A lot of companies today are attempting to find out how they should approach business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce despite the fluctuations in the recent stock market. Increasing the visibility of your local business is nowadays essential.
With developments in the Internet and Web-based technologies, distinctions between traditional markets and the global electronic marketplace-such as business capital size, among others-are gradually being narrowed down. The name of the game is strategic positioning, the ability of a company to determine emerging opportunities and utilize the necessary human capital skills (such as intellectual resources), thus this is impact on the Business world with B2B Directories
To make the most of these opportunities through an e-business strategy that is simple, workable and practicable within the context of a global information milieu and new economic environment. With its effect of leveling the playing field, e-commerce coupled with the appropriate strategy and policy approach enables small and medium scale enterprises to compete with large and capital-rich businesses.
What is e-commerce?
Electronic commerce or e-commerce refers to a wide range of online business activities
for products and services. It also pertains to “any form of business transaction in
which the parties interact electronically rather than by physical exchanges or direct
physical contact.”
E-commerce is usually associated with buying and selling over the Internet, or conducting
any transaction involving the transfer of ownership or rights to use goods or services through a computer-mediated network. Though popular, this definition is not comprehensive enough to capture recent developments in this new and revolutionary business phenomenon. A more complete definition is: E-commerce is the use of electronic communications and digital information processing technology in business transactions to create, transform, and redefine relationships for value creation between or among organizations, and between organizations and individuals.
The B2B market has two primary components: e-frastructure and e-markets. Efrastructure is the architecture of B2B, primarily consisting of the following:
● logistics - transportation, warehousing and distribution (e.g., Procter and Gamble);
● application service providers - deployment, hosting and management of packaged software from a central facility (e.g., Oracle and Linkshare);
● outsourcing of functions in the process of e-commerce, such as Web-hosting, security and customer care solutions (e.g., outsourcing providers such as eShare, NetSales, iXL Enterprises and Universal Access);
● auction solutions software for the operation and maintenance of real-time auctions in the Internet (e.g., Moai Technologies and OpenSite Technologies);
● content management software for the facilitation of Web site content management and delivery (e.g., Interwoven and ProcureNet);
● Web-based commerce enablers (e.g., Commerce One, a browser-based, XML enabled purchasing automation software).
