First Half of ecommerce

An Introduction to E-Commerce

E - commerce is the selling and buying of services and goods on the internet. It can be said that anything can be purchased online, from a pair of socks to life insurance. Its a way of doing 'Real - time' transactions online, which can be convenient for many people across the world. You can be anywhere in the world, providing you have access to the internet, you are able to purchase what you like from another place in the world. E-commerce became well known to the general public in 1994, however wasn't put into full use between 1998 and 2000. There are no time or place barriers with ecommerce, which inforces its convenience for anyone, anywhere. Today there are many successful, ecommerce companies online such as Amazon and Sainsburys. They both offer different goods and services, yet they are both very successful. There is something for everyone in the world of e-commerce. The company I shall be looking at as a transactional website is http://www.topshop.com/. I am looking into topshop as it is a good example of a normal high street shop, that has decided to become involved in e-commerce to boost their success in their industry. To the left hand side are links to the factors of topshop.com I have covered, use them to navigate your way through they way top.
Advantages of e-commerce:
Access to potential customers world wide. A website on the Internet can be viewed from anywhere in the world.

Less costs - there is no need to pay for rental or purchase of buildings and other costs like electricity bills etc. Set-up costs are cheap as a computer linked to the Internet is all that is needed.

Accessible 24/7. There are no restrictions on opening hours.

Customers do not need to travel and get fast response times to their ordersand some sites give expected delivery times.

Sales information is always up-to-date. The website may be directly linked to a central stock database. It is often possible to see how many of an item are currently in stock.

Drawbacks:
Computer crash or network problems may mean trading stops.

Breaches of security may cause problems.

Customers may have difficulty contacting a business if there are problems - lacks the personal touch.

Customers can only read about and see the goods for sale. They are unable to smell or touch them.


Below are some examples of e-commerce companies, the screen shots shown are their home pages:

What is the purpose of topshop online and how well does it meet its objectives?
The purpose of topshop online is for the company to sell their products to the public through the internet. Their transactional website offers all the products that are available in their high street stores and more, from dresses to baby clothes. If we take a look at the home page shown below, it is clear that the site is easy to use as the arrowed annotations show:

First impressions are very important for transactional websites, and topshop.com has a very sophisticated and appealing look. Its easy navigation is appealing to the customer which encourages them to continue using it. I believe that this transactional website has successfully met its objective of selling its products as the layout is very presentable and modern. Their clothing is clearly shown and the search bar sets good first impressions as it shows the website is advanced and easy to use.
Here are some comments the press have made about topshop, they all show the reputation of the company:

How is it structured?
The structure of a website is a very important factor. If a website is well structures, it is easier to use as the layout it clear. Topshop.com is a very well stuctured transactional website, as soon as you open up the home page it is clear how to find what you are looking for. Below is a screen shot of the home page:

As you can see, to the left hand side of the page there are product category links in a frame. This makes them stand out to a customer, so they know where to begin their shopping. Another good structure method of this page is that when you click on a category, a list will drop down providing you with a more advanced search in that category:

At the top toolbar there is a search facility, if you look at the picture below, you can see that it gives you a quick guideline on what to type in. This helps the customer to find exactly what they want if they have something specific they want to buy. Below is an example of a search i did:

Step One - Type in specific product:

Here i have type in a specific dress i would like to look at. Then i clicked on go.

Step Two - The Search Results:

The Search had been successful, it has given me three items related to my search and the first dress is the one i was looking for. Now if i wanted I could see if it is available in my size and make a purchase.There are links throughout the website, so that you can always make you way back to the homepage, or parts that you have previously visited. If we take a look at the second half of the home page, there are lots of advertisements shown for topshop, each are linked up to relevant parts of the website, which is a good structure technique, making the website still easy to use. Below is a picture of the second half of the home page:

Here is a part of the website which shows all the shoes that are available online with topshop:

Here I have selected to look at high heels, as you can see each item is shown with a picture, a short description and a price. They are displayed in a table format which makes each of them stand out. The left hand frame and top toolbar remain the same throughout the website, so that at any time you can go back to a different part of the website. Topshop make sure that every link made is relevant to the subject so that the customer doesnt get frustrated when it comes to finding what they want. The customers want a pleasant shopping experience, so if the site is well layed out then they can shop with ease.

