Unit 1 discussion
First, take a few minutes to introduce yourself to the
class.
Second, Chapter 1 includes the types of e-commerce beginning
on page 17. Suppose you were interested in establishing an e-commerce site.
What type of e-commerce would you choose, and why? What about that type of
e-commerce seems to embrace what you envision as a great business?
The purpose of this discussion board is for you to think
critically about the types of e-commerce and to begin thinking about the type
that suits your interests—your ideal e-commerce opportunity.
Unit 2 discussion
This discussion board involves thinking critically about an
e-commerce business model by considering the following question: Would you say
that Amazon and eBay are direct or indirect competitors? Explain. Feel free to
visit each website before drafting your response.
Unit 3 discussion
As e-commerce entrepreneurs, it is important to think about
how the future will impact our businesses. Since technology is always changing
and advancing, it is important to identify the advancements as early as
possible in order to plan and implement adjustments to the business. With this
in mind, let’s discuss the major technological advancements on the horizon.
What are the major technological advancements that are anticipated to accompany
the Internet of the future? Discuss at least one advancement and the impact it
will have on the Internet and e-commerce.
Unit 4 discussion
Today, designing websites to support mobile devices is very
popular. However, it can and often does require additional time and expenses.
For this discussion, address some of the unique features that must be taken
into account when designing a mobile Web presence. Also, share your thoughts
about designing a site to support mobile devices and the expected return from
this type of investment.
Unit 5 discussion
If you had to choose to be an expert for one of the topics
within this unit, which one would you choose, and why?
Unit 6 discussion
Businesses, as well as advertising agencies, love to know
what types of advertisements actually produce results, so let’s talk about
that. Suppose that you were invited to a meeting with the most prestigious
marketing firm in the world, and they would like you to tell them what makes
you want to purchase something from an e-commerce site. What would you tell
them?
Unit 7 discussion
Typically, a business offers products, services, or both.
After reading the trends in Chapter 9, what type of e-commerce would you want
to establish: (a) one that sells products, (b) one that sells services, or (c)
one that sells products and services? Explain your choice.
There are no right or wrong responses to this question. The
purpose is for you to begin thinking about these details and to learn as a
group.
Unit 8 discussion
Take into consideration each unit’s lesson. Choose one topic
covered, and discuss what you learned from the lesson and unit readings and how
you will use the knowledge gained to increase your professional skills. Be
specific, and discuss how the lesson will enhance your career and workplace
success.
Unit Assignments
Unit I Assignment
Building a Timeline for the History of the Internet
This assignment provides you with an opportunity to build a
timeline that illustrates the significant milestones of the
Internet. Remember that all history is selective, and no two
scholars can agree to the time when the Internet (or ecommerce)
actually began or what constitutes a significant milestone.
You are encouraged to use your course textbook,
reliable sources from the Internet, and the university’s
online library to support the information within your own timeline.
Also, this assignment involves using Microsoft PowerPoint to
create a timeline. Feel free to design your own timeline, or
click here to access a template.
Be sure to include at least the following as part of your
timeline:
? Include at least 12 milestones
on the timeline.
? On separate slides, very briefly
summarize each milestone—what occurred?
? Include dates on both the timeline and
the summarizing slides.
? Include a references slide where you
can cite your research for each milestone.
? (Optional) Include a few images to
visually represent milestones on the timeline.
Save all of your work within the PowerPoint file, proofread
all of your work, and submit it in Blackboard for grading.
BBA 3331, Introduction to E-commerce 3
Information about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric
for this assignment is provided below.
Unit II Assignment
Instructions: This assignment provides you with an
opportunity to discuss components of the online business model by relating the
eight components to an existing type of e-commerce. Complete this assignment by
answering each of the questions within this document. Then, save all of your
work before submitting the document in Blackboard for grading. This assignment
allows you to demonstrate competency toward the following course learning
outcomes:
2. Discuss components of the online business model.
4. Develop strategies for running an e-commerce company.
The first step is to select an existing e-commerce out there
on the Internet. Then, answer the following questions based on what you can
research about the e-commerce.
1.
What is the name of the e-commerce, and what
type of service or product does the company offer?
2.
Has the e-commerce been designed as a
business-to-consumer (B2C) business, a business-to-business (B2B) business, or
both?
3.
Which specific business model best suits the
e-commerce (see pages 75 and 83 in the textbook)?
4.
What is the value proposition for the
e-commerce?
5.
How would you describe the revenue model for the
e-commerce?
6.
What is the market opportunity for the
e-commerce?
7.
How would you describe the competitive
environment for the e-commerce
8.
