Competitive advantage through e-commerce

Acknowledgements to Euan Wilson (Staffordshire University)

Network age commerce

• business networks cross company boundaries– integrating business activities– accessing inter-enterprises’ IS– sharing information/knowledge– imaginative business

Network age commerce

• alliances provide growth of opportunities– international or interdependent

• IT in era 4– collaboration– electronic integration- ‘virtual

organisation’– communication & knowledge – any

time, any place, in any form

Demands of business today

• reduced product lifecycles– time to market

• market share profitability

• survive

• increased cost pressures– need to control costs

Demands of business today

• increased demand for quality & customer services– responsiveness

• changing market– rapid reaction to constantly changing

market via IT

Demands of business today

• new business models– teleworking– virtual corporations– collaborative product development– integrated supply chain management

Competitive advantage through e-commerce

‘the conduct of business & the execution of business transactions using a combination of structured message exchange (EDI), unstructured message exchange (e-mail)…. across the entire range of networking technologies & across both public & private sectors’

ECA 1998

E-commerce types

• electronic trade– commercial/non-commercial activities– shared IS/IT as delivery channel

• electronic retailing– ‘home’ shopping– ‘internet’ shopping

• electronic inter-organisational transactions– ‘business to business’ marketing– electronic trade

Electronic retailing

• conflicting signals about competitive advantage– Amazon.com

• vast customer numbers gained in 2 years

• profit?

– PC gifts & flowers• 25000-30000 hits daily

• sales orders?

Key competitive advantage factors

• product attributes– delivery

– description

– after sales

• supplier attributes– trustworthiness

– reputation

– warranty/returns policy

– transaction safeguards

Good supplier attributes

• conventional trading– brand image– marketing expertise

• first mover advantage– rapid reputation– prime site ‘hoarding’

First ‘commercial’ framework

high

opportunity store

product

suitability

showroom window

low low high

supplier trustworthiness

Framework categories

• showroom – low/low

• catalogue/product descriptions

• limited e-commerce opportunity

• opportunity– high/low

• ‘chance’ finds/ purchases

• ‘risky’ purchasing decisions

Framework categories

• window– low/high

• primarily information source• ‘influences’ buying decisions

• store– high/high

• focused on making buying activity easy• enacts buying transactions• goods readily shipped

Second ‘technical’ framework

high

buyer beware interactive

technical advisor

complexity

WYSIWYG full

low information

low high

information accessibility

Framework categories

• WYSIWYG– low/low

• basic products/ minimum description

• minimum after sales service

• buyer beware– high/low

• lacking information to buy

• lost sales threat

Framework categories

• full information– low/high

• open information source• trustworthiness ‘assurances’ expected

• interactive advisor– high/high

• encourage dialogue/enquiries• use advice• after sales service

Good ‘store’ site attributes

• buying ease & safety

• trustworthiness

• browsing activity reproduction

• packing & shipping ease