Retailer VS E-Commerce.
                     RETAILER VS E-COMMERCE
INTRODUCTIO
N
In the simplest terms, retail and e-commerce seem 
to be very similar: retail and e-commerce both refer 
to what happens when a product from a business is 
sold to an individual consumer for their own use, 
except one of them is done exclusively through the 
Internet.
Source: prisync.com 2
WHAT IS 
E-COMMERCE?
Short of electronic commerce, these are commercial 
transactions carried out through an electronic 
network such as the internet. In this case, 
businesses list their products on an online platform 
whereby consumers can view the product 
descriptions, prices, and images.
Source: http://www.differencebetween.net/ 3
TYPES OF E-
COMMERCE 
Business to Consumer (B2C) – This is the sale of 
goods and services from a business to a consumer
Consumer to Consumer (C2C) – This is the sale of 
goods and services from a consumer to another 
consumer.
Business to Business (B2B) – This is the sale of 
goods and services from a business to another 
business enterprise.
Source: http://www.differencebetween.net/ 4
ADVANTAGES OF 
E-COMMERCE 
• It serves customers within a wide geographical 
location
• The cost of starting an e-commerce business is 
low
• Customers can shop on a 24/7 basis
• It allows comparison of products pricing from 
different e-commerce sites
• It’s convenient as customers can shop from the 
convenience of their homes
Source: http://www.differencebetween.net/ 5
DISADVANTAGES 
OF 
E-COMMERCE 
• It may be harder to close a sale as consumers do 
not have a face to face communication with the 
seller
• Consumers can only see and touch a product 
after purchasing.
• It may take long before goods reach consumers
Source: http://www.differencebetween.net/ 6
WHAT IS RETAIL?
This is the sale of goods in small quantities from a 
single point such as a departmental store, 
supermarket, shop or mall in small quantities. For 
instance, a consumer in dire need of a mobile phone 
will purchase it at the nearest store.
Source: http://www.differencebetween.net/ 7
ADVANTAGES OF 
RETAIL 
• Consumers have a face to face communication 
with the seller hence improving the chances of 
closing a sale
• Consumers can see and even touch a product 
before purchasing. This minimizes the possibility 
of purchase returns
• Goods are obtained immediately after a 
purchase
Source: http://www.differencebetween.net/ 8
DISADVANTAGES 
OF RETAIL 
• It only serves people within a specific region
• The costs of starting a retail business are high 
due to additional costs such as store rent
• It makes it hard to compare pricing within 
different vendors
• Although some stores are open 24/7, most stores 
are only open up to a specific time
Source: http://www.differencebetween.net/ 9
SIMILARITIES 
BETWEEN E-
COMMERCE AND 
RETAIL
• Both aim at providing products and services to 
the consumer
Source: http://www.differencebetween.net/ 10
DIFFERENCE 
BETWEEN E-
COMMERCE AND 
RETAIL
The retail process takes place through multiple 
channels of distribution, whereas eCommerce is 
exclusively restricted to the internet.
Source: www.contrado.co.uk 11