Taking Risk in the Conduct of Ecommerce Business
Critics of ecommerce often points out that it is difficult. The word “difficult” is very subjective, i.e., depending on the viewer or observer. In one website, the critic claimed that ecommerce gives no protection which is quite observable in the outside world. An established business is protected for the sole reason that it employs plenty of people. If the old business went bankrupt, the employees who had been working there for several decades will end up losing the livelihood that they got used to. The state steps in to control innovation for the sake of these employees. Instead of accepting a technology for incubating chicken eggs, the officials will deem it necessary to set the same technology aside because there will be more people who will lose their jobs. The brick-and-mortar world also favors new businessmen because the state officials will give them a “chance” to compete with the bigger ones. The small ones argue that they should be given a chance because they are the representatives of the future. Ecommerce is much different because it is a system that does not favor traditional businessmen. According to the economist Ludwig Von Mises, a businessman’s position on the (free) market is never secure; the door is always open to competitors who may challenge his position and deprive him of profits (mises.org). For the ecommerce businessman to survive in such harsh market conditions, he should constantly innovate and be vigilant at all times. He cannot seek the support of his “friends from high places” because that is not allowed under the conditions of the free system. The great economist advised that the system espouses competition that assures consumers that businessmen will do their best to furnish them, the consumers, with the goods and services they want.
Taking risk in the conduct of ecommerce business is the food and blood of online businesses. No one can dispute that. The online businessmen who seek some sort of “public” insurance will end up losing whatever they invested. Such businessman is the one who seeks some sort of protectionist cover during the early times he is recovering his profits or getting his return of investment. That is the same as the one who begs officials to limit the issuance of permits and he even would cause that his line of business be declared as something imbued with public interest, and thus, it should be protected using taxpayer’s money. However, the same is no longer applicable in the online business world. Once his free website is up and running, he cannot claim that he should be protected or given a chance for the next few years for him to recover his investment and get a “reasonable” return of his investment.
Taking risk does not simply mean taking risk. It should mean taking risk after much contemplation or after thoughtful deliberation. There should be a reason or reasons in his mind for taking a specific risk. He should not take the risk because he wants to make money – he should be able to pattern a reasoning series to come up with the risk and study the possible repercussions. In choosing a free website maker to begin website construction, he does not simply choose from the items presented before him. He should ask questions like: Is the color pattern relevant for my market? What will I do to improve the introductory box? How can I reduce the heaviness of the color scheme? Is the transition effect relevant to my choice of colors? How can I fortify my website? Do I have to renovate my site for my next business expansion? What will I do with the unnecessary additions in the default site? Of course, there are also questions which are related to one’s actual business risk and such questions must be addressed carefully by the business owner or his agent or his manager. Questions include: Which markets are considered good for expansion? What will I do with the declining sales? Who are my allies in the online business community? Do I have to retain my connections with existing partners or customers? What set of search engine optimization techniques will best reach the all-important target clientele? In investopedia.com, a business risk is influenced by numerous factors. As online businessmen, you know for a fact that such factors are not laid down on carefully tiled statute books. All the factors are to be learned carefully.
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