On line shopping is an accepted fact in today’s economy and, by and large, it has a good reputation for delivering goods to you in complete accordance with the product descriptions shown on the store’s web page (catalog). They are also well thought of for the speed with which they deliver your order to your door and, above all, their prices (including delivery charges) are generally perceived as being lower than those in traditional, over the counter, shops.
The World Is Flat
The speed at which on line shopping has been accepted is obviously linked to our ever growing use of computers, the internet and improved communications (especially fibre optic and wireless). If you have read the bestselling book by Thomas Friedman called “The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century” where he analyzes globalization; you will have a better insight into this.
For Example; Should You Decide To Open A Tobacco Online Store
Probably you would need to be a smoker with a passion for tobacco; this enables you to better understand your prospective customers. You will need to decide if your Tobacco Online Store is going to sell all the different types of tobacco based products – cigars, cigarettes, pipe tobacco, loose tobacco, etc, etc. It goes without saying that you will have made all arrangements for the servers that host your on line catalog plus the on line payment arrangements by which customers pay you.
Where & How To Store The Stock
Then, you would have to establish contacts with the tobacco industry that will give you access to the products you will be selling. All tobacco products require the correct conditions of humidity and temperature while being stored. You could decide to invest in your own purpose built warehouse; or you could use the manufactures’ stocks; or utilize the services of warehouses run by computerized fulfillment companies – whichever you choose, you must have an installed, foolproof IT system that can confirm off the shelf availability the moment a customer’s order (and advance payment) has been processed.
Delivery Shipment
The IT system must mesh in with the necessary software that controls shipping fleets (be they the courier companies or larger logistics specialists). Different customers in different locations will require different transportation arrangements. If your systems are well thought out; everything you ship will have been stored correctly and should be with your customer within a few days of their ordering. In this way, your Tobacco Online Store will only be supplying fresh tobacco products in prime condition and ready to be enjoyed by the customer.
