Topic 4- Home Business

Online shopping and searching for products on websites

• Many people searchfor and order services and products using the internet
• Online stores have database of their good and services that you can access
• You can browse or search for a specific thing

Online Shopping

• Purchasing goods and services using the Internet
• Customers browse online catalogues
• They go to checkout

Advantages

• There are no opening hours
• The goods are delivered to your home this is ideal for people who are house bound
• Worldwide market place

Disadvantages

• Shoppers may be worried about entering their credit/debit card details
• Harder to assess the quality of the goods before ordering
• Loss of the social pleasure of going shopping
• Sometimes more hassle when returning goods
• Lack of personal services
• Hidden cost of postage and packing

Advantages of online shopping to stores

• Can sell goods 24/7
• No expensively fitted out high street stores to pay for
• Less shoplifting
• Cheaper to keep in contact with customers as you can email them
• Can site warehouse anywher where rental is cheap

Disadvantages for online shopping to store

• Specialist ICT knowledge is neesed to set up the sites
• Unemployment
• Business lost abroad if their goods are cheaper
• Networks can fail and this means customers cannot access the site
• Danger of hackers accessing your banking details
• Postages charges can put people off
• Not everyonehas access to the Internet so you would lose some customers

Online booking services

• They can get impartial reports from others about resorts and hotels
• They can also book car rental

Advantages of booking online

• Book from the comfort of your home
• More time to look for holidays than when at a travel agent
• Make savings when booking direct beause no travel agency commission to pay
• Read reports of people who have been on the same holiday that you intend to book
• Find out about the resort before you go

Disadvantages of booking online

• You have to enter credit card details and these may not be kept safe
• There is no personal service like at a high street travel agency
• You could easily enter the wrong information and book the wrong flights

Booking using interacitve digital TV

New interactive digital TV services allow booking to made for:

• Holidays

• Flight
• Cars
• Theatrre and concert tickets
• Cinema tickets

Verification of bookings

• You are responsible for entering booking details
• You need to carefully verify data entered
• This is done by a visual check (i.e. proof reading)

What needs to be verified:

• Dates of travel
• Names
• Dates
• Addesses