E-commerce is the use of electronic communications and digital information processing technology in business transactions to create, transform, and redefine relationships for value creation between or among organizations, and between organizations and individuals in the emerging global economy, e-commerce and e-business have increasingly become a necessary component of business strategy and a strong catalyst for economic development. E-commerce is usually associated with buying and selling over the Internet, or conducting any transaction involving the transfer of ownership or rights to use goods or services through a computer-mediated network. Electronic commerce or e-commerce refers to a wide range of online business activities for products and services.
PART 1 SCOPE OF E-BUSINESS
1.1 Differentiate between business-to-consumer (b2c) and business-to-business (b2b) transactions (P1)
When we are marketing to a B2B we want to focus on the logic of the product. We do this by focusing on the features of the product. When we are marketing to a B2C we want to focus on the benefits of the product. There is a difference between marketing to a business and marketing to a consumer. Although we are still selling a product to a person experience shows that the difference between these two types of markets runs deep. When we market to a B2B we will realize these businesses work hard to streamline the buying process in order to save time and money. This often explains why a B2B purchase is based more on logic and why a consumer's purchase is based more on emotion.
Differences between B2B and B2C as follows:-
B2B transaction involve direct-sourcing contract management which involves negotiation terms that will establish the price based on which other factors such as warranty coverage, volume-based pricing, carrier, and logistics preferences etc.
B2C offer spot sourcing contract management that offer a flat rate retail price for each of the goods sold.
B2B requires huge amounts to be involved in spent in integrating the systems of the organization as well as those of its business partners that made the process expensive, time consuming and raising many questions about security etc.
B2C does not require the business to spend on expensive, extensive infrastructure.
B2B e-commerce needs the involvement of complex issues studying order history data, such as the preferences of trading partners, payment records, locations etc.
B2C e-commerce just involves used defined profiles and email promotions.
B2B involves syndication of catalogues of different suppliers that need to be formatted, priced, and presented to buyers in a consolidated fashion. It has a greater need for Business intelligence systems as well as analytic software.
B2C requires that sellers update their site regularly regarding product cost and incorporate product catalogue with picture and description of the product.
B2B have only one major benefit that is good supply chain coordination. B2B e-commerce cannot compromise on time, quality and credibility of its products.
B2C is far easier as options like cyber cash enable the business to function easily.
If I have a B2B client they will be most interested in the feature of the client which is moisturizing the skin. If I have a B2C client they will be most interested in the benefit which is relief of itching skin. We will be most effective in marketing if we understand what both markets need in order to make a decision. This simple two-way classification - manufacturing inputs versus operating inputs and
Systematic sourcing versus spot sourcing allows us to classify B2B hubs into four categories
· MRO hubs (operating supplies, systematic sourcing, horizontal focus)
· Yield managers (operating supplies, spot sourcing, and horizontal focus)
· Catalog hubs (manufacturing inputs, systematic sourcing, and vertical focus)
· Exchanges (manufacturing inputs, spot sourcing, vertical focus)
Source:-lecture note, lesson8
1.2 How a business benefits from having its own website (P2)
Internet is the largest source of knowledge in the world. Anyone can get their information on there. When we are searching through the Internet we will find endless amounts of information, about everything. In this day and age being computer savvy has become a necessity.
The business value of the Internet
Most companies are building e-business and e-commerce
Source:-lecture note, lesson8
Websites to achieve six major business values:-
Generate new revenue from online sales.
Reduce costs through online sales and customer support.
Attract new customers via Web marketing and advertising.
Increase the loyalty of existing customers via improved Web customer service and support.
Develop new Web-based markets and distribution channels for existing products.
Develop new information-based products accessible on the Web.
Business value of Intranets
Used for information sharing, communication, collaboration, & support of business process.
Web publishing. Comparatively easy, attractive, & lower cost alternative for publishing & accessing multimedia business information
Business value of Extranets
Improve communication with customers and business partners
Gain competitive advantage in
Product development
Cost savings
Marketing
Distribution
Leveraging their partnerships
1.3 Analyse the nature of e-business communication (P3)
Business Communication
Business Communication is any communication used to promote a product and service. In business communication, message is conveyed through various channels of communication including internet, print, radio, television, outdoor, and word of mouth.
