EC Module 5 Part A

Q1) Discuss how search engines can be used to reach the

customers
Ans:
Search engine marketing is about gaining visibility on search engines when users
search for terms that relate to your business. For most companies, ranking highly in search
results isn’t luck – it’s a result of solid effort in one or both categories of search marketing:

• Organic search (SEO): When you enter a keyword or phrase into a search engine like
Google or Yahoo!, the organic results are displayed in the main body of the page. When
your prospects search for information about your products and services, you want to
rank highly in search engine results. By “optimizing” your site, you can improve your
ranking for important search terms and phrases (“keywords”). You can also improve
your rank by getting other important sites to link to yours.

• Paid search (SEM) enables you to buy listings in the “sponsored” area of a search
engine. There are a variety of paid search programs, but the most common is called pay-
per-click (PPC), meaning you only pay for a listing when a prospect clicks your ad.

Publishing your search engine optimized content on your blog is key, and
sharing your content across targeted channels will help get you even more
traction. Then it’s important to keep the content optimized for search
engines so potential customers can find it with ease when searching online.

Creating the right Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and content is crucial
to attracting customers. It offers a great way to keep your marketing
focused on your customers so you can create the best content to draw a
crowd of new ones.
Q2) What is Multimedia? Discuss Multimedia Applications for E-Commerce.

Ans:

The word multi and media are combined to form the word multimedia. The
word “multi” signifies “many.” Multimedia is a type of medium that allows
information to be easily transferred from one location to another.

Multimedia is the presentation of text, pictures, audio, and video with links and
tools that allow the user to navigate, engage, create, and communicate using a
computer.

Multimedia refers to the computer-assisted integration of text, drawings, still and

moving images(videos) graphics, audio, animation, and any other media in which
any type of information can be expressed, stored, communicated, and processed
digitally.

To begin, a computer must be present to coordinate what you see and hear, as well
as to interact with.

Second, there must be interconnections between the various pieces of

information.

Third, you’ll need navigational tools to get around the web of interconnected
data.

Importance of Multimedia in E-Commerce – Text is the most commonly

used media for communication. It is widely used for communication of
education, information, entertainment and many more through books,
newspaper, and magazines. Use of photography and pictures improves the
presentation of a text. This improvement is brought through multimedia
which is a combination of different media such as text, sound, video,
graphics, animation and many more. Use of computers had made the
presentations of multimedia very easy now.
There are some important functions of multimedia in e-commerce are
discussed below

1. Now days, online shopping are very popular by using mobile

devices. Smart phones have cameras which provide both the
requirements and demands of multimedia technologies.
2. Companies use multimedia which is used for attracting
customers by using images, video, and animation of the
products on the website.
3. By using multimedia, several companies provide details of the
products after or before the launching which increases the
customers and also increases the production of products.

Write about OTT platforms Eg: Netflix, Amazon Prime etc. They’re considered are
E-Commerce for Media sales

Q3 is high on meth.

Q4) Write about the security service that are to be offered in E-Payment
system in detail.

Ans:

Security is an essential part of any transaction that takes place over the internet.
Customers will lose his/her faith in e-business if its security is compromised.
Following are the essential requirements for safe e-payments/transactions −
• Confidentiality − Information should not be accessible to an unauthorized
person. It should not be intercepted during the transmission.
• Integrity − Information should not be altered during its transmission over the
network.
• Availability − Information should be available wherever and whenever
required within a time limit specified.
• Authenticity − There should be a mechanism to authenticate a user before
giving him/her an access to the required information.
• Non-Repudiability − It is the protection against the denial of order or denial of
payment. Once a sender sends a message, the sender should not be able to
 deny sending the message. Similarly, the recipient of message should not be
able to deny the receipt.
• Encryption − Information should be encrypted and decrypted only by an
authorized user.
• Auditability − Data should be recorded in such a way that it can be audited for
integrity requirements.

