Enabling a wide range of businesses in electronic commerce to sell their products or services including Books and CDs, Apparels & Sporting goods, Computers & Software, Music, Arts & Gifts, Automobiles, Banking & Finance, Insurance, Real Estate, Travel, Hotel, Entertainment etc.

Business Overview
In the ever-growing and changing world of technologies, the Internet offers tremendous advantages to businesses to conduct business via electronic media without investing a huge amount in physical infrastructure. Nowadays E-commerce is the buzzword of every business be it in the context of B2C (Business-2-Consumer) or B2B (Business-2-Business).

An E-commerce site can be as simple as a catalog page with a phone number, or as complex as a real-time credit card processing site where customers can place an order for goods which then get delivered to their doorstep. E-commerce merchants can range from small businesses with a few items for sale, to large on-line retailers like Amazon.com, to very large conglomerates like General Electric.

E-commerce benefits both the business and the customer. E-commerce has the potential to increase the speed, accuracy and efficiency of a business and personal transactions markedly.

B2C - Business-to-Consumer
B2C systems are those where a consumer interacts directly with the supplier's system through their own computers. It is simply electronic retailing using the Web as a medium to place orders for typical consumer goods such as books, CDs and, increasingly, travel arrangements.

B2C can also receive information such as share prices, insurance quotes, on-line newspapers, or weather forecasts. The supplier may be an existing retail outlet such as a high street store – this kind of business has very successfully used E-commerce to deliver services to customers.

B2C - Business-to-Business
B2B E-commerce is being driven from two sides. At the pragmatic level businesses are looking to use technology to develop improved ways of working and relationships with trading partners up and down the supply chain. At the other end of the spectrum are the eCommerce product and service providers who are developing new ideas and concepts and hoping that some will "fly".

Much of the attention given to B2B relates to e-Marketplaces and e-Exchanges, but most of the actual use of eCommerce is at a lower level in the eCommerce implementation cycle.

Typically, the B2B E-commerce system is used to

• Attract, develop, retain, and cultivate relationships with customers
• Streamline the supply chain, manufacturing, and procurement processes, and automate corporate processes to deliver the right products and services to customers quickly and cost-effectively
• Capture, analyze, and share information about customers and company operations in order to make better decisions.

Research Facts and Estimates

• The ‘2 billion internet users’ milestone is expected in 2011.Internet user penetration is now 65%-70% for leading countries. 2007 statistics show that 78% of European Internet users shop online, a number fast increasing
• Japan and South Korea, Asia Pacific’s largest markets, saw online B2C sales totaling $34 billion and $14 billion, respectively, in 2006. While these markets continue to grow, they are fast being caught up by those of China, India and Brazil
• By 2010 e- commerce sales in the USA are expected to account for significant percentages of total retail sales
  eg:Fashion – accessories 24% (US$3 billon), footwear 18% (US$5.5 billion) and general apparel 9% (US$17.4 billion).Homewares –small appliances 29% US$2.3 billion), consumer electronics 23% (US$16.8 billion) Entertainment –event tickets 41%(US$9.4 billion), books 28% (US$6.2 billion), music 19% (US$2.6 billion), video games 18% (US$2.8 billion) Computing – for a tech-savvy audience looking to upgradehardware and software 54% (US$17 billion). Forrester Research’s report Trends

The Business Challenge
Today, the revolution in technology is posing lots of challenges for businesses while also offering huge advantages. Businesses, more than ever, need to be efficient and cost effective reaching global customers but overcoming any complications in Communication, Research & Development, Procurement, Logistics & Order fulfillment, Sales & Marketing, Supply Chain etc. Hence the need of the time is for enterprises to be proactive in innovating, becoming more efficient, reducing costs, providing customers with better value and service – building customer relationships.

Solution Approach
SourceEdge’s E-commerce blue print solution is a scalable development model for all businesses from SMEs to Large enterprises selling products and services online. The model is envisaged to extend Internet advantage and enabling E-commerce capabilities in four progressive stages for the entry customers to a full-fledged e-business portal site for large business houses.

The four progressive stages are:

Basic Web site
Customer can browse information to find the products and services offered by a company and see how to establish contact but without online –interaction.

