E-business is a type of a business strategy which includes presence on the Internet. E-commerce refers to a set of online services which are used for financial transactions, purchases, and trade. With the development of modern technologies, the Internet has become an integral part of everyday life. Due to the advancements in electronics and incorporation of portable devices, e-business has developed. People today prefer to purchase different goods and services because it is more convenient, saves time, and does not require any additional effort. In fact, people do not have to visit a store to buy a specific product, and it has revolutionized modern business. Many companies of today heavily rely on e-commerce because of its profitability and popularity.
The Internet has become a place for entertainment, exchange of personal information, online commerce, and storage of digital data. With the invention of smartphones, laptops, and tablet computers, the Internet today is essential for a modern individual (“Internet, Intranet and Extranet”, 2016). However, it all started with the Intranet. It was a local network which was used in big organizations. At the same time, a small number of Intranet enthusiasts across Europe and the USA also started to create their networks of the Intranet (“Internet, Intranet and Extranet”, 2016). Organizations and ordinary people used the Intranet to exchange information. It changed the way companies operated as it reduced manual labor and time for communication among employees.
The Extranet was a natural expansion of the Intranet, as it allowed new users to access internal networks at a distance. It is possible to say that it was more or less similar to the functions of the modern Internet; however, it was slow and expensive (“Internet, Intranet and Extranet”, 2016). Nonetheless, more and more people started to use the Extranet in order to send information and contact with the organization. It was a practical way, but it was still not popular among ordinary people (“Internet, Intranet and Extranet”, 2016). The Extranet used specific security when people had to log in to the accounts, which were approved by the owners of the network. The Internet grew with the invention of the World Wide Web, which was used for the web addresses (“Internet, Intranet and Extranet”, 2016). Even though the speed was slow, the first online services appeared on the Internet such as email.
The e-commerce and e-business have several significant similarities. For example, both e-commerce and e-business require interactions of the customer to operate (Qteishat, Alshibly, & Alzub, 2015). The customer needs to access the online platform, choose specific products or services, and order them. Without the customer e-commerce and e-business are useless as they cannot interact with the buyers like ordinary shops or stores. In other words, the online business needs customers on their websites and other services (Shahjee, 2015). E-commerce and e-business incorporate a strong marketing feature online, such as newsletters, feedbacks, notification letters about sales. It is a digital form of marketing which might be considered aggressive; however, it helps to preserve the audience from leaving.
The online business became relevant because of the times when it was introduced first. The Internet and portable devices had created a platform already for the e-business to enter. It was a natural desire for business to use the new agenda for trade (Shahjee, 2015). The e-learning can be seen as a business because people pay in exchange for a particular service. In fact, traditional education is a type of business as well (Shahjee, 2015). However, the e-learning might not be considered a type of scientific degree, as it depends on the content and source of the education.
In conclusion, e-business and e-commerce are similar in terms of field where they operate. However, they are different in the internal mechanics and functions. Nonetheless, the e-commerce is a part of e-business and it has to operate within the strategies and goals of e-business. Apart from that, the e-learning is a new type of business as it provides valuable services to a customer for a monetary reward. Due to the development of the Internet, e-business and e-commerce have become integral for the modern consumer.
References
Internet, Intranet and Extranet. (2016). Web.
Qteishat, M., Alshibly, H., & Alzub, K. (2015). The role of e-marketing front end applications on customer retention: Evidence from Jordan. Journal of Theoretical and Applied Information Technology, 78(1). Web.
Shahjee, R. (2015). The impact of electronic commerce on business organization. Scholarly Research Journal for Interdisciplinary Studies, 4(27).