A little off topic, but some great one-liners I thought> Where does E-Commerce Fit Into The Channel?
What is the meaning of this pesky "e" that keeps showing up in front of the
word commerce? Combining the Internet and commerce has lead to a
proliferation of ideas, concepts, and business opportunities. At the same time,
change is happening so quickly that it has created market confusion when it
comes to developing markets and strategies designed to harness the power of
the Internet. Changes have come so quickly that many different ideas have
been bundled together into "E-commerce." Shopping carts, credit cards,
banner ads, portals, direct sales, and much more are thrown together under
the E-commerce umbrella. The mantra is loud, yelling "use the Internet and go
direct! For that's the value of the Internet!" The noise is so loud that an
important message is getting lost.
Businesses are forgetting that good old-fashioned commerce, the kind without
the "e," is more than just shopping carts and credit cards. Across industries,
distribution channels have evolved over time because they deliver value to
customers and suppliers. Market development, understanding customer
needs, customizing products, installation, planning, product stocking and
delivery, support, providing credit, assembly, systems integration, post-sales
support, product upgrades, outsourcing, and many other activities are
performed by channels. Understanding what value your customers put on
these activities and generating revenue from these activities is the basis for
running a profitable business.
Adding the Internet to the mix does not change the needs of buyers and
sellers; E-commerce is simply "good old-fashioned commerce" performed
using a new technology. And though every year brings new tools and
techniques that change the face of your business, the Internet has brought a
magnitude of change never before seen. Further, it appears that the Internet
will continue to bring formidable changes into the future. At a very basic level,
these changes are driven by dramatically reduced costs and the increased
speed of Internet-based transactions and interactions. The headline-making
direct merchants have seized upon these economics to drive their business
and introduce new services in a very cost-effective manner. These new
services could have been offered in the past but not at a price that enough
people could afford to make them viable. The opportunity for the channel is to
use these new economically-driven technologies to better serve their
customers.
As you consider putting that pesky "e" in front of "commerce" for your
business, start first with the value that your enterprise brings to your
customers. Clearly list and identify all of the activities you perform for your
customers then start looking around the Internet to see how others perform
these tasks. This will be a good starting point for understanding where to add
the Internet to your business.
Also, spend some time considering brainstorming with your customers about
what they would like you to provide and what might be possibilities the
Internet offers over the Internet. The economics of the Internet and Web used
by companies like that Amazon and Dell are using are available to all
businesses. Listen to your customers, think about your business and use
technology wisely. 1999 can be the year that the channel becomes an Internet
power for you.
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