Filed under: tarareidtopless.com
I'd like to offer you a few comments.
About the biggest benefit I can think of is the expansion of your current market. Currently, your market is the radius of how far people are willing to drive to your physical bakery location.
In the online world, you can serve customers that you wouldn't normally be able to serve, conceivably to anybody in the world.
Its not as easy as it sounds, however. You are probably very good at what you do, making bakery products. However, running a successfull online operation takes a lot of work and some money including, but not limited to:
1. planning, designing, maintaining the website
2. continual online marketing
3. customer service
4. shipping, packaging products and fulfillment of orders
5. lost/damaged shipments (melted chocolate or fast-spoiling egg products come to mind) 6. continually escalating freight costs
You need to ask yourself if you are prepared to staff up with the appropriate personnel who can do these things for. These costs are part of the risks. I don't want to be discouraging, but its quite possible you could build the infrastructure, spend all this money, and nobody will come to your site. That is probably the worst case scenario, but I'm sure as a business person, its no different from having a physical store.
Marketing your products will be a continual and daily challenge. Its is naive and overly optimistic to think "if you build a website, they will come." It requires an understanding of search engines, good copywriting, what creates trust and consumer confidence over the Net, and much more.
Remember, 'everyone' wants to be at the 'top' of the search engines, so its fiercely competitive no matter what the industry and a bit more difficult than one might think.
Perhaps if you perform a search for forums where online marketers of food products hang out, you'll discover more challenges I haven't mentioned.
Good luck.
Part 1 ? risks
Some examples for risks in e-commerce are rather obvious:
- not getting paid for he goods you deliver
- customers may place orders without the intention to buy (maybe playing a joke)
- capacity limits (can you produce enough if you get many orders ?)
- costs of delivery (there must be a reasonable relation between the delivery and the goodīs price)
I found an article with a very fine analysis of more risks in e-.commerce:
"The most important step you can take to evaluate your e-commerce plan is to take a close, realistic, ? even pessimistic ? view of it. Have your project team look at the plan and point out the places where disaster is most likely to fall and compile the list ? you end up with your very own risk list. If you know where the dangers lurk, you can safely navigate the rapids and enjoy the benefits. So get your key players together, and let them have at it! When you're putting together a risk list, be sure to review the list of benefits to see if some of the benefits of the plan also come with great risk. For example, you may find that some of the benefits require the use of new and unproven technologies, therefore making them risks themselves. Here's a sample risk list to get you started (Try to be realistic; "The world might end tomorrow" is a little off target for this particular exercise):
-This project could distract key resources within the company, causing the rest of the business to suffer. -We will be placed on the same level as our major competitor, a company that already does most of its business online. (Yes, this is a risk as well as a benefit!) -Our customers may not want to change the way they do business with us, so the cost of an e-commerce project may not generate profits. -Increasing the number of products we offer by using a Web site will create warehousing and distribution issues. -If we decide to use alternative warehousing options, we have to create partnerships that make us vulnerable ? we have to count on those partners to ship products on time. -Our employees may feel threatened by the project and refuse to use it or recommend it to customers.
For example, one risk is that your Web server could crash, preventing customers from accessing your online business. How likely is that? Very ? it will happen, sooner or later. So, give that risk a likelihood of 1, for "will definitely happen at some point." How devastating will it be? Pretty much totally devastating. So give it a 1 for "this will kill us if it happens." Try to keep your likelihood/potential for devastation numbers on a scale of 1 to 3 (high, medium, and low). This scale will make the list easier to work with and keep you from splitting hairs when assigning priorities to your risks. After you assign numbers to all the risks, arrange the list in order of likelihood and rank each item by how bad things would be if and when a disaster occurs. Then move on to less-likely risks, and so on. Plan to revisit the risk list regularly ? at each status meeting ? and revise it periodically as risks arise and are mitigated. Use the risk list to prioritize your efforts ? doing so will keep the project on track."
