What are the benefits of e-commerce to SMEs and what are its barriers to entry?

Sungkyu Chang

Partner, Advisory, ASEAN, EY

While overall market remains attractive, the balance has been disrupted by fundamental shifts

Growth is

challengingConsumers are

changing

Costs

are harder

to control

Driven by digital, business is shifting to C2B significantly

Consumer imperatives

PersonalisationProducts and services tailored to individual needs and preferences

Information on corporate profile, products and access to consumer reviews.

High quality products at reasonable prices

Freedom of choice in products, delivery and payment options

Engaging shopping experiences –Informative, interactive and convenient

Empowered consumer

Experience

Price / Quality

Convenience

IntelligenceAnything,Anytime,Anywhere!

SME characteristics have motivators and inhibitors for e-commerce participation

Typical SME characteristics

Fewer

stakeholders

Closed

ecosystem

Simple

structure

Limited

resources

e-commerce

High commitment

Short reaction time

Niche strategies

Long-term thinking Limited experience

Few options to implement

Smaller scale

Difficulties to adapt to changes

e-commerce would provide opportunities for SMEs in different ways

Remove

physical

limitation

Save

transaction

cost Differentiated

marketing

avenues

Minimizing

transport

obstacles

Direct

communication

and insights

But there are barriers to overcome in e-commerce adoption

Organisational

Financial

Technical

Political

Social

Regulatory

Successfuladoption

Internal External

Rules

Moving forward, SMEs need to focus on capabilities required to outperform the market

e-commerce

PaymentProcurement

Logistics

Infra

-structure

Customer

service

Marketing

Product

and service

Data

security

Questions and comments?

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