There are few types of communication that are important to the average business today:
One-to-one
One-to-many
Many-to-many
One-to-one:- One-to-one in communication is the act of an individual communicating with another. In Internet terms, this can be done by e-mail but the most typical one-to-one communication in the Internet is instant messaging as it does not consider many-to-many communication such as a chat room as an essential part of its.
Source by: ashridge.org.uk
One-to-many: - one-to-many is the act of publishing or broadcasting from one sender to many receivers. A one-to-many relationship occurs when one entity is related to many occurrences in another entity
Source by: dkfactor.com
Many-to-many:- is a term that describes a communication paradigm and an associated media form. A meeting may give everyone an opportunity for everyone to speak, but it is in reality held through a series on one too many communications. Humans are simply not able to handle multiple simultaneous conversations.
Source by: ctwatch.org
Two kind of communication are
Source: lecture note lesson9
Internal Communication
This is communication that takes place within an organisation. In addition to the usual face to face, telephone, fax or mail; modern organisations may use technology to communicate internally. Technology may be used for e-mails or a linked internal communication system such as the intranet which is an internet system designed solely for use by those working for the organisation.
External communications
Conversely external communication is communication between the organisation and those outside the organisation. Modern organisations may design technological systems so that they can communicate with customers and undertake e-Commerce. Alternatively they communicate with other businesses through the internet or similar systems and undertake e-Business.
Functions of Internal and External Communications
Technology has rapidly expanded the types of internal and external communication available to organisations. The diagram illustrates the vast array of internal and external communication available.
Combined together internal and external types of communications allow various sectors of the local, national and international community to interact, liaise and conduct business.
1.4 Present and communicate appropriate findings (M3)
CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It is a process or methodology used to learn more about customers' needs and behaviours in order to develop stronger relationships with them. Customer relationship management have to do lots of thing. Provides customer-facing employees with a single complete view of every customer at every touch point and across all channels. Provides the customer with a single, complete view of the company and its extended channels. Creates an IT framework of Web-enabled software & databases that integrates these processes with the rest of the company's business operations. Includes software modules that provide tools that enable a business & its employees to provide fast, convenient, dependable, consistent service. Helps capture and track relevant data about past and planned contacts with prospects & customers. Provides sales reps with software tools & company data needed to support & manage their sales activities. Helps optimize cross-selling & up-selling. Helps in fulfillment by quickly scheduling sales contacts & providing appropriate information on products & services to them. Provides software tools & real-time access to the common customer database. Helps the company identify, reward, and market to their most loyal and profitable customers. By doing a superior job of contact management, sales prospecting, selling, direct marketing, & fulfillment. Makes possible real-time customization & personalization of products & services based on customer wants, needs, buying habits, & life cycles. Enables a company to provide a consistent customer service experience.
SOURCE: - www.netsuite.com.au/.../products/crm_wheel.shtml
PART 2 HOW THE INTERNAT WORKS
2.1 How messages are transferred across the Internet (P4)
The Hypertext Transfer Protocol is the language web clients and servers use to communicate each other. It is essentially the backbone of the World Wide Web. All HTTP transactions follow the same general format each client request and server response has three parts:
Request line
Header section and
Entity body
Source: blog.dowski.com/page/2/
Direct connection to Internet or packet data network through direct GlobalTel GW-Internet channel. Data packets are received-transmitted via public Internet from-to the destination PC IP address. Typically setup connection within 4-8 seconds
Source: - lecture note lesson 8
A protocol is a set of rules for sending specific information between computers, messages of known type and format, email (SMTP- Simple Mail Transfer Protocol), file transfer (FTP - File Transfer Protocol), the World Wide Web (HTTP - Hypertext Transfer Protocol). The 404, and all of its numeric partners, are what are known as Server Response Codes (SRC). They're created when the server itself sends back a message that all it OK, or that all has gone wrong. Those SRCs are numbers found mostly within 100 through 399. Then there are those that we get to see. Those we find mostly within the 400 to 599 range. Response in the range 100-199 is informational indicating that the client's request was received and is being processed. A response in range 200-299 means that the client's request was successful. Error codes in 400- and 500- range are reported back to the user.
100-199
SRCs provide confirmation that a request was received and is being processed. (silent)
200-299
SRCs report that requests were performed successfully. (silent)
300-399
Request was not performed, a redirection is occurring.(usually silent)
400-499
Request is incomplete for some reason.
400
There is a syntax error in the request. It is denied.
