Table of content
1. Introduction 1
2. Traditional conditions and issues in business operations and commercial environment 1
2.1 Previous situations of operating business and the relevant environment 1
2.2 Issues generating along with time increased 2
3. The rise of online presence in modern business 2
4. One kind of online presence --- websites 3
4.1 Impacts of websites on business operations 3
4.1.1 Procurements & sales 4
4.1.2 Employment 7
4.1.3 Promotions 9
4.1.4 Security and privacy 11
4.2 Influences of websites on commercial environment 13
4.2.1 Industry environment 13
4.2.2 Social environment 14
5. Advantages and disadvantages of some other online presence 15
5.1 Blogs & microblogs 16
5.2 Search engines 16
5.3 Social networks 17
6. Conclusion 18
7. Bibliography 19
1. Introduction
‘Over time, trade became a more formalized, structured process, evolving from one-to-one transactions into many-to-many exchanges’ (PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP SAP AG, 2001, P1); in addition, modern business is partial to be built electronically on a network in order to be more efficient and convenient. This report will chiefly discuss how the online presence websites impact on the business operations which cover procurements and sales, employment, promotions, and security and privacy; furthermore, introduce the significant changes which are brought by the websites on the commercial environment. Finally, both benefits and limitations of blogging & microblogging, search engine marketing, and online social networking also will be demonstrated.
2. Traditional conditions and issues in business operations and commercial environment
2.1 Previous situations of operating business and the relevant environment
In the old days, traditional business used to create connections with various units in a complicated process. A brick-and-mortar company purchased materials from suppliers and produced in the manufacturing factory; on command it distributed products to its physical stores or retailers for selling to the client. Additionally, the enterprise generally advertised new products or services through cooperating with the mass media. Sometimes it understood consumer responses via contracting with market research companies or collected customer complaints from the call centre; in fact, it distanced from the client. At that time, within the same industry interfirm rivalry always related to pricing, promotion, and innovation. There is a definite top-down structure within a traditional organization; moreover, the company has rigid relationships with fixed duties. Normally the information is passed from the top to the bottom in a single direction; meanwhile, communications among departments are also relatively limited (Schmaltz, 2011).
2.2 Issues generating along with time increased
Schmaltz (2011) said, ‘Traditional businesses always live in their ivory tower from which they look down on their customers’; as most traditional enterprises chose mediums rather than directly contacting with consumers. For example, they preferred to approach research companies for market information; consequently, very few consumers have enough patience to wait for their delayed improvements. The firm would lose an increasing number of customers; because the client could not be satisfied in time. Collaborations are necessary in business; however, much time were wasted partners on going through companies for negotiating. Cost also played a predominant role in the traditional business; as a company would lose strong competitiveness if its competitors have price advantages. For example, Dell lost exceeded ﹩100 million in 1994 since a price war was caused in the computer industry at that time (Turban & Volonino, 2010). Regarding with the previous internal communication, employees can only accept the information