Electronic commerce

The e-commerce revolution. Last week, I discussed the social media revolution and this week I realise that anything that has to do with the internet or computer has come to infiltrate and change our ways of living our lives. I think the history of e-commerce and the interviews done in the video clearly show how people are now dependent and many more prefer to embark on e-commerce.

What about me, you may ask. I am embarrassed to tell you that I am a failure in this aspect. Or maybe I just wasn't too hyped up about the business two friends and I tried to start up. But let me just share some experiences on my e-commerce experience.

In Singapore, online blog shops are rampant and popular with young adults and teenagers; my friends and I being one of the many addicted to online shopping saw the opportunity to start our own little business selling female apparel. The reasons being, first, there is no need to get a location for our shop, all we need is a domain name and we would be able to start up our website. Secondly, we can spend all our money on our inventory (dresses, tops, sweaters, skirts, etc). There was no need to take out extra money. Thirdly, little manpower is needed to start an online blog. All we needed to do was to get a livejournal account, name it, buy our inventory, take photos, put them up with descriptions and prices, and there you have it, our business started! Forth, there was no need for the right timing to get the business started, because it was so easy to do so, we could do it in a matter of 1 day. Not much marketing is needed as well, what we could do was to post our site on other community blogs and start building an image for ourselves.

Sounds easy, right?

Well, not really.

Actually, there were many other things we overlooked.. Like the fact that we had to come up with a pricing strategy, and remember that everyone has a different style of fashion that they look for; what we like, may not be what others like. We should have done a study to find our what the mass market prefers, and think of ways to create our unique selling point so that we do not just become 'one of the blog shops' around. There were many other things we did not think about, and thus, the failure of our business. In the end, we realised that it was not as simple and easy as it seemed. There was a need for commitment and time to be placed in running the business well.

Although we did not succeed in our business, I really learnt many things. For one, I know now not to jump into something rashly, but to spend time researching and finding our more about the market and think of ways to market the products that I intend to bring in.

Are you thinking of starting an e-business? Maybe this video can give you some tips, because I wished I had done what he suggested.

Social Media and you

WOW. I mean, seriously.. I was really amazed at the numbers that were showing up on the video. The social media revolution has got to be the fastest and greatest revolution the world has experienced and seen.

For me personally, I am not too crazy about the whole "facebook" or "friendster" thing. In fact, I don't have a twitter account! I feel that these modes of media just allow one to create the persona and character they want others to see them as. They may not always be genuine and sincere. Thus, I tend to take things I read as a pinch of salt on facebook regarding statuses, etc. In class, I remember our teacher talking about how people post all sorts of pictures partying and clubbing all over the internet, so that people can see and watch how they are "cool".

However, I have learnt that it also depends on the person who is doing it. For some, facebook is really the place where they update friends on their lives. It is certainly a good avenue to keep in contact with friends who are studying or working overseas. It has made things so easy for networking and keeping in touch. All we have to do is simply, click on the friend's page and type a message on his/her wall. No longer do we need to go the extra mile to call, write or email..

I end this post with a short video from a reporter in Sky News in London who shares about how news is gathered with the social media revolution.

As you watch this video, I have the same question as he has for you that I hope you can take some time to think about..

How has social media changed for YOU?

Hello world

What do I mean when I name the title of this post "Hello world"?

For one, since this is the first post of my blog rambling on the about the internet, it is only right and courteous for me to greet anyone of you reading this page. I hope you will enjoy what you read and perhaps, even gain some form of knowledge about the internet as I ramble on and reflect on what I learn weekly in my introduction to the Internet module this semester. Please feel free to leave your comments so that we can learn from each other and share our thoughts with one another.

The second reason why I greeted you as "world" is because the Internet has truly transformed to become the most powerful and quickest network available globally. I can post this up on the internet in Singapore, and anyone from the other side of the world can read this the moment I post this. It's hard to imagine life without such ease in communication or readily available information and knowledge.

I recall from my first introductory lesson on monday morning that there has been much growth in the 'web' type of the internet networks. Or whatever it actually is called. Basically, there is "Web 1.0" that is a typical 'read-only' page, such as this blog that you are reading. Then it evolved to "Web 2.0" where it is also known as the interactive web that the consumers collaborate to be the producers of the webpage, such as the well-known facebook. Then "Web 3.0" came about to drive towards making the internet intelligent, and making it able to understand the needs of the consumer, such as Amazon.com.

The professor mentioned something that really struck me hard with regards to this. He mentioned that with the technology that people have created and their drive for discovery and creating even newer technology constantly, he will not be surprised if "Web 4.0" comes out soon. This is when the internet knows you. Imagine this, when you go on the internet, there will no longer be a need to browse around yourself or search painfully to do your research. It will be done for you automatically! Now tell me, how cool is that?

Although these things sound really abstract and they seem to appear only in the movies, I can't help but agree that these things will definitely happen in the future and in my lifetime.