{"id":20005,"date":"2020-01-29T15:56:41","date_gmt":"2020-01-29T15:56:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/glosario-digital\/ecommerce"},"modified":"2026-09-23T21:09:18","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T21:09:18","slug":"ecommerce","status":"publish","type":"encyclopedia","link":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/ecommerce","title":{"rendered":"Ecommerce"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"boxpad alignright wp-image-14233 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Ecommerce.png\" alt=\"Ecommerce\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Ecommerce.png 300w, https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Ecommerce-150x150.png 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><strong>Definition:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Ecommerce<\/strong>, or electronic commerce, is the sale, purchase or contracting of goods and services through digital interfaces designed to present offers and receive orders. It includes transactions in which a person or business places an order or accepts a contract through a website, application, platform or another electronic system built to process it.<\/p>\n\n<p>The term does not refer only to an online store, and the entire process does not have to occur over the internet. Payment, delivery or support may be completed through other channels. Ecommerce is defined by the order or contract being completed digitally; sending advertising or answering an enquiry by email is not sufficient by itself.<\/p>\n<h2>How ecommerce works<\/h2>\n<p>An ecommerce transaction commonly moves through these stages:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Offer presentation:<\/strong> the seller displays products or services with information about features, price, availability and conditions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Selection:<\/strong> the person compares options, configures variations and adds items to an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/electronic-cart\">electronic cart<\/a> or begins a contracting process.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Identification and checkout:<\/strong> the information required for billing, delivery and communication is collected, using only relevant requirements.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Payment or payment commitment:<\/strong> a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/payment-gateway\">payment gateway<\/a> or another authorized method processes the transaction or records the agreed arrangement.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Management and delivery:<\/strong> the system confirms the order, updates inventory and coordinates provision, download, collection or shipment.<\/li>\n<li><strong>After-sales service:<\/strong> enquiries, incidents, returns, warranties and personal-data requests are handled.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>The experience may combine a website, application, physical store, telephone support and external logistics. Ecommerce therefore describes a commercial and operational activity rather than a particular technology.<\/p>\n<h2>Ecommerce business models<\/h2>\n<p>Models can be classified according to the parties involved and the way revenue is generated:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>B2C:<\/strong> a business sells directly to consumers.<\/li>\n<li><strong>B2B:<\/strong> businesses buy products, licences, supplies or services from other businesses.<\/li>\n<li><strong>C2C:<\/strong> individuals exchange goods or services, usually through an intermediary platform.<\/li>\n<li><strong>D2C:<\/strong> a manufacturer or brand sells to consumers without relying on a traditional retail distributor.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Subscription or recurring commerce:<\/strong> the customer pays periodically for access, replenishment, content or an ongoing service.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These categories can overlap. A business may sell through its own site, operate a subscription and use a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/marketplace\">marketplace<\/a> to reach other audiences.<\/p>\n<h2>Online sales channels and approaches<\/h2>\n<p>Electronic commerce can take place in different environments:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Owned online store:<\/strong> the seller controls the catalogue, experience and contractual relationship on its website or application.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Marketplace:<\/strong> a platform brings multiple sellers and buyers together, facilitates transactions and establishes rules, fees and responsibilities.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Social commerce:<\/strong> discovery, recommendation and some or all of the purchase are integrated into social networks; this approach is known as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/social-commerce\">social commerce<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Mobile commerce:<\/strong> purchases are completed on mobile devices through responsive sites, applications, wallets or other interfaces.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Omnichannel model:<\/strong> digital and physical channels are combined, such as online ordering with in-store collection, return or support.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/dropshipping\">Dropshipping<\/a> is not a sales channel but a fulfilment model: the merchant obtains the order and a supplier prepares and sends the product to the customer.<\/p>\n<h2>Components of an ecommerce platform<\/h2>\n<p>The specific solution depends on the catalogue, volume and business model, but it commonly includes:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Catalogue and content:<\/strong> product pages, categories, prices, variations, availability, legal information and resources that support a decision.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cart and checkout:<\/strong> selection, promotions, tax, costs, address, delivery and confirmation before the order is completed.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Payments and fraud prevention:<\/strong> payment methods, authentication, reconciliation, refunds and controls proportionate to risk.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Orders, inventory and logistics:<\/strong> status, stock, preparation, transport, delivery, collection and returns.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Account and customer service:<\/strong> history, communications, support, warranties and incident management.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Data and integrations:<\/strong> analytics, consent, CRM, ERP, internal search, marketing platforms and other necessary systems.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Not every merchant needs the same architecture. Adding tools without a defined purpose can increase costs, dependencies, data exposure and measurement failures.<\/p>\n<h2>Benefits, risks and metrics<\/h2>\n<p>Ecommerce expands the ways in which goods and services can be sold, but it requires commercial, technical and operational controls:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Availability and reach:<\/strong> orders can be received across more times and locations, subject to logistics, regulation and demand.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Scalability:<\/strong> repetitive tasks can be automated, although systems, inventory and support must sustain growth.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Measurement:<\/strong> interactions and orders can be recorded, but attribution and data quality affect conclusions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Trust and security:<\/strong> clear information, data protection, authentication and fraud prevention influence adoption.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Experience and accessibility:<\/strong> performance, navigation, search, content and accessible design affect the ability to complete a purchase.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Operations and compliance:<\/strong> tax, consumer information, deadlines, returns and actual availability may limit expansion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Evaluation should separate acquisition, behaviour and outcomes. Common metrics include sessions with commercial intent, add-to-cart events, checkout starts, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/conversion-rate\">conversion rate<\/a>, average order value, margin, acquisition cost, repeat purchases, cancellations and returns. No single figure describes profitability or experience quality.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ecommerce enables goods and services to be sold through digital interfaces. Learn how it works, its models, channels, components, benefits and risks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"template":"","encyclopedia-tag":[394],"class_list":["post-20005","encyclopedia","type-encyclopedia","status-publish","hentry","encyclopedia-tag-ecommerce-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/encyclopedia\/20005","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/encyclopedia"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/encyclopedia"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20005"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"encyclopedia-tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/encyclopedia-tag?post=20005"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}