E-commerce - customer experience and relationship

International Journal of Advanced Engineering, Management and Science (IJAEMS) [Vol-2, Issue-7, July- 2016]
Infogain Publication (Infogainpublication.com) ISSN: 2454-1311
www.ijaems.com Page | 913
E-Commerce - Customer Experience and
Relationship
Nausherwan Raunaque1
, Md. Azam Imam2
, Md Asif Raja3
1
Assistant Professor, Faculty of Management Samalkha Group of Institutions, Samalkha, Haryana, India
2
Senior Executive - Operations (Quality Assurance), Onicra Credit Information Company Limited, Noida, India
3
Assistant Professor (C Eng & AP Eng), SOCE, Galgotias University, Greater Noida, UP
Abstract—Modern World has witnessed tremendous
growth of e-commerce industry in term of volume of
business and its acceptance among the customers. It has
really posed a question on traditional commerce module
so as many of them has associated or converted
themselves into e-commerce. The question remains
whether all of India has been included in it or only urban
population is availing the facilities available via e-
commerce; and secondly are the online customers fully
satisfied and do not expect anything else save what is
offered right now ? In this research we have tried to find
out answer to these questions so as the customer can
share their experiences and perceptions towards the e-
commerce business module and how the relationship
could be better by identifying areas of improvement and
inclusion for the e-commerce industry to make the
relationship fruitful.
Keywords—E-Commerce, Consumer perception,
Customer retention, Buying behaviour, Customer
relationship.
I. INTRODUCTION
Modern World has witnessed tremendous growth of e-
commerce industry in term of volume of business and its
acceptance among the customers. It has really posed a
question on traditional commerce module so as many of
them has associated or converted themselves into e-
commerce. Ecommerce has actually revolutionized the
buying behaviour of the customers depending upon
several factors like easy accessibility and availability of
broader spectrum of products & services. Now customer
retention has become really a challenge for any company
as the stiffness of competition has reached onto neck-to-
neck battle resulting into frequent Brand Swingers. Even
loyalty programmes are not able to cope with the
competition as every company is coming up with a new
idea or programme on regular basis and subsequently
making it a marketing clutter, which has made the
programmes or promotions lose its sheen. Consumers use
the internet not only for online shopping, but also to
compare prices, product features and after sale service
facilities. In addition, customers move towards the virtual
stores to avail lucrative offers and a better shopping
experience. As E-commerce has tremendous potential for
the current and the future markets, internet provides a
unique platform for companies to be more effectively
reach existing as well as potential customers. Although
the major part of revenue from online transactions comes
from business-to-business (B2B) commerce, but E-
commerce improves the opportunity of the business-to-
consumer (B2C) practitioners in modern times. Internet
has changed the traditional way of customers shopping
and buying goods and services. With a rapid pace, it
evolved into a phenomenon, which is globally accepted.
“There are the more traditional economies of scale. If the
same products are available through several retailers then
the cost control becomes one of the, if not the, paramount
driver of profitability” [2]
. To counter the dynamic nature
of the fast growing markets, companies started using
internet as a tool to cut down the various intermediary
costs, which further helps in reducing the prices of their
products and services while standing competitive in the
market. These business houses also uses internet to
communicate with the customers directly by direct selling
business to customer (B2C) and collect customer
information and feedback which further helps in
improving the business strategies directly based on
customer’s desire, need and feedback. The market is
shifting quickly in the modern world from product centric
to customer centric approach with a huge impact of
internet in the modern marketing channels and customer
interface, and “the internet will create the winner and bury
the laggards” [3]
. “Over the past 60 years, marketing has
moved from being product-centric (Marketing 1.0) to
being consumer-centric (Marketing 2.0). Today we see
marketing as transforming once again in response to the
new dynamics in the environment. We see companies
expanding their focus from products to consumers to
humankind issues. Marketing 3.0 is the stage when
companies shift from consumer-centricity to human-
centricity and where profitability is balanced with
corporate responsibility” [3]
. Kotler also gives the future

International Journal of Advanced Engineering, Management and Science (IJAEMS)
Infogain Publication (Infogainpublication.com
www.ijaems.com
direction to the E-Retailers that now, not focus only to
satisfy your customers, you must have to delight them.
The important thing is to scan the customer movement
and direction and stand in front of them. In addition, the
consumers are the designers, who design your product
and from their ideas and inputs, you have to predict the
future trends and stand in long run[4] [6]
. Every business is
a service business, and you must try to put a smile on the
customer’s face. The net benefits will
negatively influence user satisfaction and the further use
of the information system [5]
.
