B2C, B2B, C2C – Types of E-Commerce

Advances in e-commerce technology continue to transform personal communication and global business at an astounding pace. Estimates suggest that by 2009, some 47 percent of all business-to-business (B2B) commerce will be conducted online. Following are some of the types of e-commerce models available today:

1. Business to Consumer (B2C) – As the name suggests, it describes activities of businesses serving end consumers with products and/or services. This is the most common e-commerce segment. In this model, online businesses sell to individual consumers. When B2C started, it had a small share in the market but after 1995 its growth was exponential. The basic concept behind this type is that the online retailers and marketers can sell their products to the online consumer by using crystal clear data which is made available via various online marketing tools. E.g. An online pharmacy giving free medical consultation and selling medicines to patients is following B2C model.

2. Business to Business (B2B) – It is the largest form of e-commerce. B2B involves commerce transactions between businesses like the one between a manufacturer and a wholesaler or a wholesaler and a retailer. In this form, both the buyers and sellers are both business entities and do not involve an individual consumer. It is like the manufacturer supplying goods to the retailer or wholesaler. E.g. Dell sells computers and other related accessories online but it does not manufacture all those products. So, in order to sell those products, it first purchases them from different businesses i.e. the manufacturers of those products.
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