What is
the competitive advantage for the e-commerce?
9.
How would you describe the market strategy for
the e-commerce?
10.
How would you describe the organization
development for the e-commerce?
11.
How would you describe the management team for
the e-commerce?
Unit III Essay
This assignment provides you with an opportunity to explain
the four infrastructures influencing e-commerce strategy.
Begin by selecting an e-commerce out on the Internet,
excluding the examples in the textbook. Then, draft a two-page essay that
explains how the e-commerce’s strategy has been influenced by the four
infrastructures:
? Layer 1: network technology substrates,
? Layer 2: transport services and
representation standards,
? Layer 3: middleware services,
and
? Layer 4: applications.
If you are not sure about the strategy that the e-commerce
actually used, then you can make logical estimations or recommendations for how
your strategy, for the selected company, would be influenced by the four
infrastructures. As part of your explanation, be sure to include how each layer
is dependent upon other layers.
There is no need to prepare a title page nor a references
page; however, be sure to use Times New Roman, 12-point font, double-spacing,
and one-inch margins.
Information about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric
for this assignment is provided below.
Unit IV PowerPoint
Presentation
This assignment provides you with an opportunity to define
tools of the customer interface and to distinguish the different
stages of developing a website by preparing a presentation.
Treat this presentation as if you were bidding on a job, and
this presentation is your opportunity to sell the tools you
would include along with the process (the development stages)
that you would follow. Include at least the following within
the presentation
? seven tools of the customer interface
(i.e., context, commerce, connection, communication, customization,
community, and content);
? examples for each of the seven tools of
the customer interface (images or screenshots);
? explanation of how your team would
progress through each of the stages for developing a website (i.e.,
systems
analysis/planning, systems design, building the system,
testing, and implementation service delivery);
? examples of the tasks that would occur
in each development stage; and
? at least 12 slides.
Use your creativity to format the presentation; however, be
sure it is professional and legible. For some guidance toward
preparing presentations in PowerPoint, click here to access
a video with helpful tips. Be sure to save all of your work in
your presentation file before submitting it in Blackboard
for grading.
Information about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric
for this assignment is provided below.
Unit V Article Review
This assignment provides you with an opportunity to read an
article about a current security threat (or attack) while also examining how
security measures impact the customer experience. Within the online library,
locate an article that describes a recent security threat (or attack) on an
e-commerce site. Choose a threat or attack that occurred within the last 10
years. Read the article, and then draft a two-page paper to address each of the
following:
? Briefly describe the threat (or
attack).
? Briefly describe the type of
e-commerce.
BBA 3331, Introduction to E-commerce 4
? Could the threat have been prevented by
utilizing the steps of the security life cycle model? Why, or why not?
? Does the e-commerce sacrifice any form
of customer service by implementing security measures? Explain.
? Visit the e-commerce site for a brief
moment. As a consumer, did you feel that your information and/or any
exchange of funds would be secure? Explain your initial impression.
Use APA style to format the paper. All source material must
be referenced (paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying
citations). For some guidance toward preparing your article review, click here
to access a video with helpful tips.
Information about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric
for this assignment is provided below.
Unit VI Reflection
Paper
Unit VI includes several marketing and advertising
strategies that many companies have used to strengthen their brands.
This assignment provides you with an opportunity to make recommendations
for strengthening an e-commerce’s brand.
Write a two-page reflection paper by recommending at least
six marketing and advertising strategies (concepts) and explaining how each
strategy would strengthen the brand for an e-commerce site.
Use Times New Roman, 12 point font, and double-spacing to
format the reflection paper. There is no need to include a title page nor a
references page.
Information about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric
for this assignment is provided below.
Unit VII Case Study
This assignment provides you with an opportunity to analyze
the impact of e-commerce on a business. First, choose ONE of the following case
studies that can be located in the Business Source Complete database of the
online library:
MarketLine. (2012, July). Ideeli: The growth of the flash
sale website.
MarketLine. (2012). Play.com: The rapid rise of an online
retailer.
After reading and examining the case, write at least a
one-page analysis by addressing each of the following:
1. Briefly introduce the company and its history
2. Briefly describe the products and/or services
available—what are consumers purchasing online?
3. Describe the basic elements of the company business
model:
? Core value proposition of the
company—what is it offering, and how does it satisfy customer needs?
? Target market/audience—who uses this
service?
? Revenue model—where does the money come
from?
? Competitive environment—who else is
competing in this market, or who might enter the market and threaten
this company’s position?
? Competitive advantage analysis—how is
the company attempting to gain an advantage? Competing on cost?
Differentiation?
