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Chapter 2 E-commerce fundamentals 57

from MORE TH>N and have complete editorial control), freed the content by using a
non-restrictive Creative Commons licence throughout the site and allowed it to
become part of the fabric of social networking by providing countless ways to share,
bookmark, recommend, rate and comment.
We also made sure the site was easy to use, accessible and effective at interacting
with search engines. And of course we give it daily in-depth, engaging, original content
so our audience will always find a new topic to add to their online conversations.
We launched the site just a couple of weeks before the big flood events last year.
When the floods hit we published an article on how to best prevent flood damage and
make a successful claim. It shot up to position one on Google for the search ‘flood
advice’. Even now, over a year later, it sits comfortably at position three, just below the
entries from the environment agency and direct.gov.
The site is clearly delivering its stated goals of being eminently useful and creating
long-term engagement with the brand. It’s constantly developing as a result of user
feedback, broadening the topics covered and providing the types of content and serv-
ices its increasingly numerous audience find useful. It is really taking on a life of its own.
And all the while, it is delivering a branded experience to the thousands of people
who decide to spend the time of the day in conversation with MORE TH>N.

Source: Econsultancy (2008) Q&A: MORE TH>N’s Roberto Hortal Munoz on comparison sites, 8 August.
www.Econsultancy.com/news-blog/366073/q-a-more-th-n-s-roberto-hortal-munoz-on-comparison-sites.html

The e-commerce environment

All organizations operate within an environment that influences the way in which they con-
duct business. Strategy development should be strongly influenced by considering the
environment the business operates in, as illustrated in Figure 2.1. To inform e-commerce
strategy, the most significant influences are those of the immediate marketplace of the
micro-environment that is shaped by the needs of customers and how services are provided
to them through competitors and intermediaries and via upstream suppliers. Wider influ-
ences are provided by local and international economic conditions and legislation together
with whatever business practices are acceptable to society. Finally, technological innovations
are vital in providing opportunities to provide superior services to competitors or through
of the marketplace.
Strategic agility changing the shape
The capability to innovate
and so gain competitive
advantage within a Strategic agility
marketplace by
monitoring changes
within an organization’s The capacity to respond to these environmental opportunities and threats is commonly
marketplace and then to
efficiently evaluate referred to as strategic agility. Strategic agility is a concept strongly associated with knowl-
alternative strategies and edge management theory and is based on developing a sound process for reviewing
then select, review and
implement appropriate marketplace opportunities and threats and then selecting the appropriate strategy options. See
candidate strategies. Mini Case Study 2.1 for an excellent video introduction to the principles of strategic agility.