Online shopping in India
The evolution and growth of internet has been the biggest
happening of this century. E-commerce in India has come
a long way from a feeble beginning in the 1999
period where one can purchase/sell and find all sorts of
stuff from Convenience products to Spec
online[7][8]
. Most companies are using internet to represent
their product range and services so that it is accessible to
the global market and to reach out to a larger customer
base. Computers and the internet have completely
changed the way one handles day-to-day transactions;
online shopping is one of them[9]
. The Internet has
brought about sweeping changes in the purchasing pattern
of the people. In the comfort of one's home, office and
now even on the go via mobile phones
commerce market was worth about $3.9 billion in 2009, it
went up to $12.6 billion in 2013. In 2013, According to
Google India, there were 35 million online shop
India in 2014 Q1 and expected to cross 100 mi
by end of year 2016 [10]
. Customer
expectations are dynamic and value based in nature and
so changes with time and preferences
experience in recent times displays that customers expect
instant help within minutes of their online activities.
Many of customers are likely to buy from companies
from where they have already purchased at least once
however, other category completely goes for the feature
and benefit offered by these companies.
II. PURPOSE OF STUDY
The focus of this research revolves around the
relationship among the online customers and e
companies and to know the customers experience
regarding their day to day online shopping experience.
addition, to involve the buyers to contribute their vital
inputs in real life encounters related to different aspects of
e-commerce. This study provides customer an interface to
express their queries and concerns which they face on
regular basis while buying online. This will also help the
e-commerce industry to find out the challenges affecting
buying behaviour of online customers, and to identify the
International Journal of Advanced Engineering, Management and Science (IJAEMS)
Infogainpublication.com)
Retailers that now, not focus only to
satisfy your customers, you must have to delight them.
thing is to scan the customer movement
and direction and stand in front of them. In addition, the
consumers are the designers, who design your product
and from their ideas and inputs, you have to predict the
Every business is
a service business, and you must try to put a smile on the
’s face. The net benefits will positively or
negatively influence user satisfaction and the further use
on and growth of internet has been the biggest
commerce in India has come
a long way from a feeble beginning in the 1999-2000 to a
period where one can purchase/sell and find all sorts of
stuff from Convenience products to Speciality products
. Most companies are using internet to represent
their product range and services so that it is accessible to
the global market and to reach out to a larger customer
Computers and the internet have completely
day transactions;
. The Internet has
brought about sweeping changes in the purchasing pattern
e. In the comfort of one's home, office and
phones. India's e-
billion in 2009, it
went up to $12.6 billion in 2013. In 2013, According to
Google India, there were 35 million online shoppers in
expected to cross 100 million marks
behaviour and
expectations are dynamic and value based in nature and
so changes with time and preferences[11]
. Customers
experience in recent times displays that customers expect
instant help within minutes of their online activities.
e likely to buy from companies
from where they have already purchased at least once
other category completely goes for the feature
PURPOSE OF STUDY
of this research revolves around the
relationship among the online customers and e-commerce
companies and to know the customers experience
regarding their day to day online shopping experience. In
to involve the buyers to contribute their vital
unters related to different aspects of
This study provides customer an interface to
express their queries and concerns which they face on
This will also help the
find out the challenges affecting
and to identify the
areas where these companies need to re
future policy that further helps in
III. FI
A number of interesting facts came out when we
interviewed the respondents through an online survey.
The respondents primarily based in National capital
region of Delhi and had access to internet
participated and shared their views,
experiences. This online survey is more significant in
comparison to the offline surveys in which there is a
chance that the respondent does not have the access to
internet and in such a case, the result will deviate from
natural course.
In broader terms, the customers’ decision to go for e
commerce depends upon three main factors
Services, Assurance of Transaction and safety of it.
of the respondents who use e
be concerned about Quality of the products, w
quality is the key for customer retention.
users want quicker and more transparent refund policies;
however, several others see a great future for e
provided a better penetration of rural markets.
penetrating rural market is not going to be a
considering India’s vastness of culture and greatness of
geographies. As many of the respondents feel that e
commerce websites must offer the services in Hindi and
other regional languages, so that no
majority of population of India can be converted into the
prospects. These are few great challenges ahead for any
new entrant or existing player of e
10s of languages, which are very much exclusive to their
vast regions.
Let us analyse few responses, which can be
strong indicator for awareness of e
popularity over time and customers perception towards it.
[Vol-2, Issue-7, July- 2016]
ISSN: 2454-1311
Page | 914
areas where these companies need to re-strategize the
further helps in customer retention.
