Marketing case study Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Marketing case study - Assignment Example There are numerous speculations suggesting that e-commerce is the best thing that ever happened, however, some scholars seem to differ with this statement (Microsoft Corporation, 1999). This paper will look at both sides of the situations and some of the e-commerce platforms that are available. Online Shopping It is one of the popular means of e-commerce across the globe. The sellers usually create an online storefront, which is equivalent to a retail shop. The buyers will then have to buy products by clicking on to the things they want (Langer, 2002). One of the pioneer online shops is Amazon.com. It is still one of the famous online destinations around the world. Electronic Payment It is vital for one to understand that goods that are usually bought online are usually paid for by online payment (Microsoft Corporation, 2000). They usually use payment gateways and payment processors. This method of payment has been referred to be convenient as the mailing and writing of checks has be en reduced or discarded (Meier & Stormer, 2009). It has also ensured that there is safety among payment where notes are usually involved. Online Auctions One of the famous online auctions is the eBay. The physical auctions are nowadays predated by the online auctions. However, the online auction targets a large market clientele of sellers and buyers (Langer, 2002). The online auction has been reported to usually give rise to ridiculous pricing of products. This has made them to have many customers as they find it interesting and challenging when compared to the regular storefront shopping. Internet Banking This practice has reduced the number of people congesting the banking halls as people can transact all the banking operation in their own comfort (Singleton, 2001). Online banks give room for wire transfer, exchange and buying of products through the Internet. Online ticketing This includes movie, train, air and sporting tickets, which are purchased online. The booking process mak es it easy for buyers as they will not scramble for them at the shops or at the gates of the event (Meier & Stormer, 2009). Many people hate the idea of queuing and this gives them the opportunity of avoiding it. The classification of e-commerce is based on the type of individuals participating in the process. The first type is known as the business to business type of transaction. This involves the parties that are organizations or businesses (Risdahl, 2007). They include traders, retailers and manufacturers. The other type is business to consumers. This type of transaction is available around businesses that normally sell their products online to the end users or consumers (Langer, 2002). Finally, the other type of e-commerce is referred to as consumer-to-consumer type of transaction. This idea has been adopted from the earliest means of trade of butter where people exchange goods for goods (Raisch, 2001). The process allows individuals to exchange properties that they do not want with those that they need online. Advantages of E-commerce The Internet has been realized to be a market that has booming business (Drapkin, Lowy & Marovitz, 2001). Technological advancements have made it easy for many people can access the Internet. This means that there is a lot of exposure and many people can now access to e-commerce activities (VanHoose, 2011). Individuals are striving to ascertain that they utilize the Internet in the conduction of their daily affairs. Therefore, this means that more people are exposed to