Nobel prize winner in economics, Ronald Coase, introduced the notion of transaction costs to the economics literature. Transaction costs are a set of inefficiencies that should be added to the price of a product or service in order to measure the performance of the market relative to the non-market behavior in firms. Of course, there are also transaction costs to buyers, including consumers. The different types of transaction costs, examples of these for customers, and how the Web may reduce them are illustrated in Table 8.2. Obviously, some of these transaction cost reductions are real and monetary; in other cases, they may be more psychic in nature--such as the relating of poor service over the Internet on bulletin boards as a form of customer revenge (and this in turn can reduce transaction costs for other customers).
|
Transaction costs |
Examples of how the Web can affect |
|
Search costs (finding buyers, sellers) |
A collector of tin soldiers wishes to identify sources. He can use search engines and comparison sites, using the search term "tin soldier." |
|
Information costs (learning) |
A prospective customer wishes to learn more about digital cameras and what is available. Previously, she would have had to read magazines, talk to knowledgeable individuals, and visit stores. She can now access firm and product information easily and at no cost, obtain comparative product information, and access suppliers on the Web. |
|
Bargaining costs (transacting, communicating, negotiating) |
The time normally taken by a customer to negotiate can now be used for other purposes, as intelligent agents transact and negotiate on the customer's behalf. |
|
Decision costs |
The cost of deciding over Supplier A vs. Supplier B, or Product A vs. Product B. The Web makes information available on suppliers (on their or comparative Web sites) and products and services. For example, Travel Web allows customers to compare hotels and destinations on-line. |
|
Policing costs (monitoring cheating) |
Previously, customers had to wait to receive statements and accounts, and then to check paper statements for correctness. On-line banking enables customers to check statements in real time. Chat lines frequently alert participants to good and bad buys, and potential product and supplier problems (e.g., the flaw in Intel's Pentium chip was communicated extensively over the Internet). |
|
Enforcement costs (remedying) |
When a problem exists with a supplier, how does the customer enforce contractual rights? In the non-Web world, this might require legal assistance. Publicizing the infringement of one's rights would be difficult and expensive. Chat lines and bulletin boards offer inexpensive revenge, if not monetary reimbursement! |
- 瀏覽次數：4035
