Everyone in business knows the Internet is the fastest -- and fastest-growing -- way to sell and buy just about anything. But most people don't know how to actually use this tool to their competitive advantage.What exactly is electronic commerce? Are on-line transactions secure? How do you capture customers' sales patterns? How do you provide mass customization? Now marketers, managers, salespeople, entrepreneurs, and others can find fast answers to every pressing question and nagging concern about the world of electronic commerce. This practical question-and-answer guide quickly and concisely explains how to: Integrate e-commerce into a business strategy -- Understand the technology -- Identify key opportunities for a business -- devise an e-commerce implementation plan -- Successfully create and market a site, and much more.

Table of Contents:
The market today - what is the Internet? what are 1st generation, 2nd generation or 3rd generation web sites? what is E-commerce? how can my company benefit from E-commerce? what is an extranet site? how does the Internet change the way employees work? what is disintermediation? how has the Internet enabled companies to move from mass marketing to mass customization? can Internet transactions and communications be secure? are companies really making money on their E-commerce sites? can small companies compete with big companies? is it possible to stop hackers? what are the key opportunities for companies on the Internet? identifying your E-commerce direction - is my product a good candidate foe E-commerce? is your service a good candidate for E-commerce? what is on-line presentment? what are the most effective E-commerce strategies for a service business? in on-line shopping right for my company? how will my customers respond to my E-commerce services? how will my distributors respond to E-commerce? what are the basic elements of an on-line shopping service? which departments will be most affected by the implementation and growth of E-commerce? E-commerce technology - do I need to hire a programmer to create a web page? what is HTML? how does it work? how do you design forms? what is a gateway program? what is the role of databases in E-commerce? how can I use data mining to create a personalized experience for my customers? how does encryption technology work? what are cookies? will my customers be unhappy if I use them? what is secure server technology? do I need it for my site? how do make encryption available on my web-site? what is digital authentication? how do I set up my web-site for credit card transactions with my customers? are there electronic payment systems other than credit cards? what is a shopping cart? do I need one? should I buy an on-line purchasing software package or build my own? should I tie my online purchasing site to existing fulfilment applications? how does an E-commerce transaction work? creating an E-commerce site - to what market segment should I target my site? does my entire site need to be complete before I begin to publish it? how should I decide what to include on my on-line shopping site? what is the best way to select a server to host my on-line purchasing site? what should I consider when choosing an ISP to host my purchasing site? what resources do I need to use an ISP to host my site? what is involved in hosting my site with my own server? (Part contents).