404
Document not found. The page you want is not on the server nor has it ever been on the server. Most likely you have misspelled the title or used an incorrect capitalization pattern in the URL.
414
The URL you entered is too long. Really. Too long.
500-599
Errors have occurred in the server itself.Source: - http://www.htmlgoodies.com/beyond/reference/article.php/3472941/Server-Response-Codes.htm
2.2 The main features of HTML, the language of the web (P5)
HTML is a language for describing web pages. HTML stands for Hyper Text Mark up Language who is not a programming language; it is a mark up language. A mark up language is a set of mark up tags HTML uses mark up tags to describe web pages. HTML mark up tags is usually called HTML tags. HTML tags are keywords surrounded by angle brackets like <html> it also come in pairs like <b> and </b>. The first tag in a pair is the start tag; the second tag is the end tag. Start and end tags are also called opening tags and closing tags. The purpose of a web browser (like Internet Explorer or Firefox) is to read HTML documents and display them as web pages. The browser does not display the HTML tags, but uses the tags to interpret the content of the page:
<html>
<body>
<h1>My First Heading</h1>
<p>My first paragraph</p>
</body>
</html>
Mark-up languages
Mark-up languages are designed for the processing, definition and presentation of text. The language specifies code for formatting, both the layout and style, within a text file. The code used to specify the formatting is called tags. HTML is an example of a widely known and used mark-up language. Markup languages, structure of markup languages, markup language tags and their documentation, current markup language features (tables, frames etc.), curent changes to markup language standards. The markup languages also cover Forms, Frames, CSS and JavaScript.
Documentation
A program without documentation is useless. More and more, nowadays web technology has moved on in the same way. Other elements are added to the system, so HTML is not really just HTML anymore. Documentation has become essential.
Three versions
XHTML 1.0- is specified in three versions. We specify which of these variants we are using by inserting a line at the beginning of the document.
XHTML 1.0 Strict - when we want really clean structural mark-up, free of any markup associated with layout that time we have to use this one . When we Use this together with W3C‛s Cascading Style Sheet language (•CSS) to get the font, color, and layout effects we want.
XHTML 1.0 Transitional - Many people writing Web pages for the general public to access might want to use this flavor of XHTML 1.0. The idea is to take advantage of XHTML features including style sheets but nonetheless to make small adjustments to our markup for the benefit of those viewing our pages with older browsers which can‛t understand style sheets. These include using the body element with bgcolor, text and link attributes.
Current Markup Features
Frames- Frames allow you to display two or more separate HTML documents in the browser window. A Framed layout can be useful for such things as a table of contents. Each frame is a simple HTML web page in its own right, normally bound together by a special HTML page called a frameset. Frame tags are notoriously hard to work with. Frames are generated by two HTML elements, the <frameset> </frameset> and the <frame> </frame>. A <noframes> </noframes> element can also be include for browsers that don't display frames or visitors that have turned off frames.
Tables- Arguably the best way of creating an positioned layout is to use tables. In fact all web pages could be built using tables, as this is a great way of achieving a consistent layout. Tables by themselves are useful for presenting data, but the true power of the tables comes when the Borders are turned off and the tables are used as a layout tool. If we use frames, the contents of the pages need to be formatted by tables.
Layers- Layers were the core of a method of dynamic HTML programming specific to Netscape 4. Each layer was treated as a separate document object in JavaScript. Different browsers display the layers slightly differently. This gives rise to poor layout on the web pages. Therefore for normal layout - use tables, - for special effects and features use layers.
Lists- Some are deprecated under the new versions of HTML/XHTML, but the ones that are left represent some of the most powerful features of HTML. Highlight the text then use the icons at the top of Dreamweaver to change the list formatting
Div- DIV elements can be used to structure HTML documents as a hierarchy of divisions. DIV allows text to be grouped together so that code like this:
If you want two paragraphs aligned to the left side of your page, but you want the image aligned in the center then you can overwrite <div> tags by simply adding an align attribute to the tag you want to be different.
CSS- Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) is a style sheet language used to describe the presentation semantics of a document written in a markup language. Its most common application is to style web pages written in HTML and XHTML, but the language can also be applied to any kind of XML document, including SVG and XUL. CSS is designed primarily to enable the separation of document content from document presentation, including elements such as the layout, colors, and fonts.
