E-Commerce Exercises
CHAPTER 6
C2. Old Metamora
Betty Shriver is the owner of Betty’s Crystal, a small shop that sells collectible glass figurines.
Betty’s shop carries many items that she purchased from estate sales and regional auctions, but the shop also sells new crystal figurines from manufacturers such as Baccarat, Lalique, Orrefors, and Swarovski. The shop is located in Metamora, Indiana, which is a popular tourist destination for weekend travelers in the Midwest. The town of Old Metamora is a small historic area in a rural setting that is less than a day’s drive from seven major metropolitan areas: Chicago, Cincinnati,
Columbus, Detroit, Indianapolis, Louisville, and St. Louis.
The shop is very busy on weekends and during the spring and summer months when tourists flock to Old Metamora. In the early fall, the tourist traffic slows considerably, and in the winter months, the town becomes almost deserted. Two years ago, Betty began to pick up extra business during the off season by auctioning items on eBay. Not only did the auctions help keep inventory moving during the slow months, but Betty found that she was able to carry a wider selection of items in the store. In the past, she would see unusual items at estate sales and auctions that she feared would not sell quickly in the shop. Now Betty knows that any item that does not sell in the shop can be auctioned online quite easily. Another unexpected benefit of participating in online auctions is that Betty developed relationships with regular buyers of crystal figurines and with people who run collectibles stores in other parts of the country. Every auction involves at least two e-mails (one to confirm the final bid and another to confirm the payment). Many successful bidders also send e-mail messages to Betty when they receive the item with questions about the item, or just to thank Betty for sending the item so quickly. Some of these e-mail exchanges continue with discussions related to crystal figurines and other
collectible
C2. Old Metamora
Betty Shriver is the owner of Betty’s Crystal, a small shop that sells collectible glass figurines.
Betty’s shop carries many items that she purchased from estate sales and regional auctions, but the shop also sells new crystal figurines from manufacturers such as Baccarat, Lalique, Orrefors, and Swarovski. The shop is located in Metamora, Indiana, which is a popular tourist destination for weekend travelers in the Midwest. The town of Old Metamora is a small historic area in a rural setting that is less than a day’s drive from seven major metropolitan areas: Chicago, Cincinnati,
Columbus, Detroit, Indianapolis, Louisville, and St. Louis.
The shop is very busy on weekends and during the spring and summer months when tourists flock to Old Metamora. In the early fall, the tourist traffic slows considerably, and in the winter months, the town becomes almost deserted. Two years ago, Betty began to pick up extra business during the off season by auctioning items on eBay. Not only did the auctions help keep inventory moving during the slow months, but Betty found that she was able to carry a wider selection of items in the store. In the past, she would see unusual items at estate sales and auctions that she feared would not sell quickly in the shop. Now Betty knows that any item that does not sell in the shop can be auctioned online quite easily. Another unexpected benefit of participating in online auctions is that Betty developed relationships with regular buyers of crystal figurines and with people who run collectibles stores in other parts of the country. Every auction involves at least two e-mails (one to confirm the final bid and another to confirm the payment). Many successful bidders also send e-mail messages to Betty when they receive the item with questions about the item, or just to thank Betty for sending the item so quickly. Some of these e-mail exchanges continue with discussions related to crystal figurines and other
collectible