E-Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

E-Business - Essay Example store associates were equipped with extensive product training to assist customers on how to do things themselves while clinics were also conducted (Our history, n.d.). It expanded later to Canada, Mexico, China, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the territory of Guam with unprecedented speed (Our history, n.d.) that total more than 2,200 retail outlets (Corporate, n.d.). It was listed in NASDAQ in 1981, New York Stock Exchange three years after (Our history, n.d.), and also traded at Dow Jones and Standard & Poor’s index (Corporate, n.d.). Its inventory of home improvement needs and materials consisted of around 40,000 and can order 250,000 products for customers (Stores, 2006). E-commerce encompasses the â€Å"buying, selling, transferring, or exchanging products, services, and/or information† through the computer and the internet (Turban et al., 2005, as cited in E-business, n.d. p. 3). E-business, a broader term that includes e-commerce, means purchase and sale of goods and services as well as â€Å"servicing customers, collaborating with business partners, conducting e-learning, and processing electronic transactions† (Turban et al., 2005, as cited in E-business, n.d. p. 3). E-commerce transactions are commonly conducted through the internet but may also be done over private interconnection (e.g. value-added networks, local area networks, wide area networks) (Turban et al., 2005, as cited in E-business, n.d. p. 3). The benefits of e-commerce include: a) online search allows consumers comparison for cheaper products, b) selection of more vendors and products, c) 24 hours-7 days a week shopping from any location, d) quick access to necessary detailed data, e) allows users to avail of custom-made products at lower prices, f) enables persons to make a living or earn a degree at home, g) allows electronic auctions that provides advantage to both vendors and buyers, and h) interact and communicate with other consumers for exchange of experiences and views