A rule consists of two parts:
Selector - the part before the left curly brace
Declaration - the part within the curly braces
2.3 Differentiate between the internet, intranets and Extranets (P6)
There are three broad categories of networks, namely the Internet, intranet, and extranet. These networks use various network protocols and topologies to allow for communication between computers and other network devices such as printers and VOIP systems. Depending on the needs of an organization, a network may span a geographical divide or allow for interconnection between persons and devices within the same building. Differentiate between the internet, intranets & extranets are follows:-
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks. It is not controlled by a central entity and therefore relies on network devices and accepted conventions and protocols to relay the data traffic until it gets to its destinations. The beginnings of the Internet can be traced back to the 1960s when the United States funded research by its military agencies to develop a fault-tolerant and robust distributed network of computers. The Internet is now global and in theory can be accessed by anyone who can get access from an Internet service provider.
Intranet
On the other hand, an intranet is a private network that is setup and controlled by an organization to encourage interaction among its members, to improve efficiency and to share information, among other things. Information and resources that are shared on an intranet might include: organizational policies and procedures, announcements, information about new products, and confidential data of strategic value. An intranet is a restricted-access network that works much like the Internet, but is isolated from it. As is the case with the Internet, an intranet is based on TCP/IP protocols. Therefore, a web page in an intranet may look and act just like any other webpage on the Internet, but access is restricted to authorized persons and devices.
The difference between an intranet and the Internet is defined in terms of accessibility, size and control.
Extranet
An extranet is an extended intranet. In addition to allowing access to members of an organization, an extranet uses firewalls, access profiles, and privacy protocols to allow access to users from outside the organization. Both intranets and extranets are owned, operated and controlled by one organization. However, the difference between intranets and extranets is defined in terms of who has access to the private network and the geographical reach of that network. Intranets allow only members of the organization to access the network, while an extranet allows persons from outside the organization to access the network. Finally we can say The Internet, extranets, and intranets all rely on the same TCP/IP technologies. However, they are different in terms of the levels of access they allow to various users inside and outside the organization and the size of the network.
Source:-www.brighthub.com/.../63387.aspx?image=64408
2.4 Select/design and apply appropriate methods/techniques on the above section (M2)
With the development of communication technologies, carrying multiple services on integrated networks has become the development trend of IT application in enterprises. Enterprise integrated services refer to an integrated network platform based on IP technology, combining data, voice, video and security applications. By building integrated services networks, we can reduce overlapping investment in networks, raise network utilization rate, develop new services quickly, and expand network capacity conveniently. To enterprises that are engaged in intense competition, these are undoubtedly important approaches of improving operating efficiency and optimizing resource allocation.
Source: www.huawei.com/.../datacomm/catalog.do?id=2176
The enterprise's egress router connects to both its branches and the Internet. Therefore, security is crucial to egress router, which is the first gate to Intranet. With built-in firewall function, an AR router can detect and monitor data from the Extranet, and provide certain security protection.
PART 3 E-BUSINESS MODELS
3.1 How the internet can be used for selling a product, or service (P7)
Business times are changing and there are things that we are going to have to do to keep up with the local competition if we want to stay in business. We no longer need a physical store to sell Product we have to set up our own online store. Many businesses have begun to offer their products on the internet, what this means is that they are selling the same products we find in their stores on the internet so that they can increase their sales. But another reason that small businesses are selling products on the internet is to keep their customers happy. The few stapes are showing how the internet can be used for selling products:
Step1
The first thing that we are going to need to do is to create a website for our company. We can do Go to sites like Amazon.com or Half.com to sell used books, CDs and other items at a fixed price. You can list items in exchange for a percentage of the sale. Avoid sites that charge us a fee to post an ad the reason for this is that without a website we are not going to be able to put our product online.
Step2
Design our site so that it looks professional. List items that are hard to ship on local sites such as Craigslist.org or in regional online classifieds, so that the buyer can pick it up.
Step3
We have to Use online auction sites to sell collectibles, antiques, out-of-print books and anything else you find in the garage or old fashioned.
Step4
Now the main thing to advertise that our business is online. If we don't get the word out that your product is available for purchase online than we are not going to have any luck selling our product online because nobody will know that it is there. There have many
Step5
When we are creating our website we have to think about what kind of payment options we are going to accept. One thing that we should keep in mind is that the more payment options we are available to accept the more sales we can possibly make
Step6
Establish a steady supply of return customers by maintaining a high standard of customer service and implementing a policy of product guarantees.
