Types of eCommerce Business Models in India
E-Commerce is one of the most successful business models that an entrepreneur can replicate. Ever since the emergence of electronic commerce, it has been growing rapidly. The reason is that the size of the market keeps growing in the virtual space. Another reason for the growth of e-commerce is the existence of middle class, holding good purchasing power. Furthermore, government policies such as Digital India, Start-up India and Make In India have fuelled the growth of ecommerce business models in India.
However, this industry is still an infant in our country. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the industry and the diverse models that are available. Once you have the models set aside you can decide which one to choose and what strategy to start with and grow in the market. Whenever we talk about e-commerce, the first thing that comes to mind is a business deal between customer and supplier on an online platform. While, the idea is correct, there are other models of e-commerce as well. Therefore, this article will describe the types of e commerce business model.
- Service Subscription
- Exclusive Brand Stores
- Online Deals
- Marketplace
Service Subscription
The websites with online subscription model allow the users to choose from available subscriptions. The users can pay for the selected subscriptions online. In addition, the consumers can avail the services continuously through recurring payments.
Therefore, in such models, the focal point is the online payment of services. As a result, the access to services becomes easy for the consumers. The best example of such a model is Amazon. It provides monthly subscriptions to the consumers with attractive discounts.
Exclusive Brand Stores
In this model, the brands create their own online stores. Here, the brands upload the catalogue of their products on their website. These products are the same that are available on their brick-and-mortar store. The advantage of such a model is that the consumers can directly shop from the website of their trusted brands. The best examples of such a model are HP and Samsung.
If you are planning to own an exclusive store for your own, then Shopnix is the best online store builder to start with.
If you are new to the concept of online commerce and still have a flair to go for it, I urge you to read the below articles. It will give you an idea of what kind of stores you can start with.
Few eCommerce business store ideas you can start straight away.
Online Deals
Another eCommerce business model is to provide best deals to the consumers. In such a model, a website provides the best deals they can get on other websites. For instance, couponindia is one such website in India, which provides the users with the best deals.
Marketplace
The marketplace is the core of e-Commerce. It provides the consumers and sellers with a platform so that they can communicate with one another. There are many models for a marketplace. They are
- B2B – Business to Business
- B2C – Business to Consumer
- C2C – Consumer to Consumer
- C2B – Consumer to Business
- B2A – Business to Administration
- C2A – Consumer to Administration
B2B – Business to Business
The business-to-business model involves transactions between businesses. In simple words, here, a website sells its goods to an immediate buyer who sells the products further. In this model, the major parties involved are manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers. Therefore, the business takes place between manufacturers and wholesalers or wholesalers and retailers. The expected growth of B2B e-commerce business model by 2020 is 2.5 time the current state.
B2C – Business to Consumer
The B2C model is one of the most common types of e commerce business model. Here, the businesses and the customers are in a business deal. The sellers establish a virtual store for the customers online. On the other hand, the customers get access to a wide variety of products through the virtual stores.
The advantage of such a model is that the customers have enough information about the products. Moreover, they also get the opportunity to purchase the products at a cheaper rate. Furthermore, they also get the benefit of a quick delivery. One of the best examples of B2C in India is Flipkart.
C2C – Consumer-to-Consumer
In a C2C business model both the buyer and seller is a customer. Here, a third party provides the customers with the platform to buy and sell products. Mostly, the customers in a C2C e-commerce model sell the products that they do not require any more. They can also sell the products that they make themselves. In India, the best example for a C2C business model is Quikr and OLX. Customers make use of these platforms to sell old goods, flats, and much more.
C2C – Consumer to Business
The C2B model is the reverse model of businesses-to-consumer. Here, the consumers sell to the businesses. One of the best examples of such a business model is a job portal. The consumers upload their resume on the portal as a seller. The employers, on the other hand, get the resume to provide job offer to the consumers. One of the best examples of such a business model in India is Naukri.com.
B2A – Business to Administration
The business-to-administration is an e-commerce model where the transactions take place between the businesses and the public administration. Such a model encompasses employment, legal documentation and so on. The main purpose of B2A business model is to enhance the transparency, efficiency and flexibility in public administration.
C2A – Consumer to Administration
Similar to B2A, C2A also focuses on the enhancement of transparency, efficiency and flexibility in public administration. The only difference is that instead of businesses, here the consumers transact with public administration. One of the best examples C2A is e-tax filing. Here, the consumers pay taxes to the administration through an online portal.
Conclusion
The selection of the e-commerce business model depends on the objective of the company. Based on the organization’s requirements, the business model could change. We have witnessed several e-commerce business models. However, the growth of e-commerce in India shows the emergence of new types of e commerce business models. Unfortunately, there are many obstacles in the way of e-commerce. Some of the basic issues include poor internet connectivity, logistics, and much more.
One of the solutions to overcome such issue is through the adoption of smartphones. India is already witnessing the growth of smartphones. As a result, it is directly enhancing the growth of e-commerce industry. Furthermore, the schemes discussed at the beginning of the article such as Startup India is another solution to the issues associated with the e-commerce industry. Once the issues are resolved, the e-commerce companies can freely implement the required business model.
