E-commerce is the process of selling goods and services over the Internet.

The role of e-commerce is extremely prevalent:

1. It is a fairly inexpensive way of selling, when comparing the added costs to the number of potential customers reached.

2. Companies can reach a worldwide audience for a fairly low price.

3. When consumers interact with websites and make purchases, they leave behind their data. Businesses can use this to get them to make repeat purchases and also appeal to other customers with similar purchasing habits.

4. It is convenient for customers to use. If the purchasing process is easy, customers will feel more inclined to spend their money.

Businesses can use e-commerce to their competitive advantage. For example, a clothing store may have features on their website that allow consumers to virtually ‘try on’ the clothes. Firms can also stock many more products compared to a physical store. This ensures that they can appeal to consumers of all tastes.

E-commerce leads to cost savings, which may encourage a business to reduce its prices. This appeals to consumers, due to the competitive pricing.

With the development of the Internet, e-commerce has proved to be a wonderful tool for businesses to use.