      

Interactive Web site with e-catalogue
Most effective web sites published with comprehensive information detailing the product information to view online. Usually products are showcased through electronic catalogues and product information is disseminated for competitive assessment by potential buyers.

      

Advanced Web site with Shopping Cart and Content Management System
An integrated site built to link the products with shopping cart, managed to publish the content and administer the site for regular updates.

The site feature includes

• Easy Search Function
• Product Management
• Content Management
• User Management
• Site Management
• Enquiry Management

Online Portal site with real time payment system
A full-fledged site published as a virtual store on the net covering A-to-Z product information enabling potential customer to conduct transaction online.

The portal system addresses

• Multi-thread architecture supporting real time transaction
• Secured access to process credit card
• Secure, Reliable Customer data handling
• Integration with back-office business system and more.

Full-fledged e-business portal site
The high-end Internet business system built on sophisticated technologies extending all facilities as the real time business system would function in a physical world. Examples of such an environment are Business-2-Consumer, Extranets, Business-2-Business EDI, On-line Exchanges, e-Marketplaces like Auction sites etc. The typical solution features of such a portal site are illustrated below

E-commerce Storefront Application (B2C)

• Dynamic Appearance (Explicit Personalization, Implicit Personalization).
• Cross Selling (Complementary Cross-selling, Historical Cross-selling,Up-selling).
• Dynamic Multiple Catalog (Web based Catalog management tools).
• Interactive Catalog (Comparing, Zooming, 3D Rotation, 360° view).
• Content Search (Full text, English query).
• Personalization and Membership options.
• Advertisement Tracking and Management.
• Content Push (Auto Emails and Messenger Services).
• Shopping Cart (User defined taxes & discounts, Shipping, Multi currency).
• Integrating with Payment Gateways & Digital wallets.
• Order Tracking.
• Web based MIS Reports.
• Footprint Analysis.

Auction Sites (B2B, B2C)

• Unlimited Nested Categories
• Product search
• Auto Status e-mail
• Relishing Option
• Auto Expires
• Template Editor
• Auction Statistics
• Mailing List

Corporate Procurement Application (B2B)

• Purchase Enquiry
• Quotation & Rate contracts
• Order Approval
• Delivery Schedules
• Payments
• Integration with Legacy system.

Commerce Interchange Pipeline (B2B)

• Sending Documents
• Receiving Documents
• Document Profiles
• Document Signing
• Document Routing
• Trading Profile
• Location Profile
• Document Signing
• Transport Dictionary
• Auditing

Sales Force Automation (B2B)

• Warehouse Module
• Distributor Module
• Dealers Module
• Delivery Schedules
• Reseller Module
• Salesman Module
• Online Inventory
• Sales Enquiry
• Sales Quotation
• Sales Orders
• Order Tracking
• Delivery
• Integration with Legacy System

Software Architecture



Technology Approach




SourceEdge uses leading edge technologies suitably evaluated based on various parameters like the existing business system, Internet business policy and business plan, cost economics, and the client’s infrastructure. SourceEdge adopts scalable web standards which ensures development of the E-commerce system as:

• Platform Independent
• Open Development Choices on different technologies
• Process Driven Development Model
• Highly flexible, scalable, robust component based architecture for east maintenance and scalability
• Graphic and Content balanced web design layout to stand out highly attractive aesthetic look and feel

SourceEdge follows the in-house developed methodology called ‘DesignSmart’ to implement E-commerce solution.

Solution benefits

• E-commerce can deliver your product/services to a steady stream of targeted customers without setting up physical stores at multiple locations.
• 24/7 availability: The store is always open and is accessible from anywhere across the globe.
• Easier entry into new markets, especially geographically remote ones.
• A virtual storefront provides the customer with a familiar setting, being able to browse your products and make a seamless transition to your purchasing system.
• Improved market analysis - The large base of Internet users can be surveyed for an analysis of the marketability of a new product or service idea.
• The ability to streamline and automate purchasing: Companies allow customers to generate and send purchase orders online, thereby minimizing the cost associated with handling sales orders.
• A streamlined buyer-to-seller relationship resulting from simplified communication and direct interaction.