FINDINGS
A number of interesting facts came out when we
interviewed the respondents through an online survey.
primarily based in National capital
region of Delhi and had access to internet, voluntarily
participated and shared their views, opinions and
This online survey is more significant in
comparison to the offline surveys in which there is a great
chance that the respondent does not have the access to
internet and in such a case, the result will deviate from
er terms, the customers’ decision to go for e-
commerce depends upon three main factors: Products,
s, Assurance of Transaction and safety of it. Most
of the respondents who use e-commerce channels seem to
be concerned about Quality of the products, which means
quality is the key for customer retention. Many of these
quicker and more transparent refund policies;
several others see a great future for e-commerce
provided a better penetration of rural markets. However,
penetrating rural market is not going to be a cakewalk
considering India’s vastness of culture and greatness of
As many of the respondents feel that e-
commerce websites must offer the services in Hindi and
so that non-English speaking
majority of population of India can be converted into the
These are few great challenges ahead for any
new entrant or existing player of e-commerce as there are
which are very much exclusive to their
responses, which can be taken as a
strong indicator for awareness of e-commerce, its
popularity over time and customers perception towards it.

It is evident from this graph that there is absolutely
nobody who has access to internet and does not know
about e-commerce. A mounting majority (95%) is aware
about e-commerce and 5% are those who have only heard
of it. This also depicts the popularity of the e-commerce
among the internet users.
We tried to find out the period that has witnessed the
maximum growth in terms of customers’ awareness about
it and found that last five years (2011 to 2015) have been
the best in which more than 50% of the respondents came
to know about e-commerce. However, there are other
37%, who has been knowing e-commerce since
somewhere from 2006 to 2011. It is also very important to
mention here that there is no respondent, who had known
the e-commerce business module prior to 2000. Thus, a
complete paradigm shift in terms of consumers’
perception towards e-commerce can be seen. This is very
much parallel to the post liberalization era’s growth
pattern in India and has grown accordingly.
This clear from the picture that majority of the
respondents prefer using e-commerce which indicates that
Indian are assured about Quality and delivery of the
products and their competitive pricing models offered by
different e-commerce modules. It can also be inferred that
these businesses have generated ample amount of trust
among the customers and customers are feeling confident
about using it. However, there is also another category of
customers who are still sceptical about virtual market as
they are not so much interested but they are smaller in
size (13.3%); but this is the segment where marketers can
focus, add value and assurance to tap it.
A great percentage of the respondents (47%) use the e-
commerce more frequnely or several times a week which
suggests that e-commerce has really made a place for it in
customers daily life. However, there are another 40% who
use the e-commerce biweekly or monthly. This numbers
signifies a great opprtunity still untapped or partially
tapped by e-commerce and marketers can look at this
figure and find out how to bring this number into weekly
or more frequently bracket. If this challenge tackled well,
it will boom the business in terms of revenues.

As we further tried to know the segments which allure the
online buyers, it was found that Recharges, payments and
online shopping hold the highest rank in consumers mind
when it comes to doing online transactions. Reacharges
included Mobile and Electricity Bill payments, prepaid
rechagres of mobiles, DTH, Data cards etc; and on the
other side shopping included grocery, garments,
footwears, cosmetics, home decors, accessories etc. Some
people even buy Insurance and other policies however
there is a very frail response for Food and Beverages
products which should have a better contribution
considering more basic need of everybody and a great
sum of the earning of every houshold is spent on it. It
means that customers are still relying on traditional stores
for food and beverages. The online marketers have to
increase the effectiveness of its delivery by reducing the
delivery time to attract more customers for food and
beverages segment which is highly untapped.
This is really a great revelation which every marketer
should aspire. 95% of the people believe that e-commerce
business module is beneficial for both customer and the
business. This means the e-commerce has been able to
convince the customers that it has some better value
proposition than the traditional buisenesses provide. This
reflects the attitude of the customers. Big e-commerce
enterprises are relying on ther buisness partners or
vendors for their products. This is a clear indication that
more and more vendors will be attracted toward e-
commerce due to its popularity and its wide reach. And
secondly, the new entrants, which have been online
customers so far, will certainly associate themselves with
e-cmmerce belieiving it has place for both customers and
businesses.
As e-commerce model has gained a huge popularity in
last 10-15 years, it becomes inevitable to ask the
respondents about advantages of e-commerce over
traditional shops or businesses. It came out not surprising
to know that Accebility is the key factor among all other
major factors affecting online businesses. 30% of the
people go for e-commerce, due to its accesibilty without
constraints of time or place and the online thing they need
is internet connectivity. While other 17% are those who
find the promotional offers given by these e-cmmerce
businesses are lucrative. Most importantly, 15% people
are those who consider e-commerce being more
transparent that traditional busineeses. Even excessive
bargaining came out to be a greater drawback of
traditonal businesses as 10% of the respondents believe
that e-commerce gives a sigh of relief from bargaing
inspite of having a scope for comparision with different e-
commerce companies. Marketers need to retain customers
confidence and their loyalty by assuring quality of
products and safety of their transactions.
