Week 1 Assignment

Discussion Questions
RQ1. Describe three factors that would cause a company to continue doing business in traditional way s and avoid electronic commerce.

This answer can be found on pages 15 and 16 and Table 1.5. If we start with the first reason, traditional commerce is well suited for the sales of impulse items that are for immediate use. For instance, I’ve been taking my son to his baseball games for the past few years and every time we have to stop for sunflower seeds. Not only are they an impulse purchase, but they are inexpensive and a “low value. This is reason number two. Items that are low-value transactions, under $10.00 are well suited for traditional commerce. The final reason is for the sales of unbranded goods. Now that makes sense because when you engaged in e-commerce, you can’t physically touch and feel the product, so your instincts will lead you to the brand you recognize.

RQ2. Figure 1 -5 lists roommate-matching service as a type of business that is well-suited to a combination of electronic and traditional commerce. In one paragraph, describe the elements of this service that would be best handled using traditional commerce and explain why.

I haven’t had a roommate for years, but for a matching service, it would be prudent to meet the person in real life. Profiles for any one online are traditionally self inflated and based on the subjectivity of the writer. But actually meeting the person in person, one can get a better feeling of who the person really is. For instance, you can’t smell someone with poor hygiene on the computer (unless there’s an app for that I haven’t found yet), and you really don’t know if they are the well-mannered person they claim to be. Just like a car, antiques, and even a house, a picture may be worth a thousand words, but until you see it up close and personal, you just don’t know.