Electronic commerce, or e-commerce, is a transaction of buying or selling online. It is also known as online trading or e-business. A vast array of technologies provide the necessary support to e-commerce, such as mobile commerce, electronic funds transfer, supply chain management, Internet marketing, online transaction processing, electronic data interchange (EDI), inventory management systems, and automated data collection systems.
Customers increasingly use the internet to research and compare products, driving a steady e-commerce growth.
E-commerce transaction
An e-commerce transaction refers to the sale of products and services digitally. E-commerce transactions can be carried out both in B2B and in B2C.
Types of e-commerce businesses
The most common use of e-commerce is the designation of the online merchandise trade via, for example, online shops, internet portals, shopping communities and online auctions. The traded goods may be physical and digital goods or services or access to specific portals or online services such as apps, games, music or videos. In recent years, the share for software as a service (SaaS) offerings has also increased, mainly in the B2B sector.
Web shops are mostly operated with open source shop systems such as Magento, OpenCart, OsCommerce, JTL Shop3, PrestaShop and xt: Commerce or with payment solutions such as Oxid eShop, Intershop, PlentyMarkets. E-commerce virtual shops must meet various requirements and can be adapted to complex technical conditions. The success of an e-commerce company is determined, among others, by its visibility, ease of use, customer satisfaction in payment and delivery, online marketing and low return rate.
E-commerce service providers
The many challenges of e-commerce often require collaboration with specialized service providers. For example, a better search engine placement can be achieved by working with a SEO agency, a logistics service provider can help dispatch of the products, a payment service provider helps ensure safe and low-risk payment transaction and a web agency can create the technical substructure. The e-commerce environment is a very dynamic with rapid changes and a high innovation rate. This requires a high degree of flexibility and a well-functioning network.
