Select the appropriate level of e-business

Before writing the e-business plan it is useful to think about the mode of e-business you are currently engaged in and what the other modes are. Other topics in this section of the e-businessguide website have dealt with the possibilities the Internet offers, key issues to address and the aims and target audiences. Having considered all that, and before writing the e-business plan, what mode of e-business is right for your business?

We have divided e-business into five broad modes - see below. What mode are you in? Should you be moving to another mode? What are the dangers and opportunities? These are all good questions to be asking during the planning stage.

When reading about the five modes below, consider this: it would be wrong to suggest that a business that is in one mode, MUST proceed to another mode or it will somehow automatically be missing out on opportunities. It may well be that the use of email is all that is needed and there is little to be gained by having a website or belonging to, say, an e-marketplace. Many businesses will move from one mode to the next, but it is important for organisations to assess what is best for them.  Some businesses move to a mode of e-business that is inappropriate to their needs, which can lead to unnecessary expenditure and disappointment. It is important not to be lured by the possibilities of the technology, and to make decisions about which mode is right for your business based on sound planning and research.

The five modes of e-business

1. Participating mode: the business is connected to the Internet and has an email address which provides participation in the online world.

Businesses in this mode typically use the Internet to:

• communicate with customers and supplier
• receive orders via email
• order from suppliers
• do banking online.

  2. Supporting mode: the business has a website which promotes and supports the existing business activities.

  Businesses in this mode typically use the Internet to:

• promote the business via a website
• provide information on their website about existing products and services
• receive orders via the website.

  3. Expanding mode: the business uses its website to develop new business activities and to accelerate growth.

  Businesses in this mode typically use the Internet to:

• develop new markets and customers nationally and overseas
• increase sales and cash flow via an e-commerce facility
• create operational efficiencies.

  4. Assimilating mode: the online and offline business activities and operations are fully integrated and mutually dependent.

  Businesses in this mode typically use the Internet to:

• coordinate and rationalise all its databases and company information
• manage customer relationships, procurement and logistics
• engage in e-marketplaces and present an e-catalogue
• provide an interface their accounting and financial systems with that of their customers and suppliers.

  5. Transformed mode: the use of Internet technology by the business has fundamentally changed its core business and the way it operates and projected it onto a higher level of business activity and profitability.

  Businesses in this mode typically:

• have re-branded themselves as an online and offline business (clicks and mortar)
• generate and offer new products and services
• have developed new online distribution channels and partners and supply-chains 
• have staff with skill-sets matching the online needs as well as the tradtional needs of the business 

  The mode of e-business that a business engages in will be dietermined by a range of factors:

  • its aims and target audience(s) 
  • types of products or services it offers
  • the expectations and requirements of its customers and suppliers
  • the industry sector in which it operates and what its competitors are doing online
  • Internet skills and attitudes of management and staff
  • the sophistication of the operations and use of technologies
  • where its offices are and how many there are
  • where its markets are - local, national, international
  • its business goals and long-term plans
  • the size of business
  • its understanding of the Internet and the possibilities
  • length of time in business and the economic environment  

  The next, and final stage in planning, is to write the e-business plan.