E-Business: Benefits of B2C Model and Supply Chain Efficiency

RUNNING HEAD: E-Business
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E-Business
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1. E Commerce
E commerce is used for buying and selling of products, services and goods through
online platform and is also known as internet commerce and electronic commerce. The name
itself explains the term it is basically selling and buying of things over internet or transaction that
takes place over internet is considered as e commerce (Cassidy, 2016). E-tailing is considered as
using an online platform by retailers where they sale their good and services and that include
business to consumer and business to business model. E-tailing main focus is to change the
structure of organization or to tailor made their business model in order to do sales through
internet or online platform and that changes include building a strong distribution channel,
improved warehouse facility and internet webpages (Mummalaneni, Meng & Elliott, 2016). To
understand this in a better way case study of Nuts & Bolts Fasteners (NBF) is taken and
analysed. It is a family owned business and currently it aims to increase the sales of the company
in market by 5% and to increase the efficiency of company’s supply chain. It is suggested that to
achieve these objectives NBF should opt for the business to consumer (B2C) type of ecommerce.
Because its product range includes bolts, screws, washers, drills, tapes, applicators and much
more. All these products are directly used by consumers and target audience of NBF can be
builders, engineers, trades and business people. And these audiences can be targeted through
B2C channel.
Business to consumer category includes all the transactions that take place online
between business and customer. This means all the orders will be receive by NBF through online
platform that will reduce the overhead cost of the company. Further, B2C category more focused
on supply chain management because in B2C model demand of customers are fulfilled on time
and there is no need to maintain any inventory for longer time. Another thing is that business to
consumer channel deals are done by eliminating the middle man or retailers. Now through B2C e
commerce platform manufacturers can sell products or services to final customers thus
eliminating of middleman helps the company to sell lower than the current prices and that can
increase their sales as decrease in price leads to increase in demand of the product and at the
same time resultant in increase sales (Hiles & Hon, 2016). Sales through B2C channel take less

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time and consumers are ready to pay the price that is displayed on the online channel and there is
no issue of negotiation and bargaining.
In order to compete in the retail market in which NBF works, B2C type of ecommerce is
suitable because it provide various benefits to the company such as reduction in overhead cost
that helps the company to sell its product at lower price to customers, and further NBF
uniqueness is its quality and service this will be improved if they will opt for business to
consumer ecommerce strategy as it will help in ways such that on time delivery, solving
customer query on time and through that customers can track their order status (Mazzarol, 2015).
All these features can help NBF to gain value proposition by opting B2C e commerce. In current
business environment, companies are opting for B2C e commerce such as Amazon as this model
depend on less volume purchases and eliminate bulk buying by the wholesalers (Grefen, 2015).
2. E commerce business model
Business to customer model mainly focus on the marketing and direct selling by business
to consumer through a website (Wirtz. Pistoia, Ullrich & Gottel, 2016). In case of NBF company
can target more audience and increase its sales as there is no geographic limit or there is no
barrier of place. B2C ecommerce business model is explained below; mainly it includes only two
parties that are, business and consumer and all the transactions take place through an online
channel or through a website of the company (Jansen, 2017).