How has information technology changed the business from one form to another?

Technology has changed businesses enormously. Businesses are now able to operate and manufacture far more efficiently than they could in bygone decades.

One example is the internet: (I have listed 10 point, which i consider as vital)

1. In bygone days, small businesses did not have the resources, which larger competitors had. Nowadays even small businesses can access much of the same technology as the giant corporations. They can accept on-line payments and can even deliver products over the internet.

2. The internet has also opened all sorts of niche marketing opportunities that either never existed before, or were to expensive to tap into. With an on-line presence you can do a lot of direct marketing, and it is therefore very easy to reach your target market.

3. With a professional designed website, it is now easy for small businesses to have the appearance and credibility of being a large cooperation. For a small amount of money, that can be used to pay a website designer, the return can be much greater.

4. The internet and with it an on-line presence enables a business to advertise at considerably lower prices, compared to other promotional tools. As an example; posting out a mail to a customer will probably cost around £1.50 (printing, postage etc.), whereas to e-mail the same message to the customer will cost nothing, except working hours.

5. Open 24/7. By automating a website, a business can be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and all this with no extra staff costs and no overtime rates to pay and if the website has got the feature to shop on-line, customers can, of course, shop 24/7, as well.

6. A website also helps people to access information about products and services in the comfort of their own home, instead of having to drive to a local shop, for example.

7. It can also be helpful for reaching a global audience. More countries/people are connecting to the internet each year. The internet and with it a website, breaks down geographical boundaries and limitations. With the help of search engines, like "google" or "Bing", people can locate and buy products from every corner of the world.

8. Customer service is made easy. The internet/website makes it possible to capture visitors information. Keeping in touch (via e-mail) helps to improve a long-term relationship. Another helpful tool to get customer feedback is an on-line forum. This is a low-cost customer feedback tool.

9. Questions that are normally answered by phone can be answered on the internet. Nowadays every professional website has got a "FAQ" (Frequently Asked Questions) page. A website can list the answers to the most frequently asked product or service related

   questions.

10. The internet is much more dynamic than a few years ago. It is constantly being improved by the availability of new software. An example might be:

• Automatic product updates through the use of databases.