Think E-business

The Internet, it seems, has finally arrived. From its early days, when it was nothing more than a wasteland of online brochure ware, it has now transformed itself into a viable and stable marketing channel. But even today, for every one site that has gone on to truly leverage the power of the Internet to create a powerful online brand, there are ninety-nine others that have invested millions and sunk without a trace.

Taking relationships online requires more than technical capability. As customers have told us, it's still about how we make them feel. Our basic online strategy must reflect our commitment to genuine relationships, not technology-driven transactional encounters.

Gartner, in a study of retail sales estimated that between 30 percent and more than 40 of attempts to purchase products over the Web fail due to poor Web site usability. Another study showed that European consumers who found their online purchase experiences very satisfying spent an average of 1,074 euros ($976) online during the past 12 months, whereas dissatisfied purchasers spent an average of 628 euros ($570) online during that same period)

At its core, a strategy must answer questions like value proposition and technology options, target audience amongst others. Read on for more…