E-commerce adoption by SMMEs : how to optimise the prospects of success

Abstract

The expansion of the Internet and increased use of Web-based technologies over the last decade have led to the development of many new online business applications. The expanded global business world, commonly termed the new economy, has propelled networking to form new relationships. : Traditional relationships between businesses and their customers on the one side, and between businesses and their supply chains on the other side are being challenged. In addition, new distribution channels using the Internet have emerged enabling businesses to reach a much wider audience than using traditional brick-and mortar models. However, commercial entities do query the maturity of the Internet and Web-based technologies at times and are often concerned to what extent this can add value to their businesses. There are unanswered questions such as how important are customer relations, what products or services should ideally be used and what are the security, fraud and trust issues pertaining to e-commerce adoption. Furthermore, some uncertainties have emerged that may have an impact on the success of e-comrnerce initiatives for example, bandwidth limitations, customer loyalty and legal requirements.

Over time existing business models have been adapted while new models have emerged for online business.