An explanation of the effects of internet on the business society in Namibia
Introduction
Since the invention of the World Wide Web by scientist Sir Tim Berners-Lee in the 1990s, the use of internet has wide spread and now is dominated by commercial use. According to (Brookshear & Brylow, 2015) commerce now depend increasingly on computers that are connected to the internet. Almost every company in the business environment has implemented some form of Internet or business technology into their business operations like company website and a Facebook page. This essay will explain upon the effects that the internet has had on businesses.
Automated office
Automated office is the use of computers in the company as a result everything is electronic, employees, customer and statics of the company is all stored in a database. Therefore the use of the internet in businesses is quiet easy. In addition use of workgroups has revolutionised the modern day company, it does not require company employees to be in the same room or even the same country. Now a company can have employees all over the globe in different time zones but still work is done on time (Beekman & Quinn, 2008). Use of the technologies such as electronic mail, teleconferencing, shared databases and groupware makes it easier for communications among employees. Furthermore it increases the company’s potential employees when hiring because the applicants can come from any part of the globe, the internet has made the world a global village. As a result the company will hire the best they can find. In addition teleconferencing can aid to the holding of argent meetings thus reduces the cost of conducting meetings. Rather than letting employee fly to a specific location, they can just use applications like skype to connect to the meeting conference. Apart from this employee can telecommute, which refers to working from home. This saves the employee time and money because there is no need to commute to work. Companies increase their profits by reducing office space and employees choose their own hours which makes the company productive. Telecommuting has made flexible business management for employees and employers. (Beekman & Quinn, 2008) Studies show that telecommuting can result in a 40 percent increase in a worker productivity.
E-commerce
Electronic commerce includes sales, customer service and communication with business partners. E-commerce has led to booming business like amazon which is now a billion dollar company. By the use of the internet a consumer in Namibia can order something online and delivered within 60 days. Namibia has its very own online shopping store called online shopping Namibia this has a reasonable time of delivery than amazon which then increase their sales and the revenue of the company. Furthermore there are business which are entirely built on the internet called internet companies. According to Beekman and Quinn (2008) recent surveys indicate that there are several thousand internet-based companies that make up to 15 percent of the internet economy revenue and jobs. E-commerce gather customer information, thus it can form closer interactive relations with its regular customers and accurately predict their desired products. Moreover mobile commerce is one of the fastest-growing e-commerce, this is connecting to the internet by the use of mobile phone which make sales managers’ easier and more effective.
Reviews
The success of a product developed by any company weather big or small highly depends on online reviews. Nowadays YouTube and blogs are wide spreads that before a customer’s decides to purchase any product or visit your company, they are probably going to check the online reviews. Wernhill mall in Windhoek has great review and that’s part of what makes it one of the biggest mall in Windhoek and Namibia as a country. However if a company get bad reviews online their company or product will be greatly affected. For example some resorts in Namibia got bad reviews on tripadviser.com, therefore any potential customer is now going to think twice before they pick the phone to book a room. That bad review has greatly affected the company’s revenue.
E-marketing
Online marketing also referred to as internet marketing, is advertising business products through the use of social media like Facebook, Twitter, Skype, WhatsApp, and organisation websites (Research Starters. Education, 2008). Use of internet has benefited the clients and consumers in the business world, through the use of online advertising and marketing, most business organisations have become globalised. Globalisation has caused several flexibilities and simplicity in business performances, the internet revolutionised the ways of conducting business with online marketing. It has turned out to be costlier for organisations investing in physical location outlets and may not necessarily reach their targeted audience as expected. Furthermore (EBSCOPublishing, 2008) notes that organisations conducting internet marketing have a larger/global sphere of influence in the world of business and can market to a global scale accomplishing the specific targeted audience of all goods and services provided. For example, MTC Namibia can reach out its customers conveniently through its website. Promotions, organisation information and a series of the provided services is also accessible through the website or the online customer care service lines. However (Burke, Hawley, Wong, & Jeukendrup, 2011) argues that the use of social media for business marketing is more reliable, flexible and effective than the radial business websites that require to be frequently updated, maintained and closely monitored. Thus, e-marketing effect business market further positively aiding to successful business growth.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, the use of the internet has made business operations flexible and easier. Therefore the use of the internet is greatly recommended for business because of the increased sphere of influence in the marketing through e-commerce. Even reviews by other consumers has an impact on an organisation, it’s always a good idea to have a good organisation’s review online.
References
Beekman, G., & Quinn, M. (2008). Tomorrow's Technology and You. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc.
Brookshear, G., & Brylow, D. (2015). COmputer Science: An Overview. London: Pearson education.
Burke, L. M., Hawley, J. A., Wong, S. H., & Jeukendrup, A. E. (2011). Jounal for sports science. Carbohydrates for competition, 1(6), 21-27.
EBSCOPublishing. (2008, November 21). Research Starters Education. Retrieved September 13, 2017, from WorldCat: www.worldcat.org/title/research-starters-education
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