Summary:
Compares and contrasts the differences between selling books at brick and mortar stores versus online. Considers how strategies concerning the processes of distributing, promoting, and pricing are completely different.
Every month, Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News puts together a story on the same or different consumer products. This time Philadelphia Inquirer had an article about retail stores, and Daily News about Internet stores that were sealing same product. Usually, some typed of product are less likely to be sold successfully on-line because people like to go shopping to see the product and touch it. Philadelphia Inquirer made an example of retail store that sells books. At same time Daily News had an example of a successful e-commerce firm like E-books (an internet bookseller). By reading those two articles we can even say that these companies are selling the same products, but their strategies process of distributing, promoting, and pricing is completely different.
It is important for the company to think how to distribute their product to earn more money. The E-books company maintains a web site that allows the customers to search for the books by the title, the subject and the author. The site also allows customers to read short passages from the books that they are interested in. On contrast, when customers go shopping to choose a book, they have to spend more time asking the salesperson for help in finding the books and buying it. Although buying a product online takes a limited amount of time, the visits to the store can be a wonderful time for the family. People can sit on the comfortable chairs, have a cup of coffee and enjoy their reading. There are usually some places for children where they can play and read interesting books.
Promoting is the base of any business, including book selling. There are companies that pay a lot of attention to promoting their products. The web site has an online order from, which allows the customers to order at any time (24 hours a day, seven days a week), even when traditional stores are closed. This is a benefit for both buyers and sellers. Also, an online store had generated sales from around the world through its web site, so they can reduce geographic barriers. On the other hand, the retail store cannot reduce these barriers because they are in a particular place of the world. In addition, the owner of the traditional bookstore is able to promote books by inviting the authors, the poets, and the writers to meet the readers and discuss their books. Online stores can't promote products this way.
Every person wants to buy the good quality product on sale. The online company can cut cost of their product because they don't need to pay the salesmen. Also, the company doesn't have any stored besides the web site. That's why they don't need to pay for rent. In contrast, the retail store has several salesmen that have to be paid. Also, the retail store has to pay rent, electricity, water, phone, and many other bills. Consequently, the price online is usually less than the retail store.
As the two newspapers mention in the end of their articles that one of the most important benefits of the electronic marketing and the retail store is the ability of marketers and customers to share information. In different ways customers can learn about books, including featured, specification, and prices. These companies have one goal: to sell many books. To reach this goal and be successful in their business, they provide in different strategic process.
This is the complete article, containing 567 words
(approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page).
