The Boom in E-Commerce

Established bricks and mortar companies were initially sceptical of the value and potential of e-commerce. Some of them, like Sears, got in early. Others have simply used their websites to display their products but offer no online purchasing capabilities. A few have done nothing or next to nothing in this area.

All that has been changing. Suddenly, companies like several of the big box retailers are investing heavily in their e-Commerce activities. There is a realization that this is big and that the growth potential is enormous. Part of this realization comes from the spread of mobile units, which enable companies to connect with customers when they are out shopping and when they are in their store. Part of it comes from interrnet growth - a simple case of critical mass.

To address this growth potential, whole new management structures are springing up, with issues like finding executives tuned into the issues and opportunities of e-Commerce, whether there should be a separate e-Commerce department, where it should be located, how it should be integrated into the main company. Issues like these would not have arisen a few years ago. But the potential of e-Commerce has become so great, and its activities so critical, that many companies are investing heavily on these issues. Here's an article on this new world of e-Commerce.