Bangladesh University of Professionals

Term Paper of
E-BUSINESS MANAGEMENT [ALD- 3509]

Submitted by: Rashaad Nabil ID- 16231051

Noor-E Ayesha ID- 16231041
Farhana Nowrin Oishi ID- 16231023

Submitted to: Sanjida Farhana Oishe

Lecturer, FBS
Bangladesh University of Professionals

Submitted on: 3rd November, 2016.

Contents:
Case Overview:............................................................................................................................1
Background:.......................................................................................................................................1
Operation Process:..........................................................................................................................1
Current Scenario:.............................................................................................................................1
Case Analysis and Problems:...........................................................................................2
Behind the Success:........................................................................................................................2
Rigid Operation Process:...............................................................................................................2
Opportunity and Future Prospects:..........................................................................................2
Solutions:...........................................................................................................................................3
Conclusion:......................................................................................................................................4
Recommendation:....................................................................................................................4
Case Overview:
Background:
Cake Walk is a Facebook page based online bakery shop, which has no outlet. It started
its operation in 2015. It mainly targets university students, who celebrate many
birthdays of them and other occasions, as every occasion demands for a cake at least.
Since it serves only university students, it selected some universities as their target
market and pickup points such as Bangladesh University of Professionals (BUP) and
Military Institute of Science and Technology (MIST). Cake Walk also offers less price than
other traditional bakery shops’, convenient pickup points, and no delivery charges.

Operation Process:
Cake Walk offers not only cakes, but also pastries and desserts to its customers. The
procedure of ordering and selling products it uses its Facebook page. The Facebook page
of Cake Walk has some albums, which consist of the photos of its products. In the
caption of the photos, every photo has unique product code and prices respected to
size/quantity. These albums work as a catalogue of Cake Walk. To order a product,
customers need to send messages to Cake Walk through its Facebook page 2 working
days before the delivery date. Customers have to write the product code, size/quantity,
and pickup point. Then Cake Walk lets the customer know the total price of the order by
replying to the first message of the customers. If customers confirm the order by
replying to the price message, then final confirmation message is sent to the customers.
After these procedures, Cake Walk delivers the products to the customers at their
selected pickup points, and collect the money i.e. Cash on Delivery (COD).

Current Scenario:
Cake Walk has become a popular bakery shop to its existing customers. But the
customers are not happy with the ordering procedure because, it is very inconvenient to
contact many times to place an order. On the other hand, Cake Walk is becoming more
popular; it wants to expand its market by adding two new universities as its target
market such as North South University (NSU) and Independent University, Bangladesh
(IUB). Cake Walk feels that if it increases their target market, it might not cop up with
the orders by maintaining a Facebook page only. Because, it is not possible to reply to
huge number of customers regularly. However, it does not want to open any outlet for
its operation in near future.

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Case Analysis and Problems:

Behind the Success:

The demand for cakes is increasing day by day. Cakes are more popular in young
generation nowadays than before. So, the niche market targeting is one of the key
factors behind the success of Cake Walk though it is a new bakery shop. The other key
factors are less price charging, convenient pickup point, and no delivery charges.

Rigid Operation Process:

The operation process of Cake Walk is too rigid to handle. After analyzing the case, some
problems have been found:
o Ambiguous Catalogue: Catalogue of Cake Walk is not properly mentioned to
customers because, the catalogue is shown as Facebook photo album.
o Time: It takes much time to operate the whole process as Cake Walk and
customers, both, need to confirm twice each other’s offers. Sometimes it might
take long time to reply to all of the customers’, who order simultaneously,
messages.
o Payment Method: There is only one option for payment i.e. Cash on Delivery
(COD).
o Message Format: Ordering messages are not identical, and the questions of the
customers might not be answered properly.

Opportunity and Future Prospects:

Cake Walk may get a huge number of new customers if it starts to extend its target
market properly. The decision of adding new universities to its existing market would
meet the demand as it is becoming more popular. The increased number of customers
would lift up its sales amount and profit, which is primary motive of every private
business.

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Solutions:

The problems, we have found can be solved in only one way that is proper integration
and implementation of E- business. This indicates that the strategy of Cake Walk has to
be redesigned. As Facebook page is not sufficient for Cake Walk to operate its business,
it should create a dynamic website through which it can operate its whole business.
Benefits of the website are described in the context of problems, below:

o Ambiguous Catalogue: On the website, there would be a page, which would be

designed to show the catalogue only. Customers would find and see the
products easily as every product’s pictures would be shown with its respective
price. The pictures would be categorized as its types such as cakes, pastries and
desserts.
o Time: On the website, there would a page, which would be used for ordering.
There would be one kind of form, which includes every type of queries regarding
the order. As a result, customer would find it easier to order and Cake Walk
authority would find it easier to collect the order too. This would help to reduce
the duration of order.
o Payment Method: As a dynamic website, it would have the options of many
payment method such as, credit or debit card payment, payment through mobile
banking, Cash on Delivery (COD), etc.
o Message Format: To contact with the authority, customers would find a page on
the website, where details contact information of the authority would be given.
Thus, people can contact with authority with their respective queries. For
instance, to know about the ingredients of a specific product, the customers
might send an e-mail to the chief of catering. As a result, customers would be in
the dark with any query.

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Conclusion:

By making a dynamic website, Cake Walk could make sure that its e-procurement is
strong enough to handle any sort of issues regarding e-business. However, the website
of any e-business is the key tools for doing the business effectively and efficiently.
Therefore, the development of the website must be matched with the industry in which
the business is operated.

Recommendation:

As Cake Walk has planned to expand its market, it should consider the Customer
Relations Management (CRM) seriously. By considering CRM, Cake Walk should make its
future strategies after launching the website. CRM comprises of four activities. Cake
Walk might use these activities like this:
1. Customer Selection: The students of two new universities.
2. Customer Acquisition: Making two new pickup points at those universities.
3. Customer Retention: Considering their choices.
4. Customer Extension: Future targeted customers such more universities like these.

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