E-commerce is important for the health of most all businesses today. According to Trellis, companies that do not have an e-commerce presence are limiting their cash flow by missing out on a 24/7, 365 days a year, worldwide reach. Also, this type of store, as opposed to a brick-and-mortar store, will have lower costs for employees and retail space alike. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in the second quarter of 2019, e-commerce accounted for 10 percent of all retail sales in the United States.
Since it behooves most businesses today to have at least an online presence, if not actually engage in an e-commerce storefront, we spoke to Nando Caporicci about e-commerce. Caporicci is the CEO of Olitris Technologies, a company that creates Bitcoin mining hardware for businesses. Caporicci lives in Les Cedres, Quebec and has experience running an affiliate marketing program for Roadmall.com. He has a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Concordia University in Quebec and a master’s in business administration with a major in marketing from the City University of Seattle.
What is E-Commerce? –
Very simply, e-commerce is when anything is bought or sold online. E-commerce is not just an online retailer selling products or services to consumers. There are actually a few different types of e-commerce.
Types of E-Commerce –
By Types of Goods Sold –
One type of classification of e-commerce is by what is being sold. According to The Balance Small Business, the types of goods being sold online are:
Physical items: Such as books, clothing, appliances, furniture and sporting goods
Digital goods: Such as music, images, videos, software, online courses and e-books
Services: Such as insurance, tickets, tutoring, consulting and legal advice
According to The Balance Small Business, these distinctions of the type of goods being sold online are important because the type of good sold will dictate its delivery method. For example, those who sell physical goods have to find a way ultimately to get the product to the buyer. Any digital item can be transferred to the buyer online. Those who sell services on the internet may need to use a variety of means to supply the service to the buyer.
By Participants in the Sales –
Another means of classifying e-commerce is by the participants. Who is the buyer and who is the seller? According to The Balance Small Business, there are several different types of e-commerce business when classified by participants:
Business to consumer, or B2C: The business is selling to consumers, such as Amazon or Walmart.
Business to business, or B2B: The business is selling to other businesses. For example, ADP sells payroll services to other businesses.
Consumer to business, or C2B: The consumers provide something of value to the business. Crowdsourcing a business is an example.
Consumer to consumer, or C2C: One consumer has items or services to sell to another, such as eBay.
Government to business, or A2B: When a business pays for services from a government, such as paying for a seller’s license.
Business to government, or B2A: When the government buys goods or services from a business, such as the government buying satellites from Northrop-Grummond.
Government to consumer, or A2C: When a member of the public buys a good or service from the government, such as an automobile license renewal.
Where Can You Conduct E-Commerce? –
According to EcommerceGuide.com, there are a few ways to have a presence on the internet so that you can conduct e-commerce:
Online Storefronts: Sites for B2C sales include Magento, Demandware, Shopify, WooCommerce, Volusion and Drupal Commerce. All of these allow online retailers to have an internet presence that shows off the retailer’s wares and some type of shopping cart or other way to facilitate sales and payments.
For B2B sales, online storefronts such as BigCommerce and Oracle Commerce are designed with more flexibility in the types of sales that B2B e-commerce requires.
Online Marketplaces: The difference between an online storefront and an online marketplace is that the later provides a conduit on its website to connect buyers and sellers. Popular online marketplaces include Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Alibaba, Fiverr and Upwork.
Social Media: One doesn’t usually purchase anything directly on a social media site, such as Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram or Twitter. Instead, when one sees an item they are interested in, they can click on a link and be directed to the seller’s online marketplace, such as on Shopify. The latter does, though, have a way for users on Facebook to stay on the social media platform as they purchase an item that they see from an online retailer.
A bit of jargon that one might encounter is “m-commerce” which means mobile commerce. Also, “f-commerce” refers to Facebook commerce. Drop shipping means when the retailer does not carry their own inventory but has other suppliers fulfill the order directly from their factory. Affiliate marketing is a means of drumming up sales on the website of an e-commerce provider and earning a commission. The latter is often done by bloggers or vloggers from their own websites.
Nando Caporicci is excited about the prospects of e-commerce. The field is still steadily expanding and innovating.
