Electronic Communication Research Paper
Abstract
Electronic communication has become a part of every aspect of our society. It is recognized as being one of the most important and influential aspects of the way we conduct business. Electronic communication technology has made it easier to contact other employees in the same office, and even around the world. Computers and software have revolutionized communication within the business office. Programs have made it simple for businesses, small companies, and large corporations, to keep track of any information that passes through the business, whether it is from a secretary or the CEO. Today's society is dependent upon electronic communication. This paper will concentrate on how the areas of the Internet, electronic mail (EMAIL), E-commerce, and E-Business effect the way we communicate within the business world.
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How Electronic Communication is Affecting The Way We Do Business
In business today there is a growing usage and need for off site communication to manage projects and provide specific training. Businesses are finding ways to reduce costs by bringing information to their sites electronically. Technology has enabled organizations to communicate between domestic and international divisions. In addition, companies can communicate with customers, outside consultants and trainers. These communication trends are advanced by cost reduction, effectiveness and efficiency demands, and the capability of technology (Hoyt, 1998).
The World Wide Web or Internet is one of the largest means of electronic communication in business. The World Wide Web is defined as: The leading information retrieval service of the Internet (the worldwide computer network). The Web gives users access to a vast array of documents that are connected to each other by means of hypertext or hypermedia links--i.e., hyperlinks, electronic connections that link related pieces of information in order to allow a user easy access to them. The Internet is defined as: "The world's largest computer network, which is actually a network of networks" (Thill & Bovee, 1998). The driving force behind the Internet and World-Wide Web (WWW) are facilitating business communication unhampered by geographical distances and provides rapid access to information. The Internet started as a government project in the late 1960's that connected bulky and slow computers from one place to another by a network line for the purpose of exchanging information. Today, computers have evolved to small, super-fast machines with Internet capabilities that come standard. Since the 1960's, the use of the Internet has sky rocketed, with a growth rate of 341,634% for the WWW sites.
The World Wide Web has accomplished wonders for businesses and consumers around the globe by supplying them with quantities of information on every product or service imaginable. It has become a viable marketing channel for most companies selling goods, from financial services to hot sauce. As the use of the internet continues to weave its way into the fabric of everyday business and personal life, and as the second wave of Internet entrepreneurship takes root, companies of all types are being forced to address how best to make the Internet a fundamental part of their business and their competitive communication strategy.
There were an estimated 400 million people worldwide using the Internet in 2001; about 167 million in North America, 105 million in Europe, 122 million in the Asia-Pacific region, 21 million in Latin America, and 7 million the rest of the world. With as many users that connect to the Internet everyday, many businesses have an important source that they can use to their advantage (Treese, 2000).
Businesses have taken advantage of the Internet to expand their capabilities, whether it is expanding their market or acquiring a faster method of communication within and outside the business. The introduction of Internet communication has changed the way businesses operate, by increasing competitiveness and advancing the company by allowing vital information to be sent and received at a faster rate. In the 21st century, over 50% of American homes possess one or more computers. Businesses and consumers are becoming more and more comfortable conducting business and communicating with their providers electronically.
A 1997 study by investment bank Hambrecht & Quist found that 90 percent of companies interviewed were considering creating a WWW site or modifying an existing site in the next year if they had not done so already. A growing number of companies are doing an excellent job at creating new value for their customers and profits for themselves through creative marketing on the Web. This process has seen the transformation of certain supply chains by connecting buyers globally with sources of supplies, thereby satisfying the values of consumers more efficiently.
There are many advantages for companies to communicate electronically through the Internet. Perhaps the most important advantage is the electronic trail of documentation and the fact that marketing materials are always current and compliant. The cost savings for companies can be extremely attractive. Electronic communication provides an opportunity to execute true one-to-one marketing, by providing customers with targeted messages and product marketing only in areas where they have interest and possess a high propensity to buy. Interacting with customers when they want and how they want increases retention and brand loyalty. Over the past few years electronic customer service has proven to be a distinct competitive advantage in the marketplace ("Electronic Delivery:", n.d.).
Electronic Mail or email is a second form of electronic communication that is helping to influence how we do business today. Undoubtedly it is the most used Internet service. E-mail allows a user to send an electronic message to anyone else in the world that is also connected to the Internet. E-mail is defined as: An efficient and easy way to send messages quickly to other people, in your own office or around the world electronically. E-mail is inexpensive, convenient, and portable. E-mail offers numerous advantages over regular post-office mail (often called "snail mail" by Internet users). Email has come a long way since its early beginning. The capabilities of email today are almost limitless.
Companies and individuals are able to attach and transmit large files or documents such as presentations or vital statistical reports. This luxury has saved the business world countless dollars and man-hours. A primary advantage is speed of communication. A letter sent from Omaha to Tampa via regular mail takes three to five days for delivery, whereas you could send a message via e-mail to anyone else who has email capabilities and they would receive it almost instantaneously. Additionally, you can simultaneously send a message to any number of people. The impact of e-mail has revolutionized the workplace. Every day, millions of American workers use their e-mail and Internet systems. A poll reported by Kopp (1998) estimates that 90 percent of large companies, 64 percent of mid-sized companies, and 42 percent of small firms currently use e-mail systems. The same poll found that more than 40 million employees correspond via e-mail, and the number is expected to increase by about 20 percent each year. These statistics are indicative of the popularity of electronic communication in today's workplace. E-mail technology has facilitated a means of efficient interoffice communications, as well as external communications with clients, customers, and other businesses. Email expedites personal transactions; and in many instances, e-mail has effectively replaced the hand or typewritten note and letter of memorandum. Depending on the type of Internet connection the company is supporting, the cost to send a single e-mail is considerably cheaper then sending a letter via the U.S. Postal system or other means of document transportation. There are several ways to transport electronic information from one destination to the next. The most inexpensive way of sending electronic info is through a direct connection, sometimes called a Local Area Network (LAN) or intranet (meaning within). A connection to the Internet requires some type of Internet Service Provider (ISP). Although ISPs charge a small monthly fee for service access to the Internet, companies still recognize a tremendous savings over using the old traditional U.S. Postal service or other document transportation service. Email has proven to be a cheap and efficient way of sending and exchanging documents. Most company E-mail systems provide a method or software package for organizing, tracking and filing important electronic communications / documents. For example, most, if not all, e-mail software programs have an inbox for incoming mail, and an outbox for mail that you have sent. These packages also provide an interface that allows the user to save an email or file to a specified location on their computer or the company's network (Craiger & Weiss, 1996). This new form of organization can make the employee's and managements work a little easier.
E-BUSINESS / E-COMMERCE: Although the concept of on-line business communities is not new, their application to business is gaining momentum. Armstrong and Hagel maintain that entire industry supply chains are moving toward a transaction-based business model. A few companies, most notably General Electric, are starting to realize benefits by shifting from the physical business community to an electronic business community model. GE's Trading Process Network (TPN) is an on-line business community that allows the company to transact about $1 billion worth of business with more than 1,400 suppliers scattered around the globe (Armstrong & Hagel III, 1996). Before going much further let's clearly define the terms of E-Commerce and E-Business. Akarin Weatherford, Indian River Consulting Group, defines them as follows: E-Commerce is the buying and selling of goods and services over the Internet plus the technology infrastructure and applications used to support those transactions. Examples: Business to Business (B2B) "Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) between a manufacturer and distributor and Business to Consumer (B2C) -- Buying retail goods and services on-line. E-Business is the use of technology infrastructure and applications to synthesize and optimize new and existing business processes. Examples: Placing purchase order forms online with online approval. Using online collaboration tools to increase the productivity between geographically separated offices (Payne, 2001).
Businesses have long recognized that to succeed they must know who their customers are, what they want, and how to respond to and anticipate their needs. Businesses are able to attract and retain customers as never before through improving customer service, increasing customer satisfaction, and ensuring their products and services are fully integrated in order to deliver them faster and cheaper. No organization large or small, public or private, can afford to ignore the impact that new technologies are having on our lives. The people will not allow it. Companies in every sector must fundamentally alter the way their organizations does "business" in this new environment. Managing this change successfully is a key component of success. The E-revolution is driving the demands of ordinary people, policy-makers, wealth-creators, and business competitiveness. The electronic business community requires the cooperation and an open exchange of information among all participants.
Despite the popular attention given to marketing consumer goods on the Internet, the market for business-to-business commerce via the Web is potentially huge and estimated to be worth about ten times as much as Internet sales of consumer goods. Just as interested individuals have been grouped into loosely knit "communities" based on common preferences and hobbies, electronic business communities are beginning to link entire industry supply chains. The electronic business community model is not a one-dimensional interim linkage between buyers and sellers, nor is it limited to electronic commerce. Rather, these communities leverage the cost-cutting Information Technology (IT) streamlining activities of the 1980s and early 1990s and the emerging dominance of huge, global business networks to forge closer relationships among competitors, suppliers, buyers, and sellers. The result is a new business community that applies electronic network channels to lower the long-standing barriers between the different participants. Continuing advancements and cost reductions in the necessary technology are bringing down many barriers to adopting this new model for competition. However, it will ultimately be a shift in the attitudes of management that prompts the decision to adopt such electronic communities in business. In the end, their future depends on management's ability to view traditional business differently and adapt new market strategies accordingly. One need only consider the recent collaborations between the big three automakers in launching the Automotive Network Exchange (ANX) to further understand the impending effects of electronic business communities. ANX will establish a standard method for parts suppliers to communicate with and obtain order information from the auto manufacturers. The potential result will be a lower cost structure for the entire automotive industry in which all participants will benefit. At the same time, such benefits will greatly modify the competitive strategies and interactions among all participants.
An article out of the United Kingdom reported last October that the e-commerce minister, Patricia Hewitt, revealed that 1.7 million small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are now online, exceeding the government's own target of 1.5 million by 2002. The minister's assessment was upbeat. "This year's report shows business across the UK has embraced information and communication technologies (ICTs) and is seizing the opportunities e-commerce presents."
In conclusion I leave you with a quote from Rob Harris, managing director Industrial Fastener Institute, who stated "E-Commerce and E-Business, It ain't going away, so don't bury your head in the sand". (Payne 2001).
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