Topic 1 Exercise 1 - continuation

Visit the famous online store front at http://www.amazon.com

1. Why has it been a successful site? How does a purchase of a book work?
2. Are there any secure transactions not involving money?

Answers:

Q.1

Amazon has been considered to be the most successful e-commerce company in the world for a long time and it mainly due to some critical factors implemented in the technology behind its store front. Amazon has spent a lot of time on researching how to make their website attractive, intuitive, user-friendly and at the same time achieve its primary goal - sell the product. The layout is clear and uncluttered, purchasing steps easy to understand and follow and the assortment of products diversified and abundant.  Just like Netflix it also incorporates a proprietary algorithm to recommend similar products or to assess buyers preferences and suggest alternatives or other choices. Just like E-Bay it allows buyers to rate their experience with Amazon or other people selling via the feedback option which enhances user experience and builds trust between the service providers and potential buyers. Buyers can also become sellers and trade their own goods for profit. Although Amazon caters mainly for the US citizens, the global "version/edition" of its store can also be accessed from other countries.  

Purchasing a book is very straightforward experience. After the initial log on the user enters the title of the book (alternatively author or ISBN) and the search returns the items in stock (either classed as used or new). Next, the user adds the book to the shopping cart and proceeds to check out. Later, the buyer needs to select a shipping address and a payment method and confirm the order. The e-mail is sent to the buyers e-mail address notifing him/her of the purchase and the estimate time of arrival.  

Q.2 

The sign-in does not involve money and is a secure transaction. 

References:

Turban E. (2010), Information  Technology for Management", 7th Edition, John Wiley and Sons, Inc.http://www.amazon.com/ accessed on 11.04.2010
http://money.howstuffworks.com/amazon.htm accessed on 11.04.2010