The Role of Internet Technology in Commerce Industry - Essay Example

Module 4: Business Questions al Affiliation Module 4: Business Questions Determine how the explosion in Internet technology and information systems has affected e-commerce within the last decade. There have been major changes in the world of commerce over the last few years. The internet boom has revolutionized the industry, bringing in new ways of trading and movement of funds. The internet has helped develop new methods through which traders and buyers do not have to meet at specific markets physically. Such innovations have bettered commerce and improved trading, widening markets for products Internet technology has transformed the commerce industry through introduction of a couple of applicable innovations. It is through the internet that markets for products have expanded, eliminating geographical barriers that had been previously posed. Through the internet, there has been the introduction of online trading where buyers and customers can meet and exchange. The platforms allow consumers to purchase their most preferred products, and receive home deliveries from the supplier (Delone and McLean 2003). Information systems also allow businesses and companies to advertise their products on the internet. In this way, the organizations widen their market coverage, reaching a larger portion of the market. The company thus improves its sales, and overall profitability, which results to growth of the organization. Determine how Internet technology and information systems optimize JIT operations and inventory levels.  The internet plays a major role in ensuring timely deliveries and supply of products, both from the supplier and to the customers. Previously, organizations relied on post offices, where sending price lists, inquiries and other documents was tedious and time consuming. Through the internet revolutionary, these organizations have been able to optimize their just in time operations, offering faster services to the customers. Online trading and money transfer have helped boost the participation of the internet in bettering companies’ market performance. Through these avenues, organizations can process their deliveries fast and reach their customers on time. The internet also offers GPS locators and maps, which help the supplier locate his or her customers easily and deliver immediately. The internet also enables organizations to order for inventory easily, and on demand periods. For this reason, organizations have little or no wastes owing to the ease of ordering products. The companies can process their orders online, choosing their preferred combinations and paying over the online platforms. Therefore, organizations do not require to make prior purchases, which are not sure sales in the highly volatile market. They can order when demand rises, whereby just on time deliveries have been made possible by the internet. In this way, no major losses can be accrued by organizations (Kelle and Akbulut 2005). Why are value-added services considered essential in a customer success program? Include a specific example of a value-added service by a logistics provider that you have recently experienced.  Value added services play a major role in ensuring the satisfaction of customers, and hence, in the customer success program. Many organizations embark on improving the value of their products by offering these services to their customers, ensuring maximum quality service. Value added services make the customers feel appreciated and recognized by the organization. They feel that the company appreciates their position in the company. Value added services also have a major participation in customer success, where the buyers believe that the product is of a much higher quality in comparison to other brands. For example, I experienced a provision of a warranty from a phone store recently, which made me purchase the product. Other shops did not provide guarantee on their products, which made me believe that the products were of lower quality in comparison to the subsequent shop (Jiao, Ma, and Tseng 2003). The issuance of warranties and guarantees for sold products insinuates that the seller is confident with his or her product, and thus issues the contract. Customers, on the other hand, believe that the service makes the product better, and it is much more valuable than the subsequent products offered by different organizations without warranties (Jiao, Ma, and Tseng 2003). Provide an example of how an aircraft manufacturer uses EDI and explain its role in the firm. Electronic Data Interchange is the exchange of standard data and business forms between computers. It has a wide scope of application in the aircraft manufacture industry, often owing to the sharing of information and data. An example of a manufacturer that applies the system is Bell Helicopter Textron (BHT). The company is an American aircraft manufacturer that is in charge of aircraft production (Chatfield and Yetton 2000). The application of the EDI is during intercommunication with other organizations, in either the similar industry, or a different one. They may include subsequent organizations, suppliers and customers. To ensure Just in Time deliveries, the organizations require maintaining high communication ties with their customers, enabling them maximize their productivity, sales, and consequently, profits. The EDI system plays a major role in the maintenance of deals and contracts made between organizations, and the company can therefore adhere to the set terms. Through the EDI, aircraft manufacturer can display their progress in terms of the construction of aircrafts to their prospective customers. This enables the maximization of market coverage for the organization, and thus the improvement of profit levels and organizational incomes. Therefore, the company is able to grow and widen its market, maximizing its profitability (Chatfield and Yetton 2000). Evaluate which customer service attribute would be most important to a company that supplies meals to an airline. Justify your answer. Food quality is among the vitals of ensuring that an organization satisfies the needs of the consumers, especially on an airline. Human beings are mostly attracted to quality, rather than quality, and therefore the quality of food is a necessity in ensuring organizational success. In an airplane, customers would often prefer high quality food to any other meal. Therefore, it is essential for the company in charge to ensure that it provides its customers with the best standards in terms of quality of their meals (Gilbert and Wong 2003). With better quality, comes satisfaction. Good quality food will obviously result to improved satisfaction among the consumers, who will in turn maximize their purchasing and offer good reviews for the organization. Consequently, the company’s public image improves, and so does its reputation. A poor image may scare away customers, and may therefore cause major losses to the airline. It is thus essential to ensure that the quality of the food provided meets the expected standards as set by customers. In this way, the organization maximizes its market coverage and improves its reception in the industry (Gilbert and Wong 2003). References Chatfield, A. T., & Yetton, P. (2000). Strategic payoff from EDI as a function of EDI embeddedness. Journal of Management Information Systems, 195-224. Delone, W. H., & McLean, E. R. (2003). The DeLone and McLean model of information systems success: a ten-year update. Journal of management information systems, 19(4), 9-30. Gilbert, D., & Wong, R. K. (2003). Passenger expectations and airline services: a Hong Kong based study. Tourism Management, 24(5), 519-532. Jiao, J., Ma, Q., & Tseng, M. M. (2003). Towards high value-added products and services: mass customization and beyond. Technovation, 23(10), 809-821. Kelle, P., & Akbulut, A. (2005). The role of ERP tools in supply chain information sharing, cooperation, and cost optimization. International Journal of Production Economics, 93, 41-52. Read More