Using Effective E-Commerce Strategies to Improve Organizational Performance

Abstract

This paper assesses why it’s important for businesses to make the commitment to engage in an effective e-commerce strategy. In a tough economy like the one we are currently experiencing, engaging in the pursuit of internet sales is a legitimate way for businesses to grow their market share. In the same vain as depicted in the movie Field of Dreams, “if you build it they will come.” An online presence in these difficult times will improve a firm’s competitive posture, reduce advertising costs, evolve it from a local entity to a global supplier, and protect it against major paradigm shifts. Unlike traditional forms of customer communications, online purchasers have control of the information they want to review. The links these purchasers select give an indication concerning their preferences as they navigate through the website, or the areas where they have difficulty completing a transaction due to a problem. Tracking these preferences and problem areas in information systems is one way to predict issues that consumers in a certain profile group may have. Once the preferences of online customers have been assessed and identified, they have to be incorporated into website design solutions. When implementing their online capabilities, companies must commit to taking an online leadership position, keeping a quality focus on products and the services that deliver them, and tailoring online systems to support collective learning organizations. Implementing high quality websites that support efficient online business transactions requires investment in servers and supporting information technology systems to collect, process, store, and distribute the required supporting customer and transaction data. By committing to invest in IT systems designed to support business strategies targeting leadership positions in key business areas, companies can experience growth even in poor economic conditions. Otherwise, the business will take up the stature of a “follower” and slowly lose ground and market share to competitors.

Keywords: e-commerce, online strategies, e-commerce strategy, internet sales, paradigm shifts, traking user preferences, website design, leveraging IT investments

JEL Classification: C81, D10, D83, L15, M30, O33