SWOT Analysis (eCommerce)
| Strengths
– Time saving: Transaction through internet is very fast. It saves time by reducing physical movement. – Cost effective: Elimination of long chain of middle man, decreasing need of having brick infrastructure and outsourcing logistic. – Fast and accurate sharing and exchange of information among sellers and customers. – A niche market
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Weaknesses
– Security is the biggest challenge to ecommerce, especially the integrity of the payment process. – Fake websites: Many fake websites are available on the Internet which promises secure dealing. These web sites can not only disgrace ecommerce but also bring bad name to ecommerce. – Impossibility of physical examination – Long delivery timing – Lack of personal services |
| Opportunities
– High availability (24 hour and seven days a week) – Wide business growth – Ecommerce can be operated anywhere and anytime without any interruption. – Increasing number of user: Daily number of internet users is increasing. |
Threats
– Highly competitive industry, along with local competition, global competition also exists. – No direct interaction between customer and the seller. – Privacy concerns: Fears that information can be misused lead to spam email or identity fraud.
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Ecommerce has become one of the most popular and fast-developing industries in today’s world. As more and more well-known brands opening up their online stores and new enterprises starting their online businesses, the ecommerce industry becomes highly competitive.
Under such circumstances, some small online businesses, such as DodoCase, managed to thrive in this market. When DodoCase first started, they were well aware of the competitive market they were entering. In the few short years they have been around, they have soared to become one of the most notable and respected iPad cases in the market. In fact, they won Shopify’s Build-a-Business Contest. DodoCase, a new entrant into the game, has achieved this feat and taken a large market share with a unique design, and well executed handmade manufacturing. It was all about quality in a market flooded with cheap plastic alternatives.
Moreover, some small online businesses improve their competitiveness by investing new products. It is troublesome for customers to choose one product among many similar ones. Meanwhile, to small online stores, selling hundreds of different products requires a lot of labor and costs too much to purchase the initial stock. MorningHead, a shower cap with an absorbent material inside. One just fill it with one cup of water, place it over his head and rub it around. Bed head is fixed and the customer can now style his hair. MorningHead solves a big pain point with a simple product, especially to guys with short hair who are in a rush in the morning. Most importantly, MorningHead is once size. Therefore, the online store holder of MorningHead does not have to pay for extra storage in his warehouse; customers are not likely getting wrong sizes and colors; time and money are saved and can be invested into better uses.
From my point of view, the ecommerce, a click business, is creating an entire new economy, which has a huge potential accompanied with loads of opportunities. As the daily number of internet users is increasing and more people today feel comfortable to shop online, small online businesses today could compete with global giant online retailers by creating the best customer experience through keeping up to date with technology, making good use of the cost effective online advertising, focusing on its own uniqueness without blindly comparing itself with others, staying innovative and always paying attention to customers’ needs.
In conclusion, ecommerce, a new shopping channel, has changed people’s daily lives. Surely more new enterprises and start-ups will join this game as the market gets more stable. With their own uniques and inventories, many small online businesses will continue to succeed in this competitive online market.
(445 words)
References:
- https://www.abetterlemonadestand.com/what-to-sell-online/ Reverse Engineering The Perfect Ecommerce Product; Richard Lazazzera
- 1st Picture : http://www.dodocase.com; Reverse Engineering The Perfect Ecommerce Product; Richard Lazazzera
- 2nd Picture: http://www.morninghead.com/#video-2; Reverse Engineering The Perfect Ecommerce Product; Richard Lazazzera
- http://www.ecommercefuel.com/effective-email-marketing-for-small-business/#whynotHow to Boost Sales 25% with Effective Email Marketing; Andrew Youderian
- http://www.ecommercefuel.com/ecommerce-experts/ 10 eCommerce Experts You Should Be Following; Andrew Youderian
- http://www.ripublication.com/aeee_spl/aeeev4n6spl_19.pdf Analysis of E-Commerce; Ms Kiran Yadav and Dr. Divya Sharma
- https://www.techinasia.com/talk/online-shopping-catching-women-india Online shopping is catching on among women in India