Measures to ensure Security

Major security measures are following −
• Encryption − It is a very effective and practical way to safeguard the data
being transmitted over the network. Sender of the information encrypts the
data using a secret code and only the specified receiver can decrypt the data
using the same or a different secret code.
• Digital Signature − Digital signature ensures the authenticity of the
information. A digital signature is an e-signature authenticated through
encryption and password.
• Security Certificates − Security certificate is a unique digital id used to verify
the identity of an individual website or user.

Secure Electronic Transaction

It is a secure protocol developed by MasterCard and Visa in collaboration.
Theoretically, it is the best security protocol. It has the following components −
• Card Holder's Digital Wallet Software − Digital Wallet allows the card holder
to make secure purchases online via point and click interface.
• Merchant Software − This software helps merchants to communicate with
potential customers and financial institutions in a secure manner.
• Payment Gateway Server Software − Payment gateway provides automatic
and standard payment process. It supports the process for merchant's
certificate request.
• Certificate Authority Software − This software is used by financial institutions
to issue digital certificates to card holders and merchants, and to enable them
to register their account agreements for secure electronic commerce.

Q5) Once a company has acquired customer, the key to maximizing

revenue is keeping them. Explain how e-commerce is helpful in
customer retention?
Ans:

Loyal customers are at the heart of any successful eCommerce business. Studies show that
increasing customer retention by 5% can lead to an increase in profits as high as 25%.

let’s look at some of the top actionable strategies that you can implement to improve your
customer retention and boost your eCommerce business’s profitability.

1. Go all in on Email Marketing

E-mail marketing can be a powerful tool to keep your customers engaged and
invested in your brand.

You can send welcome emails to your customers after their first purchase,
along with cross-sells and upsells. This can be useful in triggering repeat purchases.
You can set up cart abandonment, win-back, or birthday emails to motivate the
customers to keep purchasing from your brand.

Another great way to leverage email marketing is to use it to send valuable,

relevant content to your users. Instead of always being promotional, you can curate
links of content that might resonate with your users as a part of your newsletter

2. Nurture your Customers on

Social Media Channels
Social media is an excellent way to keep your customers engaged and to push them
to make repeat purchases from you.

During the customers’ first purchase or with the help of email marketing, you can
encourage them to follow you on popular social media channels. Having a visually
appealing, value-packed social media feed will be helpful in this step.
3. Offer Personalized Customer
Experience
Personalization may be the missing key to your low customer retention rates. Today,
consumers are not looking for a one-size-fits-all solution. If you fail to personalize
your customers’ experiences, they will likely move on to your competitors.

There are various ways to offer a personalized shopping experience to your

customers:

• Offer personalized recommendations to your customers when they visit your website
homepage or on other product pages.
• Use a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool to segment your customer
base based on their interests, demographics, and pain points. You can target each of
these lists with personalized messaging and emails.
• Identify customers who have abandoned carts or have not made any purchase from
you for a long time. Send personalized emails to ensure that they make another
purchase from your brand.

4. Have SOPs in Place to Improve

Customer Satisfaction
eCommerce order fulfillment process is a complicated one with many key players
involved in the process. One misstep in the process can lead to a bad customer
experience, thus reducing your customer retention rate.

There are many things that can go wrong in the order fulfillment process:

• Wrong products might be delivered to the customers.

• Product quality might not be up to the mark.
• Product delivery may be delayed.
• Refunds for returns may take unusually long to get delivered.
• Packaging might be of bad quality resulting in damaged goods.
To tackle these possible problems in the order fulfillment process, you can set up
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs.) Having SOPs will help you ensure that the
products are going through stringent quality checks and the right products are
delivered to the customers.

Using SOPs, you can also make sure that there is no delay in the delivery of the
products and your customers receive their refunds on time. All these steps will
ensure that there is no room for customer complaints, which will ultimately result in a
higher customer retention rate.
5. Create Valuable Content to
Engage Customers
Content can be a potent medium to engage your customers and urge them to prefer
your brand over your competitors. Though promotional content can be beneficial,
there always has to be a mix of both promotional and informational content to attract
customers.

