Web commerce
Encyclopedia
Web commerce is a form of electronic commerce
that is conducted primarily through the World Wide Web
, but may also use email
and other aspects of the Internet
.
Merchants set up a website
to display their products or services for consumers to access by using a web browser
. Websites present the consumer with various options for searching and selecting products and services, which offer speed and convenience of shopping from home or the office. Although the consumer lacks sensory perception of the actual product, he/she gains benefits of shopping 24 hours a day.
Some merchants attract customers to their websites by advertising through web banner
s or email
. Other merchants may drive customers to their websites through more traditional methods, such as print media, radio or television. Merchants can also extend their online sales reach and revenue by creating an affiliate marketing
strategy.
Payment is handled in a variety of ways: online credit card
payment, mailed cheque
, money order
, or PaidByCash, or phone order. For credit card payments, the merchant typically relies on a third-party payment gateway
that enables a secure payment method using cryptographically based technology, such as SSL or TLS
. This protects the customer's sensitive information from interception by encrypting
all data transferred between the customer's computer and the website's server. The account withdrawal may be conducted by the merchant or through a third-party payment service, such as PayPal
, Wirex, ePassporte, etc.
Electronic commerce
Electronic commerce, commonly known as e-commerce, eCommerce or e-comm, refers to the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the Internet and other computer networks. However, the term may refer to more than just buying and selling products online...
that is conducted primarily through the World Wide Web
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
, but may also use email
Email
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
and other aspects of the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
.
Merchants set up a website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
to display their products or services for consumers to access by using a web browser
Web browser
A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...
. Websites present the consumer with various options for searching and selecting products and services, which offer speed and convenience of shopping from home or the office. Although the consumer lacks sensory perception of the actual product, he/she gains benefits of shopping 24 hours a day.
Some merchants attract customers to their websites by advertising through web banner
Web banner
A web banner or banner ad is a form of advertising on the World Wide Web delivered by an ad server. This form of online advertising entails embedding an advertisement into a web page. It is intended to attract traffic to a website by linking to the website of the advertiser...
s or email
Email
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
. Other merchants may drive customers to their websites through more traditional methods, such as print media, radio or television. Merchants can also extend their online sales reach and revenue by creating an affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is a marketing practice in which a business rewards one or more affiliates for each visitor or customer brought about by the affiliate's own marketing efforts...
strategy.
Payment is handled in a variety of ways: online credit card
Credit card
A credit card is a small plastic card issued to users as a system of payment. It allows its holder to buy goods and services based on the holder's promise to pay for these goods and services...
payment, mailed cheque
Cheque
A cheque is a document/instrument See the negotiable cow—itself a fictional story—for discussions of cheques written on unusual surfaces. that orders a payment of money from a bank account...
, money order
Money order
A money order is a payment order for a pre-specified amount of money. Because it is required that the funds be prepaid for the amount shown on it, it is a more trusted method of payment than a cheque.-History of money orders:...
, or PaidByCash, or phone order. For credit card payments, the merchant typically relies on a third-party payment gateway
Payment gateway
A payment gateway is an e-commerce application service provider service that authorizes payments for e-businesses, online retailers, bricks and clicks, or traditional brick and mortar. It is the equivalent of a physical point of sale terminal located in most retail outlets...
that enables a secure payment method using cryptographically based technology, such as SSL or TLS
Transport Layer Security
Transport Layer Security and its predecessor, Secure Sockets Layer , are cryptographic protocols that provide communication security over the Internet...
. This protects the customer's sensitive information from interception by encrypting
Encryption
In cryptography, encryption is the process of transforming information using an algorithm to make it unreadable to anyone except those possessing special knowledge, usually referred to as a key. The result of the process is encrypted information...
all data transferred between the customer's computer and the website's server. The account withdrawal may be conducted by the merchant or through a third-party payment service, such as PayPal
PayPal
PayPal is an American-based global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Online money transfers serve as electronic alternatives to paying with traditional paper methods, such as checks and money orders....
, Wirex, ePassporte, etc.