Implementation of E-commerce provides strategic and operational benefits. It includes reducing the cycle time, improving employees’ empowerment as well as to facilitate customer supports. But how does it work?
How E-commerce helps to reduce the cycle time?
Customers are now able to place an order via internet without having to be physically attended to particular shops, retailers or suppliers. They can place the order at anywhere and anytime as they want. A lot of steps is eliminated. It includes the elimination of queuing time and errors that will occur due to the mistakes of the paper works. Speed of order processing is enhanced with the existence of technology. Thus orders can be delivered faster.
As we know, cycle time is the interval of time between a customer placing an order and receiving the goods. When the cycle time is reduced, it helps to reduce time taken to perform an interactive task. Hence, efficiency of performing the work can be improved. Reducing cycle time can increase the competitive advantage, reduce carrying cost, reduce shrinkage cost and improve cash flow.
How E-commerce improves employees’ empowerment?
E-commerce allows the decentralization of decision making and authority. This has to be done via empowerment and distributed system with simultaneously supporting a decentralized control. Empowerment is the delegation of authority to the lower level employees. The existence of intranet enables the employees to communicate better within the organization. Hence, better information can be obtained as they are empowered. Employees are able to react to customer needs and problems in a faster and effective manner.
Company do not need to invest so much money in training and development with the existence of E-commerce. Nowadays, company do not need to send employees to go for training in overseas. They can train their employees by using computer software.This shows that E-commerce help in improving employees' empowerment.
How E-commerce facilitates customer support?
E-commerce allowed the company to respond to customer faster. With internet, companies are now able to provide assistance to customer in 24 hours per day. Besides, online transaction and processing give convenience to the customers as they can perform the transaction without delay. A company’s E-commerce website integrates marketing, service liable and posts sales support in order to meet customer needs. Customers can view the products and services through their websites. Information for the products and services which is offered by the company is available.
For the time being, it provides advanced searching capabilities and function for product and service inquiry. Customer Relationship Management is one of the E-commerce that help to facilitate customer support. It consists of customized sales transaction and one-to-one communication. For example, when an employee replies a customer’s email, they usually reply them according to the customer’s enquiry. Thus, it can be said that it is a one-to-one communication.
Prepared by: HO PECK KEE
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