3.2 Identify and apply strategies to find appropriate solutions (M1)
Importance of the Internet: Internet is certainly the most unique and greatest gift of technology to mankind. Internet has made life so easier for us, that today we can't think our life without it even for a minute. Internet is the main via to communicate with staff, management and customers. Business owners can also sell goods at a competitive price, offer promotional price and provide valuable product-specific information. A successful e-business strategy can make online purchasing an enjoyable and profitable experience to both the customers and business owners.
Source: pc-help-ipswich.co.uk
Customer Service and Customer Relationship Management: Customers are key to all businesses. Successful businesses build their reputation based on long term relationships with satisfied customers. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a business philosophy, not just a technology - understanding customers' needs enables to build better relationships and increase sales. In new business strategies customer satisfaction is one of the most effective and successful way to establish a higher position in the market.
SOURCE: - www.netsuite.com.au/.../products/crm_wheel.shtml
Developing a clear and profitable strategy relies on balancing your company's competencies and abilities against the market opportunities into the future. Many marketing plans happen by hunch, but there is a better way. Strategic analysis forms the groundwork for the development of market strategies and involves looking at your customers and markets.
Source: piperreport.com
3.3 Differentiate between other Business models for generating revenues from the internet. (P8)
Business models are perhaps the most discussed and least understood aspect of the web. In the most basic sense, a business model is the method of doing business by which a company can sustain itself. The business model spells-out how a company makes money by specifying where it is positioned in the value chain. Internet commerce will give rise to new kinds of business models. But the web is also likely to reinvent tried-and-true models. Auctions are a perfect example. Business models have been defined and categorized in many different ways. Business Models on the Web which describes the following models:
Brokerage
Advertising
Infomediary
Merchant
Manufacturer (Direct)
Affiliate
Community
Subscription
Utility
Brokerage
Brokers are market-makers: they bring buyers and sellers together and facilitate transactions. Brokerage models include:
Marketplace Exchange [Orbitz, ChemConnect]
Buy/Sell Fulfillment . [CarsDirect, Respond.com]
Demand Collection System [Priceline.com]
Virtual Marketplace [Amazon.com]
Transaction Broker [PayPal, Escrow.com]
Auction Broker [eBay]
Search Agent
Distributor
Advertising
the web advertising model is an extension of the traditional media broadcast model. The broadcaster, in this case, a web site, provides content and services (like email, IM, blogs) mixed with advertising messages in the form of banner ads. The advertising model works best when the volume of viewer traffic is large or highly specialized.
Portal [Yahoo!]
Classifieds [Monster.com, Craigslist]
User Registration [NYTimes]
Query-based Paid Placement. [Google, Overture]
Contextual Advertising / Behavioural Marketing
Content-Targeted Advertising [Google]
Intromercials [CBS MarketWatch]
Ultramercials [Salon in cooperation with Mercedes-Benz]
Infomediary
independently collected data about producers and their products are useful to consumers when considering a purchase. Some firms function as infomediaries assisting buyers and/or sellers understand a given market.
Advertising Networks. [DoubleClick]
Audience Measurement Services [Nielsen//Netratings]
Incentive Marketing [Coolsavings]
Metamediary [Edmunds]
Merchant
wholesalers and retailers of goods and services. Sales may be made based on list prices or through auction.
Virtual Merchant. [Amazon.com]
Catalog Merchant [Lands' End]
Click and Mortar [Barnes & Noble]
Bit Vendor [Apple iTunes Music Store]
Manufacturer(Direct)
The manufacturer or direct model is predicated on the power of the web to allow a manufacturer to reach buyers directly and thereby compress the distribution channel. [Dell Computer]
Purchase
Lease
License
Brand Integrated Content
Affiliate
In contrast to the generalized portal, which seeks to drive a high volume of traffic to one site, the affiliate model, provides purchase opportunities wherever people may be surfing. It does this by offering financial incentives to affiliated partner sites [Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com]. Variations include
banner exchange
pay-per-click, and
Revenue sharing programs.
Community
The viability of the community model is based on user loyalty. Users have a high investment in both time and emotion. Revenue can be based on the sale of ancillary products and services or voluntary contributions; or revenue may be tied to contextual advertising and subscriptions for premium services.