from:
( http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesArticle/id-1311.html )
Another analysis covers some more points. Risks are divided in three areas here:
-Information risk
-Technology risk
-Business risk
Iīm sure that for a small e-commerce business many of these points will be of minor importance. Nevertheless I provide the complete list here:
"RISKS IN E-COMMERCE
Scant comprehensive literature exists about e-commerce risks. Anecdotal evidence indicates that the main risks associated with e-commerce concern hackers, viruses, and interception of credit card numbers travelling over telecommunication lines. Technological advances can mitigate many perceived risks and recent surveys indicate greater concern over more mundane issues such as running out of stock and high shipping costs. We have categorized risks in three primary areas: information risks, technology risks, and business risks. Information risks stem from information published and contained in web sites and associated with the conduct of e-commerce. Peripheral to information risks are risks associated with misuse of information, such as violation of laws in the United States and other countries. Technology risks include risks involving hardware, software, telecommunications and databases. These risks include the consequences resulting from the misuse of technology or the use of inappropriate technologies required to address business needs. Business risks concern customer and supplier relationships, and risks associated with products and services marketed and distributed over the Internet. They also include risks associated with managerial aspects of the business including personnel and contractual relations. Because e-commerce straddles many functional and technical areas, authors in many disciplines have identified e-commerce-related risks. Examples of these can be found in , , , and . From these sources and from the general risk management literature -- for example, -- we compiled a partial list of risks that appears below. 1. Information Risk
1.1. Content on web page exposing web publisher to libel, defamation of character, slander 1.2. infringement and invasion of privacy suits stemming from posted textual content 1.3. infringement and invasion of privacy suits stemming from digital scanning and morphing 1.4. , patent, or trade secret infringement violations by material used by web site developers 1.5. After unauthorized access to a web site, online information about employees or customers is stolen, damaged or released without authorization 1.6. Electronic bulletin boards containing defamatory statements resulting in liability or embarrassment 1.7. Worldwide legal exposure resulting from use of creative material (e.g. names, likenesses) that violate laws of countries outside of the home country 1.8. Credit card information intercepted in transit is disclosed or used for fraudulent purposes 1.9. Information that has been changed or inserted in transmission is processed leading to erroneous results 1.10. Flight of intellectual property due to employees moving to competitors
2. Technology Risk
2.1. Negligent errors or omissions in software design
2.2. Unauthorized access to a web site,
2.3. Infecting a web site with computer viruses
2.4. Internet service provider (ISP) server crashes
2.5. Software error and omission risks causing unauthorized access
2.6. Software content risk that violates a or is libelous.
2.7. Third party intercepts credit card information in transit causing breeches in security for online payments. 2.8. Intercepting and copying or changing non-credit card information during transmission 2.9. Insufficient bandwidth to handle traffic
2.10. Obsolete hardware or hardware lacking the capacity to process required traffic 2.11. Risk due to excessive ISP outages or poor performance
2.12. ISP phone numbers being busy
2.13. ISP or home-company servers being down
2.14. Scant technical infrastructure to manage cycle time to develop, present, and process web-based products 2.15. Risk of improperly integrating e-commerce system with internal databases
2.16. Risk of improperly integrating e-commerce system with internal operational processes 2.17. Risk due to poor web site design manifesting themselves in long response times 2.18. Inability of customer or supplier computers to handle graphical downloads
3. Business Risk
3.1. Web page content exposes web publisher to libel, defamation of character, slander 3.2. Electronic bulletin boards containing defamatory statements resulting in liability 3.3. Worldwide legal exposure resulting from use of information in violation of home-country laws 3.4. Using web sites to conduct illegal promotional games, such as a sweepstakes or contests 3.5. Risks related to payment to web site developers and disputes between developers and clients 3.6. Lack of maintenance on existing web pages
3.7. Impact on business due to intellectual property lost due to employees moving to competitors 3.8. Changes in supplier relationships re: data access, data ownership, distribution strategy, and marketing tactics 3.9. Changes in customer relationships re: data access, data ownership, distribution strategy, and marketing tactics 3.10. Products out-of-stock due to poor communication with operations
3.11. High shipping costs required for distribution
3.12. Inconvenient return policies -- lack of coordination with physical system
3.13. Excessive dependence on ISP to support firm's business strategy
3.14. Inability to manage cycle time for developing, presenting, and processing web-based products 3.15. Risk due to unprotected domain names which are usurped by other organizations 3.16. Improperly integrating e-commerce systems with internal operational processes 3.17. Insufficient integration of e-commerce with supply chain channels
The above risks can lead to events resulting in the deliberate or inadvertent loss of assets. Deliberate loss of assets can result from disclosing information, fraud, or deliberate disruption of service. Inadvertent loss of assets can occur through inadvertent disruption of service, legal penalties due to disclosure of information, or direct or indirect losses due to lost business. As losses of these forms can occur in non-e-commerce environments, what are the similarities and differences between e-commerce and non-e-commerce risk environments?"
