Project 1: Virtual Business, Global Environment, and SWOT Analysis

This project delves into the realm of virtual business, examining its definition and its operational landscape within the global environment. It presents an analysis of the SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) of ASOS, a prominent virtual business, providing insights into its competitive positioning. Furthermore, the project defines and explores emerging business models, such as freemium and marketplace models, which are transforming the digital business landscape. It examines the significance of collaborative relationships and strategic alliances in the context of virtual business. Finally, the project provides a comparative analysis of digital business and e-commerce, elucidating their principles and key distinctions, and also addresses the crucial aspects of information security and ethical considerations within the digital business environment, identifying associated challenges.

Project
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Table of Contents
LO1..................................................................................................................................................3
Define virtual business and global environment.........................................................................3
LO 2.................................................................................................................................................4
Define situation and SWOT and compare and contrast...............................................................4
LO 3.................................................................................................................................................6
Define emerging business models...............................................................................................6
LO 4.................................................................................................................................................8
Define new collaborative relationship and strategic alliance......................................................8
LO 5.................................................................................................................................................9
Comparing and contrasting digital business and e-commerce along with principles..................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13
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INTRODUCTION
Technology has transformed the way of doing business. It has provided a platform to expand
and reach more people. There are various tools and software used by business. It has resulted in
increasing efficiency as well. Moreover, it has become easy to do business online and attract
more people. With that info regarding product is provided quickly to customers. They are able
to compare products easily as well. However, cost incurred is less and revenue generated is
more. It has led to emerging of various digital business models through which companies are
doing business (Sousa, . and Rocha, 2019)
In this report it will be described about virtual business and global environment. Also, it will
be discussed about SWOT of ASOS. moreover, it will be explained about emerging business
model and collaborative relationship and strategic alliance. At last digital business and e
commerce will be compared.
LO1
Define virtual business and global environment
In present technological advancement there have been many changes in way of doing business.
there are many new tools and techniques emerging that is being applied by business. It has
entirely changed way of selling products and services to customers. A virtual business is a
business that conduct its business on Internet. there is no physical presence of that business such
as office or warehouse etc. (Andrews, and et.al., 2018) it is opposite of brick and mortar
business model in which product and services are sold through Internet. This business works by
giving a physical address and other services without administrative staff. Moreover, staff can
work from anywhere but they have their email phone number etc. in present times there are
various virtual business which is operating. they all provide unique production services to target
market. Moreover, virtual business are able to reach large number of customers as people can
easily access Internet and buy products or services. However with intense competition in brick
and mortar model many virtual businesses has emerged. it has also impacted on business concept
of interacting with customers. besides that, Internet has is in doing business with less cost. With
technology there is also changing global environment. For example- use of digital marketing has
allowed to reach new customers (Park, and Mithas, 2020).
Key trends and pros and cons of virtual context
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With technological advancement there are various trends which is emerging in virtual
business. these trends are resulting in increasing more virtual businesses. some of them are as
follows
Chatbots- business the rising use of social media has provided a platform for business to chat
with its customers. Thus this chatbot business allows to interact with customers and identify their
needs (Giones, and Brem, 2017).
Ad management business- the rising use of digital marketing has made it difficult for business to
manage their ads. Therefore the ad management business concept ads on managing ad on social
media platforms.
SEO business- this is also al concept in digital marketing. It allows in making search easy for
business and its website.
Beside these trends there are certain pros and cons of virtual business. it is as follows
Advantage
The main advantage is it required less cost to do business via Internet. hence it helps in gaining
large revenue
Also the start payment is less as business is done online.
Virtual business helps in reaching wide range of customers at global level
Disadvantage
There is lack of interaction with customers as there is no face to face selling of products. Hence
it does not impress buyers and ask them to share their experience
It requires a lot of time and money to maintain Internet connectivity. besides that, there may
occur some errors and network problem which impact on buying experience of customers.