Open Source [Red Hat]
Open Content [Wikipedia]
Public Broadcasting [The Classical Station (WCPE.org)]
Social Networking Services [Flickr, Friendster, Orkut]
Subscription
Users are charged a periodic daily, monthly or annual fee to subscribe to a service. Subscription and advertising models are frequently combined.
Content Services [Listen.com, Netflix]
Person-to-Person Networking Services [Classmates]
Trust Services [Truste]
Internet Services Providers [America Online]
Utility
the utility or on-demand model is based on metering usage, or a pay as you go approach.
Metered Usage
Metered Subscriptions [Slashdot]
3.4 Demonstrate convergent/lateral/creative thinking (D3)
Demonstrate convergent/lateral/creative thinking: -
Convergent thinking: - A prime component of creativity is divergent thinking, the capacity to arrive at unique and original solutions and the tendency to consider problems in terms of multiple solutions rather than just one. Convergent thinking, which narrows all options to one solution.
Lateral thinking: - Similar to Creative Thinking. Seeking to solve problems by unorthodox or apparently illogical methods. A set of systematic techniques used for changing concepts and perceptions and generating new ones, Exploring multiple possibilities and approaches instead of pursuing a single approach.
Creative thinking: - The ability to create, Imaginative, innovative, artistic Characterized by being original or new. Formed by a new process, having the ability to create, Designed to stimulate the imagination.
3.5 identify other uses of the internet, which may not generate revenue (P9)
The negative aspects of the Internet include Internet addiction as well as online risks such as exposure to sexually explicit material and online victimization including harassment or cyber bullying and sexual solicitation. Internet use is emerging as one of the more negative aspects of young people's online activities. In the literature, such extreme use is often synonymous with the terms 'compulsive Internet use', 'problematic Internet use', 'pathological Internet use', 'Internet dependence', 'computer addiction' and 'net addiction'.
Computer crime- included The unauthorized use, access, modification, and destruction of hardware, software, data, or network resources, Unauthorized release of information, Unauthorized copying of software, Denying an end user access to his/her own hardware, software, data, or network resources, Using or conspiring to use computer or network resources to illegally obtain info or tangible property.
Hacking - one of the biggest negative aspects of the internet the obsessive use of computers, or the unauthorized access and use of networked computer systems. Involves unauthorized network entry and the fraudulent alteration of Computer databases.
Computer viruses and worms - make a computer death, a program that cannot work without being inserted into another program. A distinct program that can run unaided.
Health problem -Internet also created some big problem like Job stress, Muscle damage, Eye strain, Radiation exposure, Accidents. There is evidence that Internet addiction has a negative effect on academics, family relations, physical health, mental health, and finance.
PART 4 WEBSIT DESIGN
4.1 identify those elements of a web page that may be used by search engines (P10)
<!DOCTYPE html
PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
<html>
<head>
<link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="css/reskin.css"/>
<!--[if lt IE 7]>
<link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="css/reskin-ie6.css"/>
<![endif]-->
<!--[if lt IE 7]>
<script type="text/javascript" src="js/unitpngfix.js">
</script>
<![endif]-->
<script type="text/javascript" src="js/popup.js">
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="js/vsevents.js">
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="js/tooltip.js">
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="js/swfobject.js">
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="js/preloading.js">
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="js/selfselection.js">
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">purl ="/web/index.jsf";</script>
<title>UK Credit Cards | Capital One
</title>
<meta name="description" content="A range of cards for a variety of needs - Apply online now"/>
<meta name="keywords" content=""/>
Metadata
Metadata can be defined literally as "data about data," but the term is normally understood to mean structured data about digital resources that can be used to help support a wide range of operations. These might include, for example, resource description and discovery, the management of information resources and their long-term preservation. In the context of digital resources, there exists a wide variety of metadata formats. Viewed on a continuum of increasing complexity, these range from the basic records used by robot-based Internet search services, through relatively simple formats like the Dublin Core Metadata Element Set (DCMES) and the more detailed Text Encoding Initiative (TEI) header and MARC formats, to highly specific formats like the FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata, the Encoded Archival Description (EAD) and the Data Documentation Initiative (DDI) Codebook.
