Doing More Business on the Internet: How the Electronic Highway Is Transforming American Companies (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Networks have already changed the way America communicates..." (more)
Key Phrases: home page advantage, corporate librarians, acceptable use policy, World Wide Web, New York, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Doing More Business on the Internet Mary J. Cronin Business connections are the fastest growing component of the Internet, but many managers don’t know where to turn for strategic, comprehensive information on how to make the most of online technology. Doing More Business on the Internet, Mary J. Cronin’s follow-up to her best-selling First Edition, provides the essentials that every business needs to get started on the Internet—and to gain the competitive edge required in today’s global market. By distilling the experiences of over 100 companies that have used the Internet, Cronin offers an insightful, value-added framework for using the Internet strategically, as well as cost-effectively. You’ll learn how to establish a global presence, improve customer support and service, identify and explore new markets, and top into the vast resources of interactive networks to boost productivity and encourage innovation within your organization. Doing More Business on the Internet offers complete coverage of the hottest business topics, such as:

• Creating a World Wide Web home page, and using it to attract customers around the world
• How to develop an Internet plan that best suits your business
• The art of Intermarketing — interacting with customers and outshining competitors by taking advantage of the Web’s graphics, sound, and video capabilities
• Vital business information resources, including electronic journals, research reports, and discussion groups—and how to find them without getting lost in "cyberspace"
• The most effective commercial applications on the Internet and how they can add value to any business

Here’s what critics had to say about the blockbuster First Edition! "Catch the wave… Cronin guides you through the steps of getting connected, and shows you different ways to tap information for research, business partnerships, and more." — Erika Kotite, Entrepreneur "Read this book—or get (your superiors) to read it… Doing Business on the Internet is superb for nontechnical managerial types.…" —Steve Deyo, Computer User "One of the most thorough, up-to-date guides available for everyone from information managers to librarians and entrepreneurs." —Electronic Publishing "A must-read for anyone who wonders how money can be made in cyberspace." —Thomas Forbes, Folio

From the Back Cover

Doing More Business on the Internet Mary J. Cronin Business connections are the fastest growing component of the Internet, but many managers don’t know where to turn for strategic, comprehensive information on how to make the most of online technology. Doing More Business on the Internet, Mary J. Cronin’s follow-up to her best-selling First Edition, provides the essentials that every business needs to get started on the Internet—and to gain the competitive edge required in today’s global market. By distilling the experiences of over 100 companies that have used the Internet, Cronin offers an insightful, value-added framework for using the Internet strategically, as well as cost-effectively. You’ll learn how to establish a global presence, improve customer support and service, identify and explore new markets, and top into the vast resources of interactive networks to boost productivity and encourage innovation within your organization. Doing More Business on the Internet offers complete coverage of the hottest business topics, such as:

• Creating a World Wide Web home page, and using it to attract customers around the world
• How to develop an Internet plan that best suits your business
• The art of Intermarketing — interacting with customers and outshining competitors by taking advantage of the Web’s graphics, sound, and video capabilities
• Vital business information resources, including electronic journals, research reports, and discussion groups—and how to find them without getting lost in "cyberspace"
• The most effective commercial applications on the Internet and how they can add value to any business

Here’s what critics had to say about the blockbuster First Edition! "Catch the wave… Cronin guides you through the steps of getting connected, and shows you different ways to tap information for research, business partnerships, and more." — Erika Kotite, Entrepreneur "Read this book—or get (your superiors) to read it… Doing Business on the Internet is superb for nontechnical managerial types.…" —Steve Deyo, Computer User "One of the most thorough, up-to-date guides available for everyone from information managers to librarians and entrepreneurs." —Electronic Publishing "A must-read for anyone who wonders how money can be made in cyberspace." —Thomas Forbes, Folio

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 2 edition (April 11, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471287016
• ISBN-13: 978-0471287018
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,695,004 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars What I thought of this in 1996, September 4, 2002

By	Glen Engel Cox "www.engel-cox.org" (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The rapid sublimation of the Internet into the commercial world has been nothing short of amazing, although in retrospect it seems like it was heading towards it all along. Early commercial networks like The Source and CompuServe had the right idea of providing information on the desktop on demand, but they were limited in both what they could offer and who they could offer these services to by both logistics and economics (namely establishing modem lines in every community, the need for the consumer to own a modem, etc.). The Internet, evolving at the same time, had the resources and the connections, but unless you were a government researcher or an academic, you weren't allowed access. The creation of the commercial backbone by CIX bridged the gap between these two worlds, and the advent of the World Wide Web has provided the needed graphical user interface necessary for almost anyone to utilize the connectivity. Businesses are no longer wondering if they should become part of the online world, but how to do so and in what form.

Mary Cronin does a good job in Doing Business on the Internet and More Doing Business in the Internet [1] of explaining what the "network of networks" offers businesses, mainly through the use of case studies of businesses who have already opened up an electronic storefront. Although this book is written and meant for managers and executives with little net experience, the case studies provide some insights even for long-time users. The methods of doing business on the Internet are fairly obvious--from moving customer service from one-to-one phone exchanges to the one-to-many exchange offered by newsgroups and updated online catalogs by FTP--but the case studies illustrate how these methods achieve results. This focus on the cost-benefit to the bottom line is what conservative managers are looking for before they dedicate resources to achieving an Internet presence.

The speed at which this part of industry is growing and changing is not lost, and can be best illustrated by the book itself. Published only last year, it has already been outdated in many areas. Mary Cronin spends a lot of time reassuring businesses that the "Acceptable Use Policy" of the National Science Foundation is no longer a hindrance to commerce on the Internet; this policy is hardly ever mentioned today, now that the commercial side is fully two-thirds of the Internet and growing daily. Cronin mentions the World Wide Web only in passing, while in the past year it has been the Web that has brought the Internet into the mainstream and will likely be the vehicle that the majority of Americans and the world will use to connect to businesses.

Change is hard to deal with, and grizzled net veterans are prone to reminisce about the "good ol' days" when business was not a part of the Internet. It is likely that older business managers have fond memories of their own of days when acronyms like HTML and FTP were not part of their marketing plans. But, as Cronin correctly observes, the future is in increased connection and communication in all aspects of our lives, and someone is likely to use it to make money. This book shows that some people already have and provides some excellent tips on how to follow their example.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars I think the book is too old !, May 22, 2000

By	F.Y Chiu (Taiwan) - See all my reviews

I read the book in 2000,but this book was published in 1995. There are a lot of ideas not match today. But, this is not mean the book too old to read. I suggest if you have experiences about EC, you could read this book to rethink your step is correct or wrong. But, if your are a new person who want understand what EC is.the book maybe not good for you.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars very helpful, March 2, 2005

By	Lilo Kilani "Lil" (Houston, TX, USA) - See all my reviews

this book has everything you ever wanted to know about the internet, helped me get an A on my Jr. Project