Another disadvantage is security and privacy issues that leads to ineffective maintenance of
customers personal and confidential information (Joda, and et.al., 2017)
How technology is used and its impact
It has been identified that there is high use of technology by virtual business. this can be stated
from case study that ASOS is virtual business of clothing. they sell variety of clothing products
to its customers by using technology. Moreover company has effectively used technology to sell
its products. this has impacted in positive way on ASOS growth. They have created a website for
personalized cross selling. in this it allows customers to browse products according to their
needs. also it helps in finding out complementary items to their potential purchase. the use of
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website has enabled in creating value of products. so it has led to gaining positive customer
experience. technology has allowed ASOS to reach out large customer market and attract more
people. therefore it has resulted in generating high sales and revenues. For instance- use of
social sites such as You tube, etc has attracted more customers (Senyo, Liu, and Effah, 2019)
LO 2
Define situation and SWOT and compare and contrast
It is important for a company to analyze it operating environment so that effective
strategies are developed accordingly. Besides, the situation is to be analyzed which helps in
identifying opportunities for growth, potential customers etc. so for that there are various models
and theories available which can be applied by business. so it is described as
Situational analysis- it is a collection of methods to evaluate the internal and external factors of
business. here market research is conducted to identify potential growth competitors, etc.
(Nambisan,, 2017) here both internal and external factors are included. Apart from it, in this
SWOT analysis is also included. Moreover, Porter five force analysis is done to examine
competiveness in the market
SWOT analysis- basically it is a tool or framework to access organization current position before
developing their strategy. it helps in analyzing only internal factors of organization. in this there
are four elements that is strength weakness opportunities and threats so it gives insight about
where business currently stands and what needs to be changed. Hence on basis of it strategy is
developed.
Comparison - it is evaluated that both these helps in analyzing the current situation of business
and developing strategies Moreover it looks for opportunities for growth and threats which may
occur in future besides that in both internal and external factors are analyzed therefore a
complete situational analysts is useful in success of business (Orben, and Przybylski, 2019)
On contrary these two differ from one another as in situational various other models and
tools are used to evaluate current situation of company. the models are Porter five force, VRIO,
5C, analysis, etc but in SWOT analysis organization current position is accessed on basis of four
elements that are strength weakness opportunities and threats. Thus, it focus only on one model
for analyzing internal factors.
Apply situation to one business
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Similarly situation analysis of ASOS company is done to find out both external and
internal factors. hence it is explained as below::
Strength
It allows customers to search for variety of additional items to complete their look
The company offers wide range of additional fashionable and trendy items for both men and
woman
It provides a personalized experience for customers to buy product
The design offered by company of all size is at same price.
It is having a unique approach of supply chain operations. so customers can track easily their
product via app (Remane, and et.al., 2017)
Weakness
the company is not able to create brand awareness in the market so most people are not aware
about it (Pagani, and Pardo, 2017).
There are various other virtual business as well giving tough competition to ASOS
Opportunities
ASOS can expand in emerging markets search as India where there lies vast opportunities of
growth.
They can use advanced technology like AI to improve customer experience.
With changing fashion trends company can also include new products and diversify its product
categories
Threats
Do to Covid 19 the entire economic growth has declined so it may impact on ASOS revenue.
There may be many new business which can enter with similar business concept. so it will result
in increase in competition (Ismail, Khater and Zaki, 2017).
LO 3
Define emerging business models
A digital business model refers to creating value that is based on developing customer
benefit with help of digital technology. Its purpose is to provide advantage so that customer are
willing to pay for it. Innovation and technology has transformed the way of doing business. also
it has led to emerging of various digital business models through which companies are doing
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business. the new models are emerging to do innovation. there are various types of business
models emerging (Selwyn, 2016)
Freemium model- it is a type of digital model emerging in which customers receive parts of
digital service for free of charge. It manage the on boarding process through sales. The principle
followed in this model is competence standardization. Here business face challenge of
converting customers to paid version.
Marketplace model- it is a type of model in which suppliers and buyers are integrated on one
platform. it adds value by attracting a large number of buyers to interact with suppliers. it is
highly emerging in market. For example Amazon
Use instead of buy- this model allow use of a set like software machine etc. Thus both
consumption and use of asset is monitored. the model help to reach new target markets.
Define information security threat and ethics
In every business there is need to maintain security and privacy of information of
customers. also with technological advancement there has been rising security threats. it is highly
impacting on business operations and its brand image. Information security threats are those
malicious attacks which is done on software server etc to gain access of information secured in
it. The purpose is to steal or disrupt organization system and information. there are various types
of security threats which occurs suggest cyber crime information system security etc. however
ethics are those practices which is applied to manage information (Whitelaw, and et.al., 2020).