What is the product information provided?
As you browse through the websites products, you are provided with a table of items in a category. All that's shown is a small picture of the item, the name and the price. But when you want to know more about the product, you can click on it for further information. When you click on an item of interest, you are linked to a product information page where it shows you the item in more detail. There are many fields of information. Below are some boots I selected:

(picture)

As you can see there are many fields of information on the product shown. This is the same for every other item for sale on the website below are a few examples:

Also on the product information pages the same toolbars and navigation bars are kept on each page so that the customer can continue viewing all the pages available.

Goods and Services.
You can tell that the products topshop offer online are clothes and accessories, simply from lookig at the homepage. There are pictures throughout the website to inforce this, along with navigation bars telling the products that are available. Below is a diagram to show the goods available:

Topshop also has different collections to offer online they are:
- Kate Moss
- Iris
- Jetset
- Pandora's Box
- Sno
- The Boutique
- Tall
- Petite
- Maternity

Below is a range of pictures which represent an item from each of the product categories available online, they are actually featured on the website, so you can see how well topshop show their products:

It could be said that there is a particular target audience for teenagers and young adults with topshop.com, however its products are purchased by people from all walks of life.

Services:
There is a style advisor available as you can see from the link below:

THE TRANSACTION:

How do you buy items online, and what types of transactions are involved?
With topshop, you need to be registered with an account before you make a purchase. It is recommended that you login before shopping, or it gives you the option when you checkout. The pictures on the left shows the different methods of payment that topshop accept for online transactions. To buy online the following steps need to be taken:

Step One : Adding to the shopping bag

Above I have selected the size and quantity of the product i want to add to my shopping bag. After this I then clicked on the 'Add to shopping bag' link. The website then told me that it had been successfully added with the below notification:

The notification has given me the option to checkout, this is very useful as it provides a shortcut that is easy to use, and pops up every time you add an item to the 'bag'.
You can view your shopping bag at any time buy clicking on the link on the top toolbar:

Being able to view the bag at any point ifs very useful as you can remove things from it if you desire. This link also tells me how many items I have in my bag, which is a very useful feature as it keeps you informed and on track with your shopping. Once you are satisfied with the items in your bag you can then checkout. Below is a picture of the shopping bag i created:

This is the top half of the shopping bag summary, and as you can see along the top of the page, you are given two options:

These are very convienient as they are at the top, so if you actually didnt want to see the summary of your shopping you can easily go back.
At the bottom of the summary page there are further details on the purchases you are going to make:

There is a complimentary gift from topshop for using their service for more than 3 items. The summary page shows the total amount i will be spending. It gives the option to empty the basket, along with removing individual items. All these features are very convienient and provide an easy to use service. At this point, one can now checkout by clicking on ' Continue to check out'.

Step Two : Checking Out
Once clicking to check out, the customer is asked to sign in so that the process can continue:

Now all that is needed is the customers billing information:

Step Three: Confirm and Pay

This confirmation page is provided. It shows you the final costs and allows you to choose delivery information. It also provides an opportunity for students to save money and people with promotional cards to also save money.

At the bottom, it shows the address the items will be sent to and also gives the option to change it if neccessary.

Also on this 'Confirm and Pay' page you have to put in your method of payment details so the transaction can go forward as shown below:

Now the transaction is nearly complete and once you click on 'Confirm and Pay' All of your details will be processed and your items will be sent to you through the post.



Now the transaction is complete and the customer will receive an email to helpfully reassure them that their order is being processed. This email is very good for the customer as they will know for definate that their purchase was safe and legitimate.

ANOTHER METHOD OF PAYMENT: THE GIFT CARD

To pay with a giftcard online, you need to register the details of the card. To do this the customer can clcik on 'Gift Cards and Sprees' at the very top of each page. Then this will be displayed: