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Since we are an e-commerce
business, we can use a variety of IT to gain a competitive advantage by
making the ordering process easy for customers, providing optimal
customer service, and personalizing the services for each of our
individual customers. a. Business Online To
host PackMyParty.com, we will use a free web hosting service. We chose
geocities.com because of their convenient upload file manager and
reliable services. Having
a business online is an advantage because we can conduct business
any day at anytime to customers anywhere around the world. Also, since we are a click-only business, we are better able
to reduce prices. With
an Interorganizational System, we
would have electronic communication between everybody in the process
including retailer to supplier, supplier to shipping, shipping to
receiving, receiving to retailer, and retailer to customer. Essentially,
in doing so, we will be able to cut out down on manual processing
costs and offer our consumers better prices. b. Unique Services to Enhance Consumer Relationships When
customers come to our site, they will have the option of just buying
from our site as a one-time customer or signing up for a membership
account. For
all of our customers, we will use web technology to create a simple
step-by-step process of ordering a party package.
The customers will be able to pick a theme from our menu then
customize the package if they want to remove unnecessary items.
This is something that many other companies do not offer.
Then, the customer can proceed to our secure checkout to pay for
the package(s) by credit card. After
the purchase, our customers will be given an order number that they can
use to easily track where their package is and estimate when it should
come in. To
ensure that the shopping experience is as easy and uncomplicated as
possible for our customers, we will have dedicated customer service
before and after the purchase. For
first time customers, we will have an ordering tutorial to demonstrate
the ordering process. We
will also have an option for customers to either email customer service
or chat live with a customer service representative in case they have
any specific problems with their orders. If for any reason a customer does not feel safe about giving us their personal information online, he/she may pay by sending a check or money order via snail mail to us. Doing this enhances our customer's confidence in doing business with us, because it assures them that we will do whatever it takes to give the best possible service available anywhere. For
customers who choose to sign up for membership, we will have technology
that provides a number of unique personalized services.
Some services that members will be provided are: E-vites:
Instead of using hard copy invitations, members will have the
option of keeping an online address book of their guests and sending
invitations via e-mail. Guest
Tracking:
Guests will have the option of responding to their e-vites via
email, and we will automatically keep track of which guests will be
attending our customer’s party based on their responses.
Customers will also be able to manually add-in guests who choose
to respond via other methods (i.e. phone, in person).
Calendar:
Our customers will have an online personalized calendar in which
they can enter special events such as upcoming birthdays and parties.
They will also have the option of getting e-mail or cell phone
text notifications of their calendar events. Picture
Page:
For each package order they make, our members will receive one
picture page in which they can upload and share pictures from their
parties. Using
technology to create these personalized services for our customers will
help to build customer loyalty, which can be a valuable competitive
advantage. To
offer the best products to our customers, we will also use database
technology and web statistics to track items that are the most popular
based on how many people buy certain packages and how many hits a
products’ page gets. We
will then increase the supply of packages that are popular and feature
them in specials on our site. Products
that are less popular will either be lessened in supply or discontinued. Besides using the database for overall statistics of popular packages, we can also use the customer information in our database to recommend certain products to individual customers with accounts. Based on what they have purchased in the past or what events they have coming up in their calendars, we can send our members recommendations and specials that suit their preferences. c. Optimal Supply Management In
relation to our inventory, our database will keep track of our
customers’ orders, ensure that they are fulfilled, and automatically
subtract from our inventory the items that were sent out.
This will ensure we can always provide our customer with the
products they want and need. When
certain items start to become low on stock, our database should notify
the inventory manager so that he/she can order more.
In the case that packages happen to become sold out, the database
will automatically change the availability of the product on the website
and notify our inventory manager, who will then remedy the situation as
soon as possible. |