For example – threats like phishing, virus attack, etc
Challenges for security threats and ethics
It has been analyzed that there are various challenges which occur in information security
threats and ethics these challenges needs to be overcome so that security threats are reduced and
info is maintained in business. Furthermore information system has provided a platform to
manage info an effective way but in spite of that various challenges are occurring in it they are as
follows
Cyber crime- it refers to use of IT to do crimes and in this simply criminals access information
for financial gain purpose this is common challenge in it where information security is not
maintained there are various types of cyber crimes like fishing Copyright infringement hacking
etc.
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Computer virus- it is also a challenge where malicious activities are done in computer system to
impact in negative the virus damage or interrupt overall computer and steal confidential data and
info
Unauthorized access- this is a challenge in which hackers get unauthorized access of
information. they use combination of passwords and user Id to gain access. It also highly disrupt
computer system and its security (Ting, and et.al., 2020).
Critical analysis of business model and challenges for information security
It is critiqued that the premium and marketplace model allows customers to buy product
and services. so these models are more effective than use instead of by model. This is because
they provide some value to customers and fulfill their needs. but in other model there is no value
generated instead company reach new target market. Also freemium and marketplace model are
innovative. similarly ASOS is marketplace model.
Also, it is critiqued that the major challenge any information security is hacking as in all
business model it can be easily done. however virus attacks can be prevented by implementing
firewalls and use of antivirus software within business model. it prevent to enter virus during
transaction.
ASOS is a marketplace model so there is also challenge of unauthorized access in
information security (Andrews, and et.al., 2018). This is because while buying and during
transaction hacker can have unauthorized access. so it is difficult for ASOS to overcome this
challenge in there model the value derived from it can be impacted. Therefore it is necessary to
ensure that all information and ethics have been followed by company in marketplace model. for
that Management information system can be used and to protect security of information.
LO 4
Define new collaborative relationship and strategic alliance
There are various new businesses which are emerging in digital technology. they are
making strategic alliance with one another to compete in market. new collaborative relationship
means when two are more than two businesses work together in order to achieve common goals.
in recent time collaboration has become a objective of businesses. along with that they are
making strategic alliance with one another. Strategic alliance isn’t arrangement between two or
more companies to work for a mutual project but remaining independent firms. here an
agreement is made between them but it is less complex than joint venture. the main purpose of
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strategic alliance in digital technology is to use resources and knowledge of other companies so
that new product and services can be developed. It enables in innovation in digital technology.
There are various strategic alliances which has been made when digital technology such as
Flipkart acquiring Myntra, Walmart acquiring Flipkart, etc (Giones, and Brem, 2017)
Importance of new collaborative relationship and strategic alliance
From a digital technology point of view the importance of collaborating relationship is
that it allows companies to work together and do innovation. Furthermore, strategic alliance is
done to provide high quality customer experience and personalization. so in this company uses
each other resources and technology to do so. also strategic alliance allow making changes in
personalization to gain customer satisfaction. It is stated that when one company identifies
concept home model of another then it uses digital technology for personalization. Thus,
strategic alliance is made in it. With strategic alliances have always been important, they are
critical now. In this highly digital age, organizations rely increasingly on Internet based or
computerized products and services that require the simultaneous cooperation of multiple
organizations. Customer facing applications often draw real time information from several
companies at the same time. Research and development (R&D) collaborations often require
integration of data across organizational boundaries. And inventory management systems
frequently link multiple companies in a supply chain (Joda, and et.al., 2017).
Collaborative relationship involve the sharing of company specific or tacit knowledge,
such as in joint design or development, or recombining products and services. So, cross
functional transparency has a positive effect on the value that companies derive from
collaborative relationship. It involves greater sharing of tacit knowledge and integrating of
business processes. They also present a greater challenge in detecting new opportunities for
value creation, which is where cross functional transparency is helpful.
Case studies and examples-
It is found that there are certain examples of strategic alliance through digital technology
that is done. For example Walmart has acquired Flipkart to improve personalization by offering
high number of products to its customers. Therefore technology shared among them for attaining
common goals. The use of digital technology has enabled in gaining of new resources and using
it to create value. Basically, strategic alliance is made in IT firms where Salesforce has alliance
with AI firm to bring is changes in business model. Similarly, Reliance has collaborated with
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Google to produce affordable smart phones for Indian market. This is done to use digital
resources of one another and implement personalization. In addition, in e commerce platform as
well there are many alliance made. It has helped in improving customer experience. Moreover,
organisations are able to reach large number of customers as people can easily access Internet
and buy products or services. also it has led to emerging of various digital business models
through which companies are doing personalization. A new era of digital technology is brought
up where focus in on personalization and innovation. This include use of resources and sharing
of knowledge by building collaborative relationship (Nambisan,, 2017).
