As ecommerce and e-business exponentially increase, these two similar terms are commonly confused. Many companies conduct both types of activities, which can make it even more difficult to separate these functions from one another.
In this detailed guide, we provide the necessary info so you'll know how to use these words correctly to describe your online business endeavor.
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What Is Ecommerce?
If you're buying and selling products and services online, you're engaged in ecommerce. This word encompasses all parts of an online transaction, from the shopping cart system to checkout, payment, and delivery.
Your business might have virtual systems that help your teams do their work each day, but that's not considered ecommerce unless it involves purchases and sales of specific items.
What Is an E-business?
E-business is a broad term used to cover any and all online business operations, including ecommerce transactions as well as other virtual systems and procedures. An e-business might not sell products online, but it still falls into this category if it relies on connected tech to function.
Let's return to the example above. If you don't sell products or services online but you use virtual software to operate your enterprise, you own an e-business. That holds true even if your company has a physical location.
What Are the Main Differences Between Ecommerce and E-Business?
Consider these key differences to distinguish between e-business and ecommerce:
- E-business is a broad concept covering many different types of online transactions, while ecommerce refers only to a small subset of the e-business industry.
- Ecommerce mostly consists of business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions, while business-to-business (B2B) transactions usually fall into the e-business category.
- Ecommerce companies usually operate completely online, while e-business often represents only the connected component of a company's operations.
- Ecommerce uses only the internet while e-business can take place online or on a closed company extranet or intranet
In general, buying and selling online equals ecommerce while any other company operations conducted online are considered e-business.
What's the Best Way for an Ecommerce Business to Accept Payments?
To engage in ecommerce, you need a way to accept customer credit cards and other forms of payment.
Pay.com gives you everything you need to get started, including an easy onboarding process and an affordable, transparent flat-fee pay structure. You can track all your transactions and stay up to speed with our easy-to-use Pay Dashboard.
Pay.com provides the highest level of industry-standard security with our Level 1 PCI DSS compliance. We use advanced tech like tokenization to keep your customers and your company safe from online fraud.
If you own a brand-new business, you can start taking payments before you even set up your website. We offer multiple ways to take credit cards, debit cards and other selected payment methods. In addition to customized online checkout pages, you can send secure Pay Links that take your customers right to their invoices so they can easily complete the transaction.
Click here to get started with Pay.com now!
The Bottom Line
In short, an e-business is any company that operates partially online, whether that means VPNs for remote workers, cloud-based software subscriptions, or any other virtual function that helps you get the job done. Ecommerce narrows the field of e-business as a subset that involves only online purchases and sales.
Whether you're already engaged in ecommerce or planning to shift to this space, Pay.com puts the power of online payments in your hands. Our full-service offerings give you a safe, secure way to accept digital wallets, credit cards, debit cards, and other preferred payment methods.
