How internet has changed the world of business

It is amazing how much the world of business has changed since its start. I am pretty sure that the leaders of the agricultural driven business prior to the 16^th century would not have even imagined the concept of industries producing goods massively. But the industrial revolution came along and everyone wanted to be part of that gold mine. I am also sure that if someone in the industrial revolution would have proposed to concentrate in satisfying the market and building a relationship with the customers instead of focusing just in production, that person would have been “crazy”. However, in our current economy it seems to be working, the businesses sell more by giving people what they want, win-win!  But, the most stunning achievement, which has completely changed the world of business, is the internet.

The internet is a tool with a massive potential for the world of business, and it has been growing exponentially right before our eyes. Let’s put it in perspective. It took thousands of years for business to become industrialized; it took another century for it to adopt the concept of marketing; it took another century for computers to be made, about twenty more years for internet to be created, but it was not until 1995  that it was commercialized. Yet, in just seventeen years, the internet has had more impact on the world culture and commerce than about everything else in prior history.

Seventeen years ago a manager used a computer merely as a database and a calculator. He would not have thought, in his wildest dreams, that through a computer he could potentially reach millions of people. Just the rate of adoption is mind-blowing; in 2000 there were more than 360 million people using the internet. Sounds like a lot, huh? Well, in 2012 there are more than 2 BILLION people using the internet! That means that 1 of every 3 people in the world are connected through the internet.  The internet expanded the ability for people to connect and communicate to a level that is really hard to believe, if you think about it. But, most importantly, at least for the sake of this article, the communication between businesses and potential customers hugely broadened. Just think about it this way: the average adult consumer is presented with more opportunities to spend money today in one 4-hour period than he was in thirty 24-hour periods just a decade ago.

The internet evolved so fast that any firm who dared to blink in the last decade is behind. Not using the internet is not just a sign of ignorance of the current market, it is not affordable. Any opportunity lost is money lost and the internet is the very best opportunity to expose a business. Plus, the competition, which is probably taking advantage of the internet, will shadow the firm that is not using it. So, why would any firm miss the opportunity? There is no excuse! Making a firm present in the internet is now easier than ever. Social networks are the easiest way to make a firm present on the internet, and it is free! Facebook, for example, is the most used social network in the world with amazingly more than 1 billion users as of right now, and to make an account for a business is almost as easy as making a personal one. With 1 in 7 people in the world using this social network I can safely assume that at least one employee in every firm of America knows how to make a Facebook account. And there are a lot more social networks that offer valuable opportunities of exposure to new business, as well as those that are already established on the internet.   Twitter and Google+ are two other social networks that while not as popular, they still have a big amount of users.

Social networks, especially Facebook, are great for advertising, too. Facebook is clearly the leader in this area, now with more advertisement in their pages and vigorously encouraging more firms to use their page for ads.  Moreover, Facebook now has a new feature, chiefly aimed towards the business users, which allows them to promote their publications for a price. The price increases depending on how many people the firm wants to reach.

Additionally, there are other ways to make publicity for a firm on the internet besides social networks. For instance, YouTube is a site that hosts videos from people all around the world. Right now it has about 500 million users. Besides being a great way to make publicity for a firm, it may be a good source of revenue too, through the YouTube Partner Program. Another uprising way of publicity is blogs. These are more appealing to people because they are usually more personal and informally written.

Another element of marketing that has also changed a lot with the internet is the ability to perform a market research. Now it is much, much easier to access primary and secondary sources of information.  To find secondary sources of information is especially easier now that there is so much information available on the internet. Databases like Complete Planet (www.completeplanet.com), and references such as Statistical Abstract of the United States (www.census.gov/compedia/stratab/) are reliable sources of useful information. There are also ways to find primary sources of information. Surveys are very easy to set-up on websites and the information gets to the firm instantly unlike mail surveys. Also, forums work pretty much like a focus group. However, even though all that information is very easy to reach, not all of it is reliable and firms have to be careful on how they use it.

These are just some ways in which the internet has changed business. Thus, for all the firms out there that are still hesitant, join the internet revolution!