Page 226 - Business Principles and Management

Chapter

E-Commerce 9

9.1 Business and the Internet

9.2 Stages of E-Commerce Development

9.3 Establishing an E-Commerce Business

RE ALITY CHECK

The Case for Cyber Commerce

uran Ozmat sat in the Chamber of Commerce meeting only half-listening
to the presentation. The speaker was talking about the use of the Inter-
Tnet by businesses. She had just made the statement that any business
without a presence on the Web would be at a competitive disadvantage in
the next few years.
Turan thought of his photography studio and believed the speaker
couldn’t be talking about that type of business. His business required
personal contact between the photographer and the customer. Customers
wanted to be able to come into the studio and see the quality of the por-
traits and photos as well as the settings and backgrounds that Turan used.
Whether people were scheduling a wedding, family portraits, or students’
graduation photos, Turan believed that face-to-face meetings allowed him
to understand the customer’s needs and to develop the customer’s trust
and confidence. He didn’t see how any of that could be possible with the
Internet.
When Turan returned to his business that afternoon, he still was think-
ing about the speaker’s comments. Even though he felt his business was dif-
ferent, he didn’t want to miss an opportunity. He sat down at his computer,
typed “photographer” into a search engine, and was amazed at the results.
The search engine returned over 100,000 hits! Turan narrowed the search
by typing in the name of his city. Immediately, three competitors’ names
popped on the screen. Turan decided he would spend the weekend explor-
ing how other photography businesses were using the Internet.

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