DEVELOP AN E-COMMERCE STRATEGY

Aim

To enable learners to understand how businesses and organisations develop e-Commerce strategies to remain competitive in the global market.

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of this unit a learner will:

1. Understand the impact of e-Commerce on business

2. Be able to plan an e-Commerce

3. Be able to manage an e-Commerce

SCENARIO: Genesis Bookshop

Genesis Bookshop is a medium sized bookshop that sells student resources like books and pens established near university sites. On average, it has about 200 customers a day and the demands are increasing daily.

Genesis Bookshop has offices at four (4) locations supporting a total of 400 employees. The company uses manual system and has a local filing cabinet in each of the locations. The company has decided to develop a website for marketing and promotions and was told they will need integrated files, a print server as well as a public web server that will host the e-commerce website.

The internal network for Genesis Bookshop is divided according to the departments in the company. The departments include HR (Human Resources), IT (Information Technology), Accounting, Customer Service, Sales and Marketing, and Inventory.

The following are future projects planned for development by Genesis management:

Project 1: An e-Commerce website for marketing and promotional aspects

Project 2:

Analysis and use of an integrated information system capable of supporting operations at different levels within different functional areas

Project 3:

Genesis Online requires a new security policy for the design, implementation and management of the company'snetwork security solutions. As part of the contract between your company and Genesis, you also need to analyse the current network of Genesis and suggest alternative secure network designs.

You work as a Network Manager and you have been tasked with the design and development of these projects in phases.

PART 1 - Group E-Commerce Website Design

Learning Outcomes

LO2: Be able to plan an e-commerce strategy

• Plan an e-commerce implementation for an e-commerce business

• Specify, design and build a working set of linked web pages

Instructions:

In a group of strictly 3 persons, you are required to build an e-commerce website, based upon marketing and promotion in the local area with a minimum of 10 distinct web pages of no more than 100Mb. You may use authoring packages such as Dreamweaver (but not automated themes and wizards).

Task: Planning & Practical

Your website is expected to be near professional quality and should offer a robust and stable website based upon the instruction. You should investigate current strategies (general, hosting, methods) and current technologies (electronic payment) and were possible include them into your design. Your site should adhere to web accessibility standards.

You may produce mock elements that you do not have the technological skills or knowledge to develop such as shopping carts, wish lists, virtual tours, etc.

You should deliver this part of the assignment as a single group hand-in that should include:-

• A production log, including the tools and software you used (either individual or as a group)
• Mood board(s)
• Initial proposed site layout (map) indicated topics of web pages

• Storyboards
• Final Navigation Map including webpage filenames
• Complete set of screen dumps
• Asset list of materials by web page, including filenames, file location, web page location, dimensions, file size, etc.
• Design and technology justification (no more than 800 words)

Part 2 - e-Commerce Impact & Management Reports

Instruction:

In relation to your group web site design you have been asked to produce an accompanying 2000 word report that further explains the impact and management of the e-Commerce beyond the initial website design.

Task 1:

• Critically discuss the expectation of internet customers
• Critically assess the potential impact of common applications on an e-commerce business

Task 2:
• Critically assess the risks of linking business systems go the internet
• Explain the importance of protecting intellectual property of an organisation
• Critically discuss security measures to protect an e-commerce solution
• Critically evaluate current e-commerce developments and assess their incorporation into an e- commerce strategy - such as: marketing, supply chain management and electronic payments