Consumer demand: e-commerce or traditional technologies

Abstract

The application of e-commerce technologies is associated with more efficient purchasing system. The research combines both: the application of e-commerce technologies by consumers and economic efficiency of such application. The research is aimed to propose profile, which can be used to identify cases when it is worth enough to choose e-commerce technologies instead of traditional ones. The paper presents new cash-flow model, which can be applied to evaluate efficiency when e-commerce technologies are used by consumers. The application of model shows that a consumer, which buying commodities on-line, receives economic benefit. The consumer’s expenditure, when e-commerce technologies are used instead of traditional trade technologies, are usually lower due to the fact that it is not necessary for consumer to travel abroad and to waste time on the road; however, there is a growth of expenditure which appears as the result of implementation and maintenance of internet access and goods delivery.