IV. CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS
The virtual marketing world has many factors in which
some are of foremost importance. Among these factors,
trust is one of the most important factors prevailing since
its inception, which include the fear of monetary fraud
and poor refund policies or difference in quality of
delivered products. In order to deal with the money and
trust concerns of the customers several advancements
have been evolved to secure a healthier buyer-seller
relationship. With the implementation of these

advancements, policies, technologies, it will be easier to
gain customer trust, which will further help in retaining
and making them loyal to these businesses. These policies
will help the E-Commerce industry to gain profits in long
run. Another important factor is easy refund and easy
return policies, which is according to customers is
important. Making flexible return and refund policy will
further improve the relationship.
Vendor selection process is another important factor
towards promoting a healthy e-market & customer
relationship. Vendor ratings based on the customer
reviews on e-commerce websites help the customers to
select best available vendors. There should be strict re-
enforcement plan, if any vendor found involved in
malpractices. Cash-on-Delivery (CoD) is a successful
concept especially in rural areas where customers have
least access to internet banking and card payment option.
It should penetrate into the interiors across several
products, which will help in minimizing the payment risks
associated with the purchase order. Overall, e-commerce
is based on the customer relationship and it has to work
continually to strengthen this relationship to penetrate this
business module into the interiors. Customers feel that
there should be an option for the verification of the
product by the customers in front of the delivery
personnel. E-Commerce should conduct pilot studies to
check the feasibility and cost effectiveness.
E-Commerce module should extend its reach to the
people and traders of remote areas who are generally less
aware of the technological advancements in business.
Increasing the credit facility by providing instalment on
wide range of products to attract potential customers and
convert them into active users. In addition, E-Commerce
agencies should encourage local traders to involve in E-
Business and expand their business benefitting both. A
proper and modern track should be defined, taking into
consideration the modern world challenges, and find out a
significant way to reduce the delivery time as much as
possible to compete with the local businesses. Further,
penetration into the deep Indian markets will accelerate
with the introduction of regional languages, as India is a
vast and culturally diversified country. With the addition
of regional versions of websites and Mobile Applications,
people of different regions and dialects can feel
comfortable to participate in their regional language.
There should not be any compulsion on downloading
mobile apps if customer does not want it; let them use
website otherwise, they feel uncomfortable and move out
or limit their participation.
It is recommended to open up collection centres in
different regions from where the buyer can collect their
purchased goods. It will result in more penetration into
rural markets as people from distant villages visit their
local towns on a certain periods and they can easily
collect it and on the other hand it will reduce the delivery
time and cost.
REFERENCES
[1] Schneider, G. P., [2012], E-Commerce- Strategy,
Technology and implementation (1st ed.), India
Cengage Learning India Private Limited, New
Delhi, India
[2] Kumar, N., (1997) “The Revolution in Retailing:
Market Driven to Market Driving” Vol-30, Issue 6,
Page 830-835, Elsevier Science Ltd.
doi:10.1016/S0024-6301(97)00068-X
[3] Kotler, P., (2007), “Principles of Marketing” (13th
edition), Prentice Hall
[4] Das, L., (2012), “Growing Trends of E-Commerce
and its role in Consumers Buying Pattern”,
International Journal of Marketing, Financial
Services & Management Research, Vol.1
[5] DeLone, W.H., and McLean, E.R. (2003), "The
DeLone and McLean Model of Information Systems
Success: A Ten-Year Update," Journal of
Management Information Systems
[6] Jain, S. & Kapoor, B., (2012), “E-Commerce in
India - Boom and the Real Challenges”, VSRD
International Journal of Business & Management
[7] Bajaj, Kamlesh K. and Nag, Debjani (2000), “E-
Commerce- the Cutting Edge of Business”, Tata
McGraw-Hill Publishing, New Delhi, India
[8] Joseph P. T. S. J., (2012), E-Commerce: An Indian
Perspective, PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi,
India
[9] Abikzir, D., (2015), “Flash Winners: A New E-
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Publications, New Delhi, India
[10]Laus & Petronela (2014). "India Weighs FDI in E-
Commerce". The Wall Street Journal India
[11]Khosrow-Pour, Mehdi. (2008). “Consumer
Behavior, Organizational Development, and
Electronic Commerce: Emerging Issues for
Advancing Modern Socio-economies”. Hershey,
PA: IGI Publishing.

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