Curso de Inglés Comercial y de Negocios

Before you listen to the first part of an interview with retail analyst Anita Knapp, read the following the questions.

1. An in-store kiosk is

a) extra space to put more products in a shop.

b) a computer which has extra information about a particular product.
c) a printer which prints out product information and images.

2. Which of the following is NOT an advantage of an advanced search function?

a) The speed at which a customer can find a product.
b) Supplying information to the retailer about customer shopping habits.
c) Checking a customer’s order to see if it has been sent.

3. According to the interview, one reason why more companies are investing in e-commerce is because

a) they can market their products directly to the consumer.
b) it’s cheaper than advertising on a TV channel.
c) their brand is more visible on the Internet.

Listen to the interview and answer the questions.

Here are some phrases from the interview. Match them with phrases of similar meaning.

build brand loyalty
took off
the bubble burst
open new doors
comes in handy
larger range

Now you hear Anita talking about one of the drawbacks (inconveniente, desventaja) of e-commerce. Read the questions before you listen.

1. What disadvantage of e-commerce does Anita talk about?

2. What percentage of consumers might stop shopping on line?

3. True of false? 62% of consumers are happy to give personal and financial information over the Internet.
4. The new security system is better than the current one because

a) a computer hacker designed it.
b) the passwords are never repeated.
c) it has it’s own software.

5. How much does the new security system cost?

6. Does Anita think that the future of e-commerce is positive or negative?

Now listen and answer the questions.

Now listen to the complete interview and write the missing word or phrase. Use the pause button on your media player to give you time to write.

It was in the 1990’s that e-commerce first , and shopping cart icons started to appear on retailer’s web pages. But then the dot-com and sales dropped dramatically. There were just too many companies selling on the net.

Now, however, the big retailers are investing heavily in e-commerce and looking to the Internet to . I asked retail analyst Anita Knapp to explain why.

Many retailers are now looking at all kinds of ways to and sell their products. It could be through the Internet, a handheld device, or an in-store kiosk.

Sorry Anita, what’s an in-store kiosk?

It’s a computer, in a shop, which allows retailers to show their customers a much of product colours and models than there is room for on the shelves. For example, a shop may have room for only one make of printer. With an in-store kiosk, the retailer can not only the customer all the different models and colours available, but also where to buy them.
Also. if you’re buying a fitted kitchen or bathroom, you can see the finished product in a 3 dimensional, 360-degree perspective.

In what other ways is e-commerce technology making a come back, Anita?

Well, when a consumer walks into a traditional and store, he or she wants to be able to find a product as quickly as possible. When they shop online they want to find them even more quickly. This is where advanced search functions . The customer enters a precise product description and finds the product in seconds.

Can the retailer benefit directly from this?

Yes, by analysing the shopping habits of visitors to the website, the retailer gets a much better idea of how people are shopping. This means that the retailer can give the consumer what he or she really wants. It’s a kind of
A lot of consumers use search engines to find products on the web, and retailers need to be displayed in a good position on results.

Technology also gives the online shopper the opportunity to follow their product order from start to finish. The customer can check the status of an order at any time, or even chat to the retailer in and ask questions about the product.

In the last few years we’ve seen a lot of interest in investing in internet technology because it’s such a successful sales channel. It allows companies to influence their consumers and to . This is one reason why we’re seeing such an increase in investment in this area.

A Drawback

On the negative side though Anita, how is e-commerce being affected by e-crime?

and could potentially damage online trade significantly. A recent survey from Consumer Reports Webwatch claimed that as many as 25% of consumers might stop shopping online, and another 30% said that they were reducing the amount of time they spend shopping online. In fact, 62% of consumers are not willing to give their and information over the Internet.

The good news is that U.S. banking institutions will soon be using a two- factor authentication system in order to improve security of

Can you explain how this works, Anita?

Yes, this will replace the use of one that most of use now, and which can be discovered by hackers relatively easily. Two-factor authentication combines one thing the consumer knows with one thing the consumer physically possesses. There is a security ‘token’ which is on the user’s PC as a plug-in to a browser, and this software-based token authenticates a one-time password that would be a second factor in allowing the consumer permission to enter. The passwords are never repeated, so hackers are to steal them.

The problem with this is the cost, between $10 and $20 per user to on PCs, laptops and PDAs.

Hopefully though, the banks, big credit card companies and big retailers might eventually give away this technology to boost and reduce the amount of money being lost at the moment to online theft.

So the future isn’t all bright and sunny?

No, but despite these reports, online have been growing at double-digit figures and will continue to grow. Bad press and reports of Internet crime are not going to stop the of e-commerce.

Anita, Thank you very much indeed.

My pleasure.

Listen again and read the complete transcription.