution to succeed in the modern and complex business environment. In 1996, Forrester Research Institute, a major E-commerce industry analyst, predicted that Business to Customer sales would be a $6.6 billion business in 2000, up from $518 million in 1996. In 2000 Business to Customer sales in the United States were actually about $18 billion, or 1% of total retail sales. In addition to that it is predicted that total e-commerce transactions in the US is predicted to reach between $3-$7 trillion in 2004 alone. Using the figures as a yardstick it is easy to see how far e-business has come and how much people have embraced it in such a short period of time.
It might be fair to say that the BBS Marketing and E-Business degree program which I am currently studying is an indirect product that was created on the back of the E-business revolution.
The initial use of the Internet as a business tool was predominantly for marketing purposes, in the form of a public information website. The functions of e-business websites have now become much more complex and elaborate. Companies now use their websites for product support, customer service and retail sales and as a delivery channel for electronic goods and services. Businesses no longer use it for solely Business to-Customer (BtoC) purposes. It is now widely used for Business-to-Business (BtoB)
The growth of the Internet in the past 10 years has been phenomenal. Companies large and small have embraced the Internet as a tool that can potentially expand their business beyond the traditional boundaries, which can give them a competitive advantage in the market place. The Internet and E-business websites seemed to many companies in the mid nineties as an elaborate, expensive and unnecessary company brochure. But the rapid evolution of e-business and Internet usage has seen their opinion dramatically change. In fact, companies now realise that they must participate in the e-business revolution to succeed in the modern and complex business environment. In 1996, Forrester Research Institute, a major E-commerce industry analyst, predicted that Business to Customer sales would be a $6.6 billion business in 2000, up from $518 million in 1996. In 2000 Business to Customer sales in the United States were actually about $18 billion, or 1% of total retail sales. In addition to that it is predicted that total e-commerce transactions in the US is predicted to reach between $3-$7 trillion in 2004 alone. Using the figures as a yardstick it is easy to see how far e-business has come and how much people have embraced it in such a short period of time.
It might be fair to say that the BBS Marketing and E-Business degree program which I am currently studying is an indirect product that was created on the back of the E-business revolution.
The initial use of the Internet as a business tool was predominantly for marketing purposes, in the form of a public information website. The functions of e-business websites have now become much more complex and elaborate. Companies now use their websites for product support, customer service and retail sales and as a delivery channel for electronic goods and services. Businesses no longer use it for solely Business to-Customer (BtoC) purposes. It is now widely used for Business-to-Business (BtoB)
Bibliography: Websites www.darwinmag.com/read/050103/ebiz.html : Author: Cynthia Mackay May 2003 www.vnunet.com/features/1159423 : Article about e-business, Guy Matthews www.vnunet.com/news/1159596/: Article about E-Business, Text Electronic Commerce 2004: Efriam Turban, Jae Lee, Dennis Viehland, Prentice Hall Publishers 2004. Class Notes: Colin Cooney 2004 Most of the information came from myself