Meta keywords
A Meta tag hidden in the HTML that lists keywords relevant to the page's content. Meta keywords tags are not a major factor search engines consider when ranking sites, they should not be left off the page. Both the Meta keywords tag and the Meta description tag contribute to our search engine ranking. A Meta keywords tag is supposed to be a brief and concise list of the most important themes of our page. The Meta keywords tag takes the following form:
<meta name="keywords" content="keywords,keyword,keyword phrase,etc.">
4.2 Describe what makes a website easy for the visitor to use (P12)
Web Page Speed Report
URL:
http://www.capitalone.co.uk/web/index.jsf
Title:
UK Credit Cards | Capital One
Date:
Report run on Wed May 26 08:39:11EDT2010
Diagnosis
Global Statistics
Total HTTP Requests:
133
Total Size:
418609 bytes
Object Size Totals
Object type
Size (bytes)
Download @ 56K (seconds)
Download @ T1 (seconds)
HTML:
22422
4.87
0.52
HTML Images:
108923
24.11
2.98
CSS Images:
237699
69.37
23.26
Total Images:
346622
93.48
26.24
Javascript:
13072
3.81
1.27
CSS:
36493
7.67
0.59
Multimedia:
0
0.00
0.00
Other:
0
0.00
0.00
External Objects
External Object
QTY
Total HTML:
2
Total HTML Images:
12
Total CSS Images:
110
Total Images:
122
Total Scripts:
6
Total CSS imports:
2
Total Frames:
0
Total Iframes:
3
Download Times*
Connection Rate
Download Time
14.4K
351.04 seconds
28.8K
188.82 seconds
33.6K
165.65 seconds
56K
110.03 seconds
ISDN 128K
52.15 seconds
T1 1.44Mbps
28.82 seconds
TOTAL_OBJECTS - Warning! The total number of objects on this page is 133 which by their number will dominate web page delay. Consider reducing this to a more reasonable number. Above 20 objects per page the overhead from dealing with the actual objects (description time and wait time) accounts for more than 80% of whole page latency. Consider using CSS sprites to help consolidate decorative images. Using CSS techniques such as colored backgrounds, borders, or spacing instead of graphic techniques can reduce HTTP requests. Replace graphic text headers with CSS text headers to further reduce HTTP requests. Finally, consider optimizing parallel downloads by using different hostnames or a CDN to reduce object overhead.
TOTAL_IMAGES - Warning! The total number of images on this page is 122, consider reducing this to a more reasonable number. Recommend combining, replacing, and optimizing your graphics. Replace graphic rollover menus with CSS rollover menus to speed display and minimize HTTP requests. Consider using CSS sprites to help consolidate decorative images. Use CSS techniques such as collared backgrounds, borders, or spacing instead of graphic techniques to reduce HTTP requests. Replace graphic text headers with CSS text headers to further reduce HTTP requests. Finally, consider optimizing parallel downloads by using different hostnames to reduce object overhead.
TOTAL_SIZE - Warning! The total size of this page is 419063 bytes, which will load in 110.03 seconds on a 56Kbps modem. Consider reducing total page size to less than 100K to achieve sub 20 second response times on 56K connections. Pages over 100K exceed most attention thresholds at 56Kbps, even with feedback. Consider optimizing your site with Website Optimization Secrets, Speed Up Your Site or contacting us about our optimization services.
TOTAL_SCRIPT - Warning! The total number of external script files on this page is 6 , consider reducing this to a more reasonable number. Combine, refactor, and minify to optimize your JavaScript files. Ideally you should have one (or even embed scripts for high-traffic pages) on your pages. Consider suturing JavaScript files together at the server to minimize HTTP requests. Placing external JavaScript files at the bottom of your BODY, and CSS files in the HEAD enables progressive display in XHTML web pages.
IMAGES_SIZE - Warning! The total size of your images is 346622 bytes, which is over 100K. Consider switch graphic formats to achieve smaller file sizes (from JPEG to PNG for example). Finally, substitute CSS techniques for graphics techniques to create collared borders, backgrounds, and spacing.
CSS_SIZE - Warning! The total size of your external CSS is 36493 bytes, which is over 20K. Consider optimizing your CSS for size by eliminating whitespace, using shorthand notation, and combining multiple CSS files where appropriate. By using labelled container cells and descendant selectors you can target chunks of HTML content efficiently without the need to embed extra classes and styles.
4.3 The design features that make a web page attractive to the visitor (P11)
Now a day maximum organisation has their own web page. Good design always attractive visitor. The following thing makes a web site attractive:-
Home page is the most important element of the web site. It takes the first impression from the visitor and depending on that the visitor will stay or leave. Think about web site as the online market where people comes to find some information or to buy something
Easy to read is most important for a page. A web site is not easy to read and best way is to use black or dark blue on the white background. Easy to browse- don't leave our visitors in thinking what to do to navigate our web site searching for more information about the web site offers.