• Create a blog for your eCommerce website and create posts relevant to your brand
and pique the interests of your target audience. Promote your blog posts on all
possible channels such as social media and emails.
• Create valuable content on your social media channels that genuinely add value to
your customers. Support your content with high-quality visuals such as images, GIFs,
infographics, and videos to keep your content more entertaining.

6. Offer a Customer Loyalty

Program
Top eCommerce businesses swear by loyalty programs because of the kind of
results that you can achieve through a well-thought-out program. Be it exclusive
discounts, free shipping, subscription services, or free gifts. It is much simpler to
retain your customers through exciting loyalty programs.

You can have a purchase frequency-based loyalty program that urges the users to
make repeated purchases from our brand. Make sure that your rewards or incentives
are enticing enough for your customers to be a part of it.

7. Leverage User-Generated
Content
User-generated content is a brilliant way to skyrocket your customer engagement
and win over their loyalty for a long time.

User-generated content strategy is where customers essentially create content for

you. So, you get good-quality content, and your customers get incentives for doing
that – a perfect win-win.

You can start by creating a hashtag with a brand name or a keyword that resonates
with your brand specifically for the user-generated content campaign. You can then
ask your social media followers and website visitors to post content with this
hashtag.

Q6) What is Internal E-Commerce and how does it differ from Intra E- Commerce?

‘Inter’ means ‘between’ or ‘across’. Inter-organization means between two organizations.

“Therefore, interorganizational procedures occur when two or more organizations join
together and share information or collaborate.
This can be helpful for businesses for several reasons. One reason is that it may make it
easier for them to compete against other businesses creating competition.
Additionally, organizations can work together to enter new markets as well as collaborate
on developing new technologies. Examples of this might include the government and local non-
profit organizations working together to help the community.”
‘Inter- organizational System’ is defined as:
1. “ICT-based system that enable organizations to share information and to electronically
conduct business across organizational boundaries.”
2. “Information systems that involves multiple organizations such as buyer-supplier
purchasing system.”

‘Intra’ means ‘within’ or ‘inside’. Intraorganizational means within an organization.

“This means that people or departments within an organization are working

together or collaborating. This might mean, for example, that marketing departments
collaborate with customer service departments to ensure that the organization's goals are being
met.
The benefits of this are that people within the organization are able to work together and
bring their expertise to the table in working towards a common goal. Intraorganizational could
also refer to anything else taking place within the organization, such as intraorganizational e-
mail, which could occur between different branches but still within the organization.
This contrasts with interorganizational because only one organization is involved

“Interorganizational Systems (IOSs): Systems that provide information links

between companies.”  “Intraorganizational Systems: Systems that provide information
links within same company.”

Q7) If email is to be used to exchange EDI between two businesses what are
the points on which they should agree?
&
Q8) If internet is to be used for EDI which mail standard is used?explain..

Ans:

EDI, or Electronic Data Interchange, is a technology that helps trading partners and
organizations get more done, speed up logistics timelines and eliminate manual errors by
automating business-to-business (B2B) communications.
 EDI helps many organizations that produce, ship, purchase and sell goods or
provide care, from retailers and manufacturers to logistics firms, airlines, healthcare
providers, insurers and more.

What is EDI?
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is the automated, computer-to-computer exchange of
standard electronic business documents between business partners over a secure,
standardized connection.

Computer-to-Computer
• EDI replaces manual B2B communications, such as postal mail, fax and
email.
• Documents flow directly from the sender's computer application (e.g. a
logistics system) to the receiver's computer application (e.g., an order
management system).

Traditional Manual Process

Automated EDI Process

Business Documents
 • 1000s of standard business transaction documents can be sent
automatically using EDI.
• Some common examples include: purchase orders, invoices, shipping
statuses, customs information, inventory documents and payment
confirmations.

