Ecommerce and Marketing Fundamentals

Transaction Log

Records user activity at a website.

Registration Forms

Gather personal data such as name, address, phone, zip code, e-mail, and interests.

Shopping Cart Database

Captures all item selection, purchase, and payment data.

Cookie

A small text file websites place on visitors' computers to store data.

First-Party Cookie

Placed on the user's computer by the same domain as the page being visited.

Third-Party Cookie

Tracks user behavior across websites and devices, placed by advertising platforms.

Web Beacon

A tiny (1-pixel) graphic file embedded in emails and websites for tracking.

Profiling

Uses tools to create a digital image for each consumer.

Database

Software application storing data in fields, records, and files.

Relational Database

Represents data as a two-dimensional table with columns and rows.

Database Management System (DBMS)

Software for creating, maintaining, and accessing databases.

Structured Query Language (SQL)

Industry-standard database query language used in relational databases.

Nonrelational (NoSQL) Database

Uses a flexible data model for managing large, unstructured data sets.

Data Warehouse

Collects a firm's transactional and customer data for offline analysis.

Data Mart

A summarized portion of organizational data for specific users.

Data Lake

Repository of raw, unstructured, or structured data.

Data Mining

Analytical techniques to find patterns in data.

Customer Profile

Description of typical behavior of a customer or group at a website.

Big Data

Huge data sets in petabyte, exabyte, and terabyte ranges.

Hadoop

Software framework for working with big data sets.

Marketing Automation Systems

Tools for tracking steps in the lead generation process.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System

Repository of customer information recording all contacts with a firm.

Customer Touch Points

Ways customers interact with the firm.

Impressions

Number of times an ad is served.

Click-Through Rate (CTR)

Percentage of people who click on an online ad.

View-Through Rate (VTR)

Measures the 30-day response rate to an ad.

Hits

Number of HTTP requests received by a server.

Page Views

Number of pages requested by visitors.

LinkedIn Marketing

Professional networking with profiles, Company Pages, Sponsored Content, used for building personal brands and recruiting.

Location-Based Marketing

Targeting marketing messages based on users' locations using geo-aware and geo-targeting techniques.

Ethical Issues in Ecommerce

Concerns about information rights, property rights, governance, public safety, and welfare.

Information Privacy

Rights to control personal information, due process, and secure storage of data.

Consumer Privacy Regulation

Informed consent, opt-out/opt-in models, GDPR, privacy shield agreements, and safe harbor agreements.

Cross-Site Tracking

Uses cookies to track users across websites.

Cross-Device Tracking

Combines tracking data from multiple devices to create a comprehensive user profile.

Device Fingerprinting

Collects unique information from a device's browser or smartphone to identify specific devices and users.

Copyright Law

Protects original forms of expression from being copied without permission.

Patent

Grants exclusive rights to an invention for a certain period, typically 20 years.

Trademark

Identifies and distinguishes goods, indicating their source.

Cybersquatting

Registering an infringing domain name to extort payments from legitimate owners.

Cyberpiracy

Diverting traffic from legitimate sites to infringing sites.

Trade Secret

Secret information with commercial value protected by its owner.

Governance

Social control over who controls ecommerce and how it is implemented.

Net Neutrality

Concept that ISPs should treat all Internet traffic equally.

Public Safety Issues in Ecommerce

Concerns about protecting children, regulating cigarettes, drugs, gambling, and ensuring equitable access.

Economic Viability

The ability of firms to survive as profitable businesses during a specified period.

Barriers to Entry

Factors that prevent new firms from entering an industry.

Power of Suppliers

The ability of suppliers to drive up the prices of inputs.

Power of Customers

The ability of customers to drive down prices.

Existence of Substitute Products

The presence of alternative products that customers can purchase.

Industry Value Chain

The sequence of activities involved in creating and delivering a product.

Nature of Intra-Industry Competition

The degree of rivalry among existing competitors.

Firm Value Chain

The series of activities within a firm that create value for the firm.

Core Competencies

Unique strengths and abilities that a firm possesses.

Synergies

The additional value created by combining resources and capabilities.

Technology

The application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes within the firm.

Financial Analysis

Assessing the financial health of a firm.

Gross Margin

Gross profit divided by net sales.

Operating Margin

Operating income or loss divided by net sales revenue.

Net Margin

Net income or loss divided by net sales revenue.

Balance Sheet

A financial snapshot of a company's assets and liabilities at a given date.

Assets

Resources owned by a firm.

Current Assets

Assets likely to be converted to cash within one year.

Liabilities

Outstanding obligations of the firm.

Current Liabilities

Debts due within one year.

Long-term Debt

Liabilities not due until after one year.

Working Capital

Current assets minus current liabilities.

Omnichannel Retailers

Retailers selling products through multiple integrated channels.

Virtual Merchants

Single-channel e-commerce firms relying on online sales.

Omnichannel Merchants

Companies with physical stores and online offerings.

Manufacturer-Direct (DTC/D2C)

Manufacturers selling directly online to consumers.

Digital Native D2C Verticals

Online startups controlling sourcing, distribution, and consumer connection.

Channel Conflict

Competition between retailers and manufacturers on price and inventory.

Vertical Conflict

Producers bypassing retailers to sell directly to consumers.

Supply-Push Model

Products made prior to orders based on estimated demand.

Demand-Pull Model

Products built after receiving orders.

Catalog Merchants

Companies with national offline catalogs and online capabilities.

Multichannel E-commerce

Selling products through multiple online and offline channels.

Channel Cannibalization

One channel encroaching on another's revenues.

Direct Channel Strategy

Direct interaction with customers, immediate feedback, brand presence.

Indirect Channel Strategy

Using intermediaries, scaling business faster, focus on product design.

Transaction Brokering

Acting as an intermediary to facilitate a transaction.

Online Financial Services

Fintech, online banking, brokerage, mortgage, and insurance services.

Corporate Online Booking Solutions (COBS)

Integrated travel services for corporate clients.

Social Recruiting

Using social media for job recruitment.

On-Demand Service Companies

Firms providing services on-demand, like Uber, Airbnb, and TaskRabbit.

Digital Rights Management (DRM)

Protecting digital content from unauthorized reproduction.

Walled Garden

DRM using proprietary formats to control content use.

Media Convergence

The merging of different media platforms.

Technological Convergence

Hybrid devices delivering various media types.

Content Convergence

Integration in content design, production, and distribution.

Industry Convergence

Media enterprises merging to create and cross-market content.

Zone 1 Social Commerce

Sharing, buying, and selling goods/services online.

Zone 2 Social Community

Peer-to-peer sharing of networks and contacts.

Zone 3 Social Entertainment

Sharing multimedia content like music/videos.

Zone 4 Social Publishing

Sharing news, knowledge, and information.

Online Publishing Segments

Online newspapers, e-books, and online magazines.

OTT Services

Accessing TV shows and movies via the internet rather than cable/satellite.

Electronic Sell-Through (EST)

Selling movies online for download and ownership.

Internet Video on Demand (iVOD)

Selling access to specific movies a la carte.