Part 1

1. How can internet technologies be involved in improving a process in one of the functions of business? Choose one example and evaluate its business value.

2. What are several e-business applications that you might recommend to a small company to help it survive and succeed in challenging economic times? Why?

3. How could sales force automation affect salesperson productivity, marketing management, and competitive advantage?

4. All corporate procurement should be accomplished in e-commerce auction marketplaces, instead of using B2B Web sites that feature fixed-price catalogs or negotiated prices. Explain your position on this proposal.

5. If you were starting an e-commerce web store, which of the business requirements summarized in Figure 8.13 would you primarily do yourself, and which would you outsource to a web development or hosting company? Why?

6. Most businesses should engage in e-commerce on the Internet. Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Explain your position.

Part-2

1. Check out the Consumer Federation of America's study on anticompetitive new car-buying state laws or similar studies online. How much does it estimate consumers would save if they could purchase cars directly from manufacturers online?