Impact of E-Commerce on a Business

Impact of E-Commerce on a Business

Introduction

Best Buy, Inc. is a consumer retailer company dealing in electronics in the U.S. The company is currently holding a market share of 21 percent. Its headquarters are located in Richfield and Minnesota, with a number of other offices at several locations such as Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and China. The company is enlisted in the names of companies in the Fortune 100 list, and is renowned for being the largest retailer of especially consumer electronics across the country, which can be seen by its market share. The company sells related merchandise besides consumer electronics. Majority of its products include DVDs, video games, Blu-ray discs, software, video cameras digital cameras, mobile phones, car stereos and home appliances like dryers, refrigerators, and washing machines.

The company had outsourced projects and management, and moved to internal staffing with the assistance of IT vendors and experts. Its business processes changed drastically as it moved from the brick-and-mortar business model of purely physical selling to the new and famous click-and-mortar system, by introducing technology at various steps in operational cycles, thus increasing efficiency and enhancing productivity by reducing costs (Bauknecht et al., 2002). This paper aims to examine the pros and cons of using the internet in various business activities.

Advantages of using the internet

Since the internet arrived, small businesses have gained major advantages over larger firms in terms of competency. Newer businesses have a greater and better chance of increasing revenue and gaining market recognition, due to the arrival of this technology. The business field has changed drastically as companies have gone from a pure physical presence to a purely virtual model. There are many advantages of using the internet for business activities, which, if correctly understood, can be capitalized upon for improving business potential and ...