Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Discuss how E-Commerce can reduce cycle time, improve employees' empowerment and facilitate customer support




Cycle Time is the amount of time between a customer placing and order and receiving the goods. With e-commerce, customers only need to search what he/she wants, to enter his/her billing information and to sign up for an e-mail confirmation him/herself. It can reduce the cycle time as the organization does not have to do customer service representatives. Besides, it can reduce unnecessary phone calls and mailings. Organization also can make an order anytime through e-commerce. So that, organization will not face the problem of shortage of raw material if without made an order at the working time. Moreover, process through e-commerce can sell directly to customer and reduce the time through the middleman. Internet is available for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in 365 days (anytime). It provides customers a way to shop in their own time without salespeople. Reducing cycle times can increase competitive advantage, decrease carrying costs, decrease shrinkage costs, and improve cash flow.

Employees' empowerment is a strategy for productivity improvement program nowadays. Employees' empowerment may also be apart of e-commerce. Empowered salespeople customer service employees are given the authority to make customer satisfy, do it quickly, and helping to increase customer loyalty. E-commerce allows the decentralization of decision making and authority via empowerment and distribution system.

E-commerce brings more convenience to customer and facilitates customer support. Example: e-commerce allows customer make payment via bank-in, credit card and bank check. It also allow customer to shop or perform other transaction year around, anytime, anywhere. Customer can select from many vendors and from many products, let customer can conduct quick comparison.

Otherwise, customer can locate relevant and detailed product information in second. It also can participate in virtual auctions, allow sellers to sell things quickly. Some products have facilitated customization and personalization of products and services. So, e-commerce provided many facilitate and increase customer support.

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