Introduction
The role of information management in the promotion of social media products and services has become paramount to the success of e-business platforms. Key players in the industry have developed unique information management strategies with a view of gaining a competitive edge over their rival companies.
The internet market platform offers a diverse range of online trading options such as social networks, auction portals, and search engines among others. The dissemination of information about unique products and services has been inevitable in the online retail business.
As a result, information management in social media products and services is vital for creating a competitive advantage in the internet markets. The Amazon e-business platform is one of the largest electronic commerce traders.
The company adopts a robust e-commerce model that has seen its success amidst the competition that is experienced in the online retailing industry.
This essay analyses the Amazons e-business platform by providing an insight into the role of social media product or service information management in ensuring that a company remains competitive.
The Amazon E-Commerce Business Platform
The Amazon.com Inc. is an international American e-commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington.
The online retail company offers a diverse range of products and services such as computer software, DVDs, foodstuffs, furniture, dollies, and books among others. Indeed, it is regarded as the world’s largest electronic commerce retailer.
It is one of the best known business-to-consumer (B2C) networks for online shoppers (Li et al. 2011). Its online retailing prowess has been achieved through the Amazon E-Business Platform. The system plays a crucial role in the facilitation of transactions across the company’s other systems.
Customers can look for their products, evaluate sellers, and share experiences (Papaioannou et al. 2013). The platform offers personalised interaction services that promote buyer-seller relationships.
For instance, the company’s website greets customers besides offering personalised product recommendations (Papaioannou et al. 2013).
The Role of Information Management in building Sustainable and Competitive Advantages
The E-Business Information System
The Amazon Inc. adopts an information management (IM) system that is based on the buyer-seller interactions. It focuses on promoting close contact between the two parties with a view of increasing its market for social media products and services.
According to Sousa and Oz (2014), the online retailing company has adopted a multifaceted information management system that has standardised processes. This state of affairs has enabled the company gain a competitive advantage over the other industry players the eBay Inc.
The company seeks the delivery of the most satisfying consumer experiences by offering easy access to quality products and services through the e-business platform that is designed with exceptional features to ease the transactional processes.
For instance, the platform is equipped with a search bar that for finding the desired products or services. Upon the identification of the purchase items, the customers are at liberty to place orders by clicking on various options of payment such as credit cards and gift tickets among others (Sousa and Oz 2014).
The information system is highly interlinked with other networks that facilitate the transportation of the purchased items to their designated destinations. The period of delivery can take a few hours, days, or weeks based on the distance of transportation (Sousa and Oz 2014).
Unlike other online retailing companies, the Amazon e-business strategy is developed in a way that no physical store locations are required. Instead of containing items in warehouses, Becker and Shaw (2003) reveal that products are shipped directly from the manufacturing companies to the desired consumers.
The information system bears the responsibility to start reserving the item once a purchaser places an order. It automatically makes shipment arrangements and invoices besides bringing up-to-date the buyer’s account registers.
These state-of-the-art practices can be attributed to the different tech experts who manage the buyer-seller information on the purchase, shipment, and payment of the products (Becker & Shaw 2003).
The work of the employees has been significantly improved due to the integration of the decision support system (DSS) in the information management platform (Al Imran 2014).
This system offers the customers an opportunity to make informed purchase decisions based on their needs. Besides, the company has also integrated a transaction processing system (TPS) that monitors dealings right from the placement of orders and shipment to settling of invoices.
The system accomplished this task with a number of inbuilt accounting arithmetic functions. Furthermore, the executive support system (ESS) ensures that challenges of understanding a given product or the nature of transactions are addressed through query-answer forums that have been created for the customers.
This set of circumstances ensures that the customers are directly linked to the company through the e-business platforms to in an attempt to satisfy their demands in a real-time manner (Al Imran 2014). These systems competitively align the company with its goals to increase its shares in the online retail market.
E-Customer Relationship Management (ECRM)
The management of seller-buyer relationships is highly embraced in the Amazon e-business platform.
The interactions between the company’s e-commerce affairs and the consumers are promoted through the information management system that ensures that knowledge about its products and services is constantly passed to the right individuals and departments.
According to Al Imran (2014), accountability, transparency, and confidentiality are vital factors that are highly regarded in the completion of the online transactions. This state of play has enabled the company build a reputable brand name for its esteemed products and services (Al Imran 2014).
Although the company records a lot of information on the consumers personal details and interests, its ethical standards do not allow any employee to disclose it to other firms or customers.
In addition, ECRM seeks to ensure that errors in pricing are significantly reduced with a view of improving the experiences of customers.
According to Al Imran (2014), the ECRM system also allows customers to have a preview of the items that they intend to purchase prior to completion of the payment. It also offers various propositions that guide the customers towards their preferred choice of items before settling in an informed decision (Al Imran 2014).
