Free Custom «Similarities and Differences between Online and Offline Business» Essay Paper

INTRODUCTION

Businesses have been fallen into two major forms: online and physical business. Business is any economic system or organization that involves the exchange of services or goods for money. All businesses require customers or some form of investment where the prevailing outputs are regularly sold in order to make a profit. There are various forms of business ownership; this includes partnership, sole proprietorship, cooperatives, and corporation. Physical and online business could take any form of business ownership. Online businesses, also known as e-business, are all business activities that happen in the Internet. It includes selling and buying online, as well as the provision of online services. Physical businesses, referred to as the offline businesses, are the businesses that are located in a specified place (Sumanjeet 23).

SIMILARITIES BETWEEN ONLINE AND PHYSICAL BUSINESS

There are various similarities and differences between the two types of businesses. The physical businesses give room for face-to-face communication. It offers the customer a first-hand opportunity of seeing the business itself. It is normally easy to convince a customer who can see and touch the products rather than the one who has no access to the wanted products.  The physical businesses normally target a specified locality. The same case happens to the online kind of businesses where specified group of customers are targeted. These customers have access to the Internet. Both the online and offline businesses are involved in the provision of goods and services to its customers. The products sold in both cases are the same; for example, the cars sold on offline businesses are still the same cars sold on online ones. The legal implications governing the offline kind of businesses are the same for the online business. In these cases, for both forms of businesses it is a requirement that the business ought to be registered (Bergiel, Bergiel, and Balsmeier 105).

The business should also have a name in either case. Most legal actions affecting the offline business also affect the online business. In both cases, the businesses are faced with intense competition from the prevailing competitors. It means that they face similar challenges in the daily running of their businesses. They have the same potential of growth depending on the strategies adopted in marketing and advertising.

In regards to the offline businesses, the customers can go to the physical businesses when inquiring about a product or solving a query that could have appeared during the buying and selling of a product. These businesses are also liable to funding from their respective banks in case of financial shortages. The owners of these businesses will only have to produce the necessary documents which show the evaluation of the business assets. It usually works as collaterals prior to the accessibility of the loans from their respective banks. In both cases, both offline and online businesses offer discounts and other guarantees on their products. Both online and offline businesses are affected by the prevailing taxes on products sold from their countries of origin.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ONLINE AND OFFLINE BUSINESSES 

There are many differences between online and offline businesses. One of the main distinctions between them is in regards to the customer base. The online businesses reach out to many customers. This business is not limited to a locality as it is the case of the offline businesses. It helps incrementing the customers. The buyers can access the products and other services at the confines of their homes. This kind of business has become popular among the customers since people are extremely busy to go shopping. It is easier for people to shop while being in their homes than going to the retail shops to do the same. Online businesses are cheaper to start in comparison to setting up offline businesses. When setting up an online business, the main requirements appear to be Internet server and a personal computer (Waller 520).

Over ten million people access the Internet on a daily basis. Therefore, online businesses can attract many customers in comparison to the offline businesses. Although, all the ten million people accessing the Internet may come across an advertisement and a number of potential customers could make up their mind to buy the product. The same is not the case in offline businesses. It is expensive to run the advertisements on the media, therefore, most people running offline businesses decide to resort to the word-of-mouth advertisement, which is not as effective. The current trends do not favor the offline businesses as people are extremely busy to go shopping. This group of people will only inquire the products they want from their favorable online shops for home delivery.

In the case of poor services or low-quality goods, the customer can assess the offline business where the product was bought and either get the required refund or sue the business. In regards to online business, in such instances the customer is at the mercies of the seller since the seller could decide to ignore the customer’s request. Online businesses possess greater efficiency and flexibility of the services and products delivered. Unlike the case in offline businesses, the customers can access the online businesses on a 24/7 basis. There is no time limitation as to when the customers can buy their products. When setting up the online businesses, there is a wide range of options for those who need to establish an online business. Therefore, it is easier and less expensive to get visitors on one's store in the website. In order to increase the number of visitors on one's website, those running an online business should prioritize on SEO. It will help in leading the customers to the online business in question.

In conclusion, both online and offline kinds of businesses are the main form of businesses in today’s world. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages. The development of technology in today's world has seen many businesses go online as opposed to the condition in the last ten years. The only problem hindering the development of online businesses is the presence of online risks regarding fraud and defrauds. There is also an issue of hardware and software expenses.

Similarities and Differences between Online and Offline Business