Make it confidential our web site should contain a page "About Us", contact information, testimonials and frequently asked questions. We can't let our visitors not to know where to go next or how to return on the home page.
Download quickly this point is very important because visitors are not very patient to wait too long for downloads. If it takes longer than six to eight minutes the visitor will skip away web site.
How to buy if there is possibility to buy any goods directly from our web site show the way to our costumers how to do that.
4.4 The legal requirements of site design (P13)
From 1st January 2007, all companies in the UK are required by law to display certain regulatory information on their websites and in their email footers. Failure to do so could mean they are in breach of the Companies Act and risk a fine. Every company must now list its company registration number, place of registration, and registered office address on its website. The information must be in legible characters and should also appear on order forms and in emails. Every web site now needs to provide:
Name of provider
Email address at which we can be contacted
Registered office and geographic information
Registration number and place of registration
VAT number if company VAT registered
Prices with clear VAT and delivery costs information
Ethics is a branch of philosophy that deals with what is considered to be right and wrong. When using the Internet and E-Commerce, it is important to remember that there are many legal and ethical issues to consider. The use of IT presents major security challenges, poses serious ethical questions, and affects society in significant ways. But, IT has had beneficial results as well. So as managers, it is our responsibility to minimize the detrimental effects and optimize the beneficial effects. IT raises ethical issues in the areas of: -
Business/IT Security Ethics and Society
Employment Privacy
Health Crime
Individuality Working conditions
Source:-lecture note
4.5 Use critical reflection to evaluate own work and justify valid conclusion (D1)
Capital one and MBNA both are same business like credit card, loan, insurance etc. In down table I try to compare this two web site:
Capital one
MBNA
Global Statistics
Total HTTP Requests
Total Size
Object Type
HTML
HTML Images
Total Images
Java script
Download times
133
418609bytes
56
289926bytes
Size
(bytes)
Download @56k (second)
Download @ T1 (seconds)
Size
(bytes)
Download @56k (second)
Download @ T1 (seconds)
22422
108923
346622
13072
4.87
24.11
93.48
3.81
0.52
2.98
26.24
1.27
20962
30332
93780
155882
4.78
7.65
26.5
33.27
0.71
1.76
8.3
3.03
Connection rate
Download time
Connection rate
Download time
14.4k
28.8k
36.6k
56k
ISDN 128k
T1 1.44Mbps
235.91seconds
123.55 seconds
107.50 seconds
68.98 seconds
28.90 seconds
12.74 seconds
14.4k
28.8k
36.6k
56k
ISDN 128k
T1 1.44Mbps
351.04seconds
188.82 seconds
165.65 seconds
110.03seconds
52.15seconds
28.82 seconds
In our table we see capital one is bigger than MBNA. Capital one web site is double then MBNA. Not only size everything is more than MBNA.
4.6 Responsibility for managing and organizing activities (D2)
Management is the process of designing and maintaining an environment in which individuals, working together in groups, efficiently accomplish selected aims. Planning involves selecting missions and objectives and the actions to achieve them. People working together in groups to achieve some goal must have roles to play. Generally, these roles have to be defined and structured by someone who wants to make sure that people contribute in a specific way to group effort. This is done by identifying work-force requirements; inventorying the people available; and recruiting, selecting, placing, promoting, appraising, planning the careers of, compensating, and training or otherwise developing both candidates and current jobholders to accomplish their tasks effectively and efficiently. Leading is the influencing of people so that they will contribute to organization. Coordination is the essence of manager-ship for achieving harmony among individual efforts toward the accomplishment of group goals. Each of the managerial functions discussed earlier on is an exercise contributing to coordination.
Conclusion
Ecommerce has certainly changed the traditional methods of advertising and selling a company's products and services. With the introduction of the internet and the creation of company websites, small businesses can generate plentiful sales through ecommerce establishments and in the process, gain credibility and recognition among their customer base. There are many limitations of ecommerce and much research and planning needs to be done in order to successfully accomplish any online trade. A professional looking website needs to be created in addition to the recruitment of a solid, experienced customer service team. Once these components are in place, an entrepreneur can make our ecommerce business a successful and lucrative one.
