Supply Chain

How the Supply Chain on the B2B site differs from the B2C site

As the internet age has arrived, businesses are aggressively moving to provide business-to business and business-to commerce. This author will explain how the supply chain differs between each site, and specifics will be given towards that end.

In simple words B2B commerce can be defined as "doing business electronically" or business that is conducted over the Internet. It is most commonly associated with buying and selling information, products and services via the Internet or through the use of private networks shared among business partners. B2B can also be defined as exchanging of structured messages with other business partners over private networks or Internet to create and transform business relationshi

Business-to Business is driven by the customer-empowering capabilities of e-commerce, many companies are moving from the traditional "push" business model, where manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and marketers have most of the power, to a customer-driven "pull" model. This new business model is less product-centric and more directly focused on the individual consumer. In the pull model, customers use electronic connections to pull whatever they need out of the system. The old "push" model involves a linear flow of commerce that keeps many members of the supply chain relatively isolated from end users. With the new customer-driven pull model it is no longer a linear process. The new supply chain has each participant scrambling to establish direct electronic connections to the end customers. (www.e-bc.ca/).

B2C ordinarily refer to on-line trading and auctions, for example, on-line stock trading markets, on-line auction for computers and other goods. B2C e-commerce refers to the emerging commerce model where businesses /companies and consumers interact electronically or digitally in some way. One of the best examples of B2C e-commerce is Amazon.com, an online bookstore that launched its site in 1995. In a B2C e-commerce the focus is more about enticing prospects and converting them into customers, retaining them and share value created during the process. The ultimate goal is the conversion of shoppers into buyers as aggressively and consistently as possible. In a typical B2C flow of information between business and consumer typically is through the medium of internet. (www.project.bus.edu).

B2B B2C Supply Chain applications and solutions are no longer just about reducing costs. They have become primary drivers for improving the competitiveness of an enterprise in the connected economy. Leaders in every market sector are responding to new business pressures by increasing agility and revenue growth through new B2B and supply chain management approaches. For example, Cap Gemini Ernst Young creates many adaptive, "networked value chains" using B2B B2C Supply Chain technologies to connect business partners so that companies can successfully evolve in today's changing market.

As the use of the Internet and e-commerce started gaining popularity in the nineties, interest began to rise in understanding the opportunities for and implications of B2B e-commerce. As a result, one of the primary