Many writers and researchers have generally agreed for some time that technology has
the capacity to change how businesses trade, expand information processing capacity
and impact on overall success. More recently, commercial usage of Internet technologies
has sparked a debate focusing on the breadth and depth of the impact of these technolo-
gies. Porter (2001) strongly argued the Internet to be ‘a complement to, not a cannibal
of, traditional ways of competing’. However, some writers (Tapscott 1997, Gates 1999,
Evans and Wurster, 2000) argue that business is completely different as a result of trad-
ing online and go as far as advocating that the Internet creates a radically different
trading environment. As a result, it is suggested organisations should develop funda-
mentally different value propositions and new patterns of organisational behaviour in
order to create sustainable business strategies for the online trading environment (Evans
and Wurster, 2000). Moreover, there is some evidence to support such arguments; new
market entrants have taken market share from existing companies by developing inno-
vative market positions using seemingly unorthodox approaches, for example:
Amazon.com established its position as the world’s largest book seller using competi-
tors’ and suppliers’ inventories;
Google positioned itself as the most effective search engine by freely giving away its
core service to end users;
eBay has built its digital empire by facilitating online auctions whereby individuals
rather than organisations sell their own goods to other individual customers (for fur-
ther discussion of eBay trading see Case Study 10) and in doing so positioned the
company as a global consumer trading arena.Notwithstanding this debate over the impact of the Internet on business strategy, it is
a fact that a critical mass (in terms of B2B usage of Internet technologies) has been
arrived at and as a result it is prompting more and more businesses to have a well-
developed and supported Internet presence and to trade electronically. Consequently, it
is important to ensure a clear understanding of B2B Internet marketing in order for busi-
nesses to utilise available technology efficiently and effectively. This chapter focuses on
business usage of Internet technologies in B2B markets and the extent to which digital
technologies are re-shaping business strategies and trading environments.Key themes and concepts
This chapter addresses four key themes which are central to understanding how busi-
nesses are utilising Internet technologies:1 The B2B e-context:this section explores the circumstances in which B2B usage of the
Internet occurs and highlights some features of the online trading environment
which affect business involvement.
2 Commercial exchanges in B2B markets:this section examines: 1. the electronic mar-
ketplacein terms of growth, volume and global dispersion; and 2. electronic exchanges
looking specifically at how organisations are using Internet technologies for (a) com-
munications, and (b) e-commerce(online buying and selling).
3 Trading relationships in B2B markets:this section explores how trading relation-
ships are changing as a result of online trading, the structure of the online buying
group and the online supply chain.Introduction
Introduction