All activities where goods and services are sold and paid for over the Internet are examples of e-commerce. If someone asks you if you do business online, they want to know if you buy and/or sell products or services electronically. Electronic, in this case, means online or through the Internet.
Online business is any type of business activity that takes place on the Internet. Doing business online can involve buying and selling online or providing services online.
Online business refers to service or the company
The term e-commerce can refer to the activity of buying and selling goods and services online, or a specific business. In other words, the focus can be on what the company does or what it is. When we talk about activities, namely online shopping, it means the same thing as e-commerce. E-commerce is a type of business in which business transactions are conducted through digital or electronic networks. Often, this means through the Internet.
For example, e-Bay is involved in e-commerce, it is an online business. PayPal, Netflix and Booking.com are online businesses; they are also involved in e-commerce.
When the word refers to a business, we put the indefinite article (the word “a”) in front of it. When it comes to just work, there is no clear story. Look at the two sentences below:
- PayPal is an online business. (we use the word “one” when we talk about a company)
- PayPal is involved in e-commerce (we don’t use “something” to talk about its business).
When online business refers to business, it means the same thing as e-commerce. Online business includes products and/or services
All types of business activities conducted through the Internet are examples of online business. A person who provides online services and has paying customers has an online business, such as an entrepreneur who sells products on the Internet. The opposite of online business is offline business.
Fifty years ago, all business activities were offline because the Internet did not exist. If you want to buy something, you have to go to the seller’s physical store, call them, or send a letter with money.
In the 1950s, customers had to go to their bank branch if they wanted to withdraw or transfer money. There are no computers, phones, tablets, or the Internet, which means that online banking does not exist.
Online business has grown and grown
Since the last century, the number of internet transactions has increased significantly. Unfortunately, many brick and mortar companies, such as retail stores, have paid the price. If you walk down the main street (Business Street) of a city or town with great wealth today, you will see fewer shops than a few years ago.
Over the past two decades, consumers have become more involved in online shopping and visiting their local stores less often. Hundreds of thousands of physical stores could not cope and closed.
People’s shopping habits in the weeks leading up to Christmas have changed dramatically. Many people still like to walk the streets and enter the shops after Christmas shopping. However, a significant number now choose to do all their shopping online. They can sit in the comfort of their living room or bedroom, avoid the angry crowds and cold weather, and make quick comparisons.
Today’s biggest internet company
Today, there are thousands of online business models. Amazon.com, for example, is a mega-giant. It is the largest online retailer in the world. It also focuses on digital media, cloud and artificial intelligence. Amazon employs 1,335,000 people worldwide. It is one of America’s “Big 5” in the world of technology.
In this context, “Tech” refers to electronic technology companies involved in developing software, providing services related to the Internet, cloud computing, AI (intelligence) and digital electronics.