What is E-Commerce?

These days, most of us unaware that e-commerce has become the important part of our life because it helps us a lot. So, what is e-commerce? E-commerce is the whole process of buying, selling, purchasing, transfer, exchange of products or services and information that using computer network. Even though there are some media for e-commerce involving telephone and television, but e-commerce more often happens through internet. That’s why e-commerce is used to describe all transaction that using electronic as the media. In this article, I’ll tell you some types of e-commerce and also the example of each type.  

First, there is business-to-consumer (B2C). Perhaps this is the most usual form of e-commerce where the buyers are individuals and the sellers are organizations. Many customers enjoy shopping in e-commerce like this because it provides product with the best price and also provide different products that wouldn’t be found in the retail world. This type of e-commerce often listens to customer’s review to develop more personalized relation with their customers. The example of this e-commerce is Shopee which provides fashion, accessories, cosmetics, and personal electronics. Other than that, there is Blibli which selling furniture, children’s equipment, and sports equipment.  

Second, there is business-to-business (B2B). In this type of e-commerce, both of the sellers and buyers are business organizations. B2B represents the vast majority of e-commerce which typically describe the relation between the wholesalers who advertise the product and the producers of a product. That’s why, commonly the wholesalers lead the business in their competition. Alibaba.com is the example of this type of e-commerce. This China company usually receive bulk purchase from other organizations.  

Next, there is consumer-to-consumer (C2C). This type of e-commerce is an individual who sells services or products to other individuals. They do their promotion through social media such as Bukalapak, OLX, Tokopedia, or another marketplace and website. The transactions will be purchased by using online platforms that provided, for example is PayPal.  

Fourth, there is Business-to-employee (B2E). This type of e-commerce is a website’s organization that uses internally to provide information and services to its employees. Employees are allowed by organization to set their own benefits such as taking training classes, apply other position in different division, buy discounted insurance, getting discounts of the organization’s product/service, buy travel packages, event tickets, and other employee information. Some of the company that have website like this is McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Burger King, KFC, and many others.  

Fifth, there is e-government. E-government is an e-commerce that used to make an effort of developing a good government based on electronic. E-government is differentiated to 2 categories: Government-to-citizen (G2C) and Government-to-business (G2B). In G2C, government using information technology to the citizens to provide information and service to solve the problem about business and other things that related to government such as Online NPWP, and the procedures for making passports online. Meanwhile, in G2B is prefer about the procurement process from government. For example, procurement from the ministry website of education and culture in Indonesia. Through that website, they open tender to all people who want to support Indonesian government.  

Last, there is Mobile Commerce (m-commerce). This form of e-commerce is conducted in a wireless environment. For example, using cell phone over the internet for shopping. M-commerce sometimes misidentified by people as it is similar with another type of e-commerce like B2C. Some examples of this type are m-banking and m-application. It’s quite often for us to find some brands who give us more discounts or voucher if we installed their application.  

From some paragraphs before, we can conclude that e-commerce is all transactions of selling and buying that done through internet. There are six type of e-commerce based on the person. Otherwise, e-commerce offers us many benefits because the place and time to run the website is unlimited. Currently, there are many platforms to help us run our e-commerce business, including online marketplace and social media. That’s all the article about what is e-commerce. I hope it will be useful.  

References: 

Rainer, R. K., Prince, B., Cegielski, Casey G. (2013). Introduction to Information Systems (Supporting and Transforming Business). Wiley. Fifth Edition. ISBN: 978-1-118-67436-9.