? How are they promoting their products
in the marketplace?
? How would you rate the company’s
success (financial results if available)?
4. Be sure to answer at least ONE of the following
questions:
? How has e-commerce impacted this
business?
? How has an “e-commerce presence”
provided this business with opportunities that otherwise would not haveexisted?
Format your analysis paper by using Times New Roman,
12-point font, double-spacing, and one-inch margins. There is no need to
include a title page nor a references page. Be sure to proofread your work
before submitting it in Blackboard for grading.
Information about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric
for this assignment is provided below.
Unit 1 quiz
Question 1 Which of the following is NOT a unique feature of
e-commerce technology?
Question 2 Which of the following statements about
e-commerce in the United States in 2014 is NOT true?
Question 3 All of the following are major social trends in
e-commerce in 2014-2015 EXCEPT for:
Question 4 E-commerce can be defined as:
Question 5 Which of the following features of e-commerce
technology enables merchants to market and sell “complex” goods and
services to consumers via marketing messages that can integrate video, audio,
and text?
Unit 2 quiz
Question 1 All of the following are using a subscription revenue
model for e-books EXCEPT:
Question 2 Your company has just implemented a new, more
efficient set of business processes that other firms cannot yet obtain. This
will enable your firm to adopt a strategy of:
Question 3 A firm’s __________ describes how a firm will
produce a superior return on invested capital.
Question 4 Which element of the business model addresses the
question of why a customer should buy from the firm?
Question 5 The ability to retain user attention and
engagement is an important attribute for which revenue model?
Unit 3 quiz
Question 1 Which of the following statements about cloud
computing is NOT true?
Question 2 __________ is one of the original Internet
services and is used to transfer files from a server computer to a client computer
and vice versa.
Question 3 Which of the following organizations coordinates
the Internet’s systems of unique identifiers, such as IP addresses and
top-level domain systems?
Question 4 Which of the following is NOT an advantage of
client/server computing over centralized mainframe computing?
Question 5 Which of the following protocols is used to send
mail to a server?
Unit 4 quiz
Question 1 Which of the following typically includes a data
flow diagram to describe the flow of information for an e-commerce site?
Question 2 __________ involves testing a site’s program
modules one at a time.
Question 3 Which of the following helps you understand the
marketing effectiveness of your e-commerce site?
Question 4 A system design has two main components:
Question 5 Most of the time required to maintain an
e-commerce site is spent on:
Unit 5 quiz
Question 1 What is the first step in developing an
e-commerce security plan?
Question 2 Software that is used to obtain private user
information such as a user’s keystrokes or copies of e-mail is referred to as:
Question 3 Which of the following dimensions of e-commerce
security is NOT provided for by encryption?
Question 4 What is the most frequent cause of stolen credit
cards and card information today?
Question 5 All of the following are used for authentication
EXCEPT:
Unit 6 quiz
Question 1 Which of the following is NOT a practice that
degrades the results and usefulness of search engines?
Question 2 Which of the following is NOT true about search
engine advertising?
Question 3 Which of the following search engine algorithm
updates enables Google’s search engine to evaluate an entire sentence rather
than just a key?
Question 4 All of the following are online communications
that are used to support the evaluation of alternatives stage of the consumer
decision process EXCEPT:
Question 5 “Shoppers” constitute approximately
__________ % of the online Internet audience.
Unit 7 quiz
Question 1 The lower the cost of sales compared to
__________, the higher the gross profit.
Question 2 Operating margin is defined as:
Question 3 What is another name for pro forma earnings?
Question 4 Virtual merchants face potentially large costs
for all of the following EXCEPT:
Question 5 Current liabilities are debts of the firm that
will be due within:
Final Exam
Question 1 Which pricing plan charges fees to e-commerce
firms based on the amount of traffic they generate?
Highway
pricing
Cap
pricing
Usage-based
billing
Congestion
pricing
Question 2 Which of the following protects original forms of
expression in a tangible medium?
Trade
secret law
Copyright
law
Patent
law
Trademark
law
Question 3 How long does copyright protection extend for
corporate-owned works?
25
years
50
years
75
years
95
years
Question 4 Which of the following technologies allows you to
send e-mail without a trace?
Anonymous
surfing
P3P
Anonymous
remailers
Public
key encryption
Question 5 Which of the following is a core Fair Information
Practices (FIP) principle?
Choice/Consent
Access/Participation
Security
Enforcement
Question 6 Describe the five-step process that can be used
to analyze an ethical dilemma. What other guidelines are there to help in
understanding a complicated ethical or moral situation?
Your response should be at least 200 words in length.
