'How e-commerce could give users the power and choice of supplier. What markets are now really interested in e-commerce and e-trading? What should companies seeking to serve this sector do to meet customers demands?'

Background

This is the first in a series of research reports to be published this year by the Telecommunications Users Association. It follows on from work the TUA research unit has carried out in the past few years on the implications for business and telecom and IT suppliers on the convergence of IT and telecommunications.

This work showed that the take up of new technologies is now being put under the spotlight, as company management is beginning to question whether these technologies really save money, other than staff costs, and are calling for greater scrutiny of what IT and telecoms services actually produce in terms of adding value to an organisations bottom line.

This particular report looks at how business views the role of e-commerce and e-trading and how it evaluates what suppliers in this sector are actually offering.

Main Findings

That the e-commerce sector is best examined via the attitudinal model that TUA first discovered two years ago as a means of segmenting markets. This sees markets being broken down by an organisation's attitude to business into three distinct types progressives, main stream and conservatives. (Reference: 1997 and 1998 TUA Annual Survey results).

Within this TUA have identified that the constant addition of new layers of technology is not producing greater efficiencies. Rather it is amassing greater deadlocks of data which negates the perception that the convergence of IT and telecom technologies produces improved business processes via speed of communication. TUA have called this MAID, Mutually Assured Information Deadlock. (Reference: 1997 and 1998 TUA Annual Survey results).

In this latest research TUA predicts that the advocates of e-commerce and e-trading need to examine these issues before they begin presenting electronic purchasing and payment systems to their customer.

The potential market for e trading has to be looked at against overall changes in the population profile. As the population profile gets older, TUA predicts we will see a steady rise in SME's and SOHO's, as the baby Boomer Generation bridge the working gap between a career within an organisation and retirement.

According to the TUA 45% of the 40 to 50 age group surveyed, who are running their own businesses, are already finding the use of The Internet and e-commerce and e-trading a particularly interesting area for development. They are getting to grips with the technology, but they face pressures on time and have little real help from advisers such as banks, accountants.

The Internet provides this group with:

An ability to be on equal terms with bigger players via a website

No restriction on the geographic catchment area for sales or enquires

Allows direct control of many aspects of the business

Combining processes such as advertising, finance and ordering into one process

Allows people to get to grips with new technologies without the aid of too much hired help and to see direct results

Provides access to new suppliers and to check on potential competition, without third party costs

TUA has named this group SAME (Small Adult Mature Enterprises). They include sectors as diverse as cake making to farming to toy manufacturing, cartography to book antique selling.

These users have found that business advisers such as banks or accountants, have little or no knowledge of this type of development, which creates a problem in terms of the financial transactions part of this technology. Telcos and IT suppliers do, in the main, seem to be supplying sufficient technology and support and back up.

The missing link in relation to e-commerce is in terms of:

Security

Business want not just security about finance but to feel that all the operation is total secure

Speed

This particularly relates to the speed at which money is moved. 'Why does it take so long to move in to my account, but much quicker out' is a major question mark over e commerce and trading

Transparency

Requirement to check on transactions and trading. This also relates to telecoms operators and electronic billing

More Than Just a Financial Transaction

e-commerce and e-billing is not just a function it forms a key part of the whole process of branding. Failure at this point can magnify other questions over customer service and damage a brand

Other Sectors Covered

This group are very different from other types of organisation such as large multinationals, or medium size SME's, both of which are covered in the report. The final report will include the following key areas:

(A). What the consumer and business sector understand about:

1. e-commerce and e-trading
2. Where do they meet?

(B). Technologies against markets:

1. How can we define which are the key groups that might take up this technology?
2. What does previous experience of other technologies tell us about potential take up?

(C). Does history repeat itself?

1. What is the bill to a customer?
2. What does paying via a new technology mean to the customer relationship?
3. The customer and the bill good or bad place to market other ideas?

(D). Are all customers going to be the same?

1. The regular and the casual
2. Will customers' requirements change depending upon the technological gateway?
3. The implications for orthodox marketing programmes
4. What will customers want?

a. security
b. speed
c. transparency
d. just a financial transaction?
e. back office

(E). The Potential For Change - 'Riding The Tiger'

1. Without Frontiers
2. The Euro a potential role
3. Multicultural customers or just one?

ARE YOU MEETING YOUR CUSTOMERS EXPECTATIONS?

IS THERE DEMAND FOR YOUR PROPOSED NEW SERVICE?

WHAT DOES THE USER WANT FROM THE MARKET?

Focused research commissions undertaken on behalf of the industry identifying the users’ views expressed by users! The TUA Annual Survey of User views carried out on behalf of industry sponsors targeted to deliver the information they require about user perceptions.

Please contact the TUA office if you wish to take advantage of the TUA's research programme tua@dial.pipex.com