Standard EDI Format

• EDI documents are processed by computers and use standard, computer-
friendly formats.
• Standards describe each piece of data and its format (e.g., type of
document, parties involved, actions to take, mmddyy).
• Standards eliminate company-to-company variations, allowing each
business partner's computer system to speak a common language.
• There are a variety of EDI standards for various industries, regions and use
cases - each with different versions, so EDI partners must use the same
standard and version
• Popular standards include: ANSI X12 in the U.S., UN/EDIFACT globally and
industry-specific standards, such as HIPAA
Business Partners
• The exchange of EDI documents is typically between two different
organizations, referred to as business partners or trading partners.
• Example: Company A may buy goods from Company B. Company A sends
Purchase Orders to Company B, which sends Invoices and Shipment
Notices to Company A.

Secure, Standardized Connection

• EDI uses a range of secure protocols to facilitate the secure exchange of
EDI documents.
• Partners must use the same, agreed-upon protocol to exchange EDI files or
work with an intermediary who can facilitate exchanges if the partners use
different protocols.
• Some protocols require more EDI technology infrastructure than others,
but EDI software, such as ArcESB, now facilitates exchanges with minimal
investment.
• The protocols range from long-established technologies, such as FTP, to
web-based EDI via AS2, API-based systems, such as AS4, and other options,
such as mobile EDI.
Q9) E – Commerce Architecture

(It’s just a relatable answer, couldn’t find the exact one as specified in the Actual
Question)

E-commerce Architecture

E-commerce is based on the client-server architecture.

A client can be an application, which uses a Graphical User Interface
(GUI) that sends request to a server for certain services.
The server is the provider of the services requested by the client.
In E-commerce, a client refers to a customer who requests for certain
services and the server refers to the business application through which
the services are provided.
The business application that provides services is deployed on a Web'
server.
The E - Commerce Web server is a computer program that provides
services to "other computer programs and serves requested Hyper Text
Mark-up Language (HTML) pages or files.
In client-server architecture, a machine can be both a client as well as a
server.
There are two types of client server architecture that E-commerce follows:
two-tier and three-tier.
E- Commerce System Architecture: Two-tier architecture:

In two-tier client-server architecture the user interface runs on the client

and the database is stored on the server. The business application logic
can either run on the client or the server. The user application logic can
either run on the client or the server. It allows the client processes to run
separately from the server processes on different computers.

The client processes provide an interface for the customer that gather and
present the data on the computer of the customer. This part of the
application is known as presentation layer. The server processes provide
an interface with the data store of the business.
This part of the application is known as data layer. The business logic,
which validates data, monitors security and permissions and performs
other business rules, can be kept either on the client or the server. The
following Figure shows the e commerce system two-tier architecture
diagram.

E- Commerce System Architecture: Three-tier architecture:

The three-tier architecture emerged in the 1990s to overcome the

limitations of the two-tier architecture. In three-tier architecture, the user
interface and the business application logic, also known as business rules
and data storage and access, are developed and maintained as
independent modules.

The three-tier architecture includes three tiers: top tier, middle tier and
third tier.

The top tier includes a user interface where user services such as session,
text input, and dialog and display management reside.

The middle tier provides process management services such as process

development, process monitoring and process resourcing that are shared
by the multiple applications.
The third tier provides database management functionality. The data
management component ensures that the data is consistent throughout
the distributed environment, the centralized process logic in this
architecture, which makes administration easier by localizing the system
functionality, is placed on the middle tier.

The following Figure shows the outline of the e commerce system Three -
tier architecture diagram.

The client server architecture advantages:

The client-server architecture provides standardized, abstract interfaces

to establish communication between multiple modules. When these
modules are combined, they become an integrated business application.
Each module is a shareable and reusable object that can be included in
another business application.

In the client-server architecture, the functions of a business application

are isolated within the smaller business application objects and so
application logic can be modified easily.

In "the client-server architecture, each business application object works

with its own encapsulated data structures that correspond to a specific
database. When business application objects communicate, they send the
data parameters as specified in the abstract interface rather than the
entire database records.
This reduces the network traffic. In the client-server architecture, a
programmer can develop presentation components without knowing the
business application logic.

This architecture also helps a database analyst in accessing the data from
the database without being concerned how the data is presented to an
end user.