From:
Risks in Electronic Commerce
(http://www.muhlenberg.edu/depts/abe/business/miller/ecrisks.html
In my opinion one point often quoted does not play a very important role: webservers are very reliable . Sure you will not get a good server for a few cents, but most Internet Service Providers working at regular prices will do a good job and try to prevent server-downtimes.
Part 2 ? The use of e-commerce
"In many ways, adding a Web site is much like starting a new business."
from:
(http://www.nfib.com/cgi-bin/NFIB.dll/jsp/toolsAndTips/toolsAndTipsList.jsp?categoryId=-12161) That sounds a bit pessimistic, but thereīs some truth in it. Everything has to be planned well.
Why not have a look at the way other bakeries present and sell their goods online.
I found a good example of a demonstration bakery shop for you:
Online Bakery
(http://www.bakery.me.uk/ )
Very well done in my opinion:
- at once you will find the product categories on the left side
- thereīs a division in categories and sub-categories so the customer will be able to find the desired product fast - for those who prefer a fast access a search function is included
- the page loads fast and does not make use of annoying graphical elements (like senseless animations) Thatīs what I call a really good job.
There are some things needed when you want to start e-commerce.
Do you already have a website where the online shop can be included ?
If your website is already online it would be great to include your online-shop in your existing site rather than making a new site. You do not have to start at ?0?, customers already know your page and it will (hopefully) be listed in search engines as well. So this chances should be used.
Are you going to setup the shop yourself or will you need the help of experts (e.g. web-designers) ? If you can do the job yourself (maybe with the help of a good software) you will obviously safe money. On the other hand: experienced web-designers will make a shop in a professional way. It may take a lot of your time if youīre not experienced to achieve professional results. From my experience an intermediate computer user will be able to setup an online shops when good tools are used. One of the best ones I know is shopfactory.
(http://www.shopfactory.com/index.html?lang=en-us )
Prices for his widespread shop software begin at less than $ 200.
One of the major advantages is the clear structure of the program which makes it rather easy ? even for beginners ? to create online shops. Payment systems ? especially for he us market ? are included and in contrast to other (rent-a-shop?) systems there are no monthly fees besides the costs for your domain. And one important point is covered by shopfactory as well: all customer data is transferred using the "secure socket layer" (SSL) protocol, even if your provider should not support it. So your customerīs data are protected.
"If you are looking for an easy to use yet powerful e-commerce solution to create professional Internet shops for yourself or others - and you don?t want to pay monthly fees or charges for every shop - this might be just the site you have been looking for. In 1995 we invented the world?s first do-it-yourself e-commerce solution for non-programmers, for people just like you. We called it "ShopFactory". Today ShopFactory is used by thousands of Website developers and shop owners in more than 70 countries. It is available in 12 different languages and has won countless awards all around the world." From:
(http://www.shopfactory.com/index.html?lang=en-us )
Besides the software please keep in mind that you will need good photos of your goods. I my opinion people will prefer to buy goods online when they can take a look at what they will get before buying. Again, as in the point before, you can take the photos yourself or ask a professional photographer to make them for you.
Do you have a reliable Provider ?
In case you already have a website you may have found out if your provider is reliable. The market of internet presence providers is very complex, comprehensive information about this point in beyond the scope of the question you asked.
Part 3 - the benefits
Well, you might increase your income and maybe bring about economical growth to your bakery. You will find new customers and provide a good service to the existing ones.
Never expect wonders, it would be naive to believe that you will sell online at once. It may take some time (one of my customers reported 3-4 months of moderate ordering, today he gets many orders every day) Your customers may have to get used to this new way of buying.
I hope that my introduction to some points in e-commerce is helpful to you. If anything still seems unclear for you pleas post a clarification request.
till-ga
Search strategy:
-risks
( ://www.google.de/search?sourceid=navclient&hl=de&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=e%2Dcommerce+risks+list )
-using e-commerce
( ://www.google.de/search?sourceid=navclient&hl=de&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=e%2Dcommerce+usage )
But.. given a choice.. if your bakery churns out specialized breads, then you could take orders only on Internet (for example.. I might be interested in a bread which weighs as much as my son.. and the bread looks like my son for his 1st birthday)
or you could use the medium for people to redeem their prizes (insert coupons randomly in bread packet.. and if a user gets the same he gets complete refund, but he has to come and enter the details on your site)
Or you could run an advance order booking for Xmas.. and etc. etc.
In long run you could get benefit, but in short run and direct benefit, tangible benefit would be limited :)
(Purely my point of view)
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