LO 5
Comparing and contrasting digital business and e-commerce along with principles
Digital business: Digital business is a process and new way of running business activities by
making use of technology. It helps people and companies in connecting, collaborating and
building bridges between people (Kreutzer, Neugebauer and Pattloch, 2017). It can be better
understand with some examples such as: e-mail marketing, content management system etc.
E-commerce: E-commerce is a process of buying and selling of goods and services online,
transmitting funds over an electronic network. So, it simply means that performing all activities
like placing orders and making payments online is known as E-commerce (Nisar and Prabhakar,
2017).
Comparison and contrasting
Basis of differences E-commerce Digital business
Meaning It is the main potential piece
of digital business. It offers
online monetary transaction
process.
It is a business that
incorporates online
technologies into business
model and it may be physical
store. It refers all those
businesses that include
technology of some extent in
their business model.
Requirement There is requirement of
website only.
For digital business there is
requirement of website, CRM,
ERP and others (Remane and
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et.al., 2017).
Benefactor Main benefactor of E-
commerce is customer that is
provided with the means of
making online purchases.
In digital business main
benefactor are customers’
business partners, suppliers
and others.
Way of conducting business It is conducted exclusively on
the internet.
Digital business can be
conducted on the internet,
intranet or extranet. If any
company uses online
technology then it can be
considered as digital business.
Approach Extroverted approach is being
used in this type of business.
In E business companies use
ambiverted approach.
Basis of comparison E-commerce and digital business
Using mode Both use internet and technology for running business.
Website Both make use of website or there is requirement of website.
Application of E-commerce principles to digital business
There are main universal principles of E commerce that can be used or implemented to digital
business such as:
Data capture: One of the main principle and effective thing about it that can be used in digital
business is it collects consumers’ information. There are 2 methods of data collection such as
manual input and automated.
Promotions and marketing: It can mainly be used in marketing and promotion of goods and
services. Some types of marketing and promotion that can be done in it includes: Banner
advertising, affiliate programs, registration with directories and traditional marketing. All these
can be implemented to digital business (Banna, 2018).
Transacting with stakeholders: It is one of the main principle of it as all products and services
can be displayed in an effective manner. Cross selling can also be implemented, can customize
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website. People can react to competition and on the basis of customers review can take
advantages and main importunately can improve relation.
So, from the above discussed definition, similarities and differences it can be said that E-
commerce is not as like digital business and it is not its synonyms as both are different than each
others. All principles of E-commerce can help in better understanding about differences and
importance of both.
CONCLUSION
From report it can be summarised that there are various trends in technology that has
emerged such as Chatbots, Ad management business. SEO etc. technology has helped ASOS to
create a website for personalized cross selling, customers are able to browse products, etc. Also,
ASOS strength is it provide variety of additional items to complete their look. Furthermore, there
are different business models emerged such as Freemium model, Marketplace model, etc.
moreover, there are various challenges which occur in information security like Cyber crime,
Computer virus. Digital business is different from e commerce as in digital business means way
of running business activities by using technology and e commerce is buying and selling of
goods and services online. The principles of E commerce that is implemented to digital business
are data capture, promotion and marketing, etc.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
Andrews, D., and et.al., 2018. Digital technology diffusion.
Banna, S., 2018. Principles of E-Commerce.
Giones, F. and Brem, A., 2017. Digital technology entrepreneurship: A definition and research
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do we know so far. Cambridge Service Alliance, 10.
Joda, T., and et.al., 2017. Digital technology in fixed implant prosthodontics. Periodontology
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Kreutzer, R.T., Neugebauer, T. and Pattloch, A., 2017. Digital business leadership. Digital
Transformation–Geschäftsmodell-Innovation–agile Organisation–Change-Management.
Nambisan, S., 2017. Digital entrepreneurship: Toward a digital technology perspective of
entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 41(6), pp.1029-1055.
Nisar, T.M. and Prabhakar, G., 2017. What factors determine e-satisfaction and consumer
spending in e-commerce retailing?. Journal of retailing and consumer services, 39,
pp.135-144.
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Pagani, M. and Pardo, C., 2017. The impact of digital technology on relationships in a business
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Remane, G., and et.al., 2017. Discovering digital business models in traditional
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