Knowledge Management in the Amazon E-Business Platform
Knowledge management is a key concept that is highly regarded in the company irrespective of its position in the online retail industry. According to Amit and Zott (2001), knowledge in the Amazon E-Business Platform is managed at two levels namely the usual and customer levels.
However, the company places an emphasis on customer knowledge management to promote value creation in its e-business endeavours (Al Imran 2014). One of the significant roles of company leaders is ensuring that the customers gain valuable knowledge about the company’s online portfolio of products.
Amit and Zott (2001) revealed that robust knowledge about a product or service was a key determinant of its competitive position in the market besides the creation of value for its perceived consumers.
In the Amazon e-business platform, knowledge is proliferated by encouraging the consumers to share their knowledge by providing perceptions of the products depending on the experiences gained.
This strategy is crucial in the development of competitive steps to ensure sustainable online sales and value creation (Cunningham 2013).
The online retailers are also the greatest competitors in the e-business industry. However, each company has its specific competitors. For instance, the Apple Company is Amazon’s number one competitor in the distribution of tablets and digital media.
Other e-commerce sites such as the Craigslist Inc. also compete with the Amazon Inc.’s market division (Cunningham 2013). The companies have devised robust strategies to compete in the electronic commerce market.
For instance, the Amazon.com Inc. has adopted a strategy that ensures that that the electronic commerce business is centralised (Newcombe et al. 2015). The vastness, advanced technology, ease of shopping, and efficiency of the centralised information management strategy has significantly benefitted the company.
Although various online retailing companies have sprouted due to the continued development of information technology, the Amazon.com Inc. remains unshakable because it has established reputable information management systems.
Companies have developed competitive strategies based on the role of information management (Newcombe et al. 2015).
Li et al. (2011) posit that machine consolidation and virtualisation are also essential for sharing knowledgeable resources. However, the major concern is the performance of the virtual machines without interference from others that share the same resources.
The proper functioning of the entire consolidation and virtualisation depends on the functionality of the virtual machines in the system. Li et al. (2011) affirm that such problems can be alleviated by ensuring that providers embark on selling guest performance instead of consumer resources.
Proliferation of Information through Social Networks
Social networks serve as trading platforms for shared commerce. The use of the online social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus among others has significantly influenced the social commerce (Amblee & Bui 2011).
The electronic word of mouth (eWOM) is also a key determinant of shared online business endeavours. Through online interactions, individuals can change their beliefs, thoughts, and attitudes owing to the influence of experts or individuals who are knowledgeable about particular products.
The eWOM is also a platform for building product reputation. Consumers are free to discuss their product perceptions and rate products (Phillips & Young 2009). Online interaction enables them share information and gauge the reputations of different products.
The product ratings convey the perception of the consumers based on factors such as quality and utility. Thus rating can portray positive, negative or neutral perceptions.
The eWOM can also be used for building the reputation of different product brands by constantly influencing the consumer’s buying decisions. It is one of the Amazon.com Inc.’s leading online selling platforms (Mithas, Tafti, & Mitchell 2013).
The market competition in the online retail industry is significantly determined by theoretical perspectives that pertain to switching costs, product reputation, and network effects. Indeed, competitions result in direct and indirect network effects.
Direct effects are mostly related to the scale of the network (Haucap & Heimeshoff 2014.) In this case, the satisfaction gained from using a specific service increases with the increasing number of the service users. In a simpler way, more users are attracted a network if it has a large customer base.
For instance, the vastness of the Amazon e-business platform’s customer base has attracted many consumers from the perceived possibility of finding other contacts (Haucap & Heimeshoff 2014; Mithas, Tafti, & Mitchell 2013).
On the other hand, indirect network effects occur when benefits are accrued incidentally from an increased number of users in the online market. The availability of many potential buyers that has resulted from the robust information management system has significantly attracted voluminous sellers and buyers.
A recent study indicated that more sellers had the likelihood of retailing their goods in the Amazon online platforms. In addition, there is a possibility of increasing the competition for the products because of the great number of potential buyers.
In return, the increased number of potential buyers and sellers has made the e-business platform attractive (Haucap & Heimeshoff 2014). This situation has further led to an increased customer base.
Conclusion
The role of information management is paramount to the realisation of e-business goals. Competition in the internet market platforms is stiff with specific players dominating the industry’s digital services and social media.
In the last decade, the online retail companies have witnessed the introduction of the state-of-the-art digital technologies such as cloud computing. Giant e-commerce companies such as the Amazon.com Inc. and eBay Inc. compete one-on-one in the e-business market environment.
The essay has revealed how information management has played a central role in the creation of a sustainable competitive position in the online retailing industry the Amazon.com Inc.
References
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