Unit 2: The Digital Economy - Clicks and Mortar

Below is a table which shows internet sales rising rapidly from December 2006 to December 2012. Internet sales have been rising faster than any other part of the economy as people prefer to shop online nowadays. As you can see below, the number of internet sales peaks from September to December as many more people use internet shopping to buy Christmas presents.





                                                                                                                                  

The article below is about internet sales for different companies. It shows that the internet market is changing because, using Thorntons as an example, its overall sales have increased "by 5.4 per cent on year to £88million in the quarter to January 12", but that stores "carrying the Thorntons name sales slumped 9 per cent" which shows that more people are shopping online.

The article below is about internet sales for different companies. It shows that the internet market is changing because of the "closure of a VAT loophole" which, for the company Play.com, has made "more than 200 staff redundant" because a "scheme will allowed items unde £15 to be sold to Britain free of VAT" has ended.

The article below is about internet sales for different companies. It shows that the internet market is changing because, as stated below, "internet shopping was up 50 per cent" which allowed a "13.9 per cent expansion in floor space".

 

                                                                                                                                      

Activity 7 - Consider the advantages and disadvantages of online grocery shopping:

Advantages:

• saves petrol
• shops 24 hours a day, every day
• don't have to queue up
• see all the special offers in one place
• don't need a car
• can pick up items from previous shopping lists to avoid forgetting essentials
• can compare prices with ease
• can complete a large repeat order very quickly
• don't have to go out in bad weather

Disadvantages:

• miss out on manager's bargains
• have to stay in awaiting delivery
• have to phone up a call centre when an incorrect item is picked
• have to rely on someone else's judgement when substituting items
• have to pay more, especially for small loads
• can't feel the food to check on ripeness
• it is harder to return inadequate goods

                                                                                                                                                                  

Activity 8 - Compare online grocery stores:

Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's, Morrisons, Marks & Spencer, Aldi, Co-operative Store, Waitrose and Lidl are the main supermarket chains in the United Kingdom.
Common features of all of these are that they provide their customers with 24 hour a day shopping, often cheaper and with special offers all found in one place. The customer is also able to set up their own account on the website, which allows the companies to profile their users. Recipes are also offered on the majority of the websites, (e.g. Waitrose, Lidl, etc), and all of the websites offer a store finder.
However, the content found on these websites varies.
On the Tesco website, fresh food & groceries, clothing and the Tesco bank can be found.
On the Asda website, groceries, entertainment, clothing and baby items can be found.
On the Sainsbury's website, food & drink, home & garden, appliances, technology, entertainment, toys & nursery, sport & leisure, and finance can be found.
On the Morrisons website, food & drink, wine and baby items can be found.
On the Marks & Spencer website, lingerie, beauty, clothes, furniture, food & wine, flowers & gifts, Valentine's day items and the Marks & Spencer bank can be found.
On the ALDI website, bakery, ales, larger and cider, spirits, wine, frozen food, Fairtrade products, chocolate, mother & baby items, and pet food can be found.
On the Co-operative website, food, insurance, electricals, pharmaceuticals, travel, funeral care, legal services and the Co-operative bank can be found.
On the LIDL website, tools, toys, property and groceries can be found.
I prefer the Marks & Spencer website as it offers all of the following, which is more than all of the other supermarkets' websites:

This seems to be the most useful website as everything is arranged easily into one place and has multiple drop-down menus, making navigation around the website easy. A screenshot showing one of the drop-down menus which offers many more features: