Book Description
Most ecommerce experts agree that click-and-buy shopping cart sites are fast becoming a thing of the past. Soon, the only ebusinesses that will matter will be those which allow customers to custom design the products they buy. At Ford, the Ford-Oracle AutoXchange site transformed Ford's supply chain from one based on forecasts and building for inventory to a real-time, build-to-order model. In this practical guide to the future of ebusiness, BuildNet, Inc. Chairman Keith T. Brown clearly explains why the most successful business-to-consumer (B2C) ebusinesses, now and in the years ahead, are those built on interactive business-to-business (B2B) platforms that integrate Internet technology into all phases of business operations. And he arms readers with the knowledge and skills needed to create solid interactive business plans. Keith T. Brown (Durham, NC) is Chairman of BuildNet, Inc., the home-building industry's largest ebusiness, technology, and project management software company. A privately held company, BuildNet, Inc. manages the construction of approximately a third of all residential home construction in the U.S.

Download Description
Most e-commerce experts agree that "click-and-buy" shopping cart sites are fast becoming a thing of the past. Soon, the only e-businesses that will matter will be those which allow customers to custom design the products they buy. At Ford, the Ford-Oracle AutoExchange site transformed Ford's supply chain from one based on forecasts and building for inventory to a real-time, build-to-order model. In this practical guide to the future of e-business. BuildNet, Inc. Chairman Keith T. Brown clearly explains why the most successful business-to-consumer e-businesses, now and in the years ahead, are those built on interactive business-to-business platforms that integrate Internet technology into all phases of business operations. And he arms readers with the knowledge and skills needed to create solid interactive business plans.

Book Info
Reveals the profound impact mass customization will have on business operations, and explains how to take advantage of this paradigm shift. Explains how the next step in the eCommerce revolution will be characterized by interactivity and the delivery of customized goods and services to the great mass of consumers. DLC: Electronic commerce.

From the Back Cover
[flaps] "The Information Revolution represents only the beginning phase of the Interactive Marketplace, and the changes it will bring to this new economy will be equally as dramatic as the changes brought to the world by the Industrial Revolution."
--Keith T. Brown
[from Chapter 4: Mass Customization] The Interactive Marketplace They're barely two years old, but the "old-fashioned" click-and-buy business-to-consumer (B2C) Web sites are already poised to become a thing of the past. The real innovation today--and the real profit--lies in the principle of interactivity and mass customization between B2C systems linked to integrated business-to-business (B2B) backbones. Call it "B2B2C." With the interactivity that integrated computers are now making commonplace, businesses can now empower customers to design and customize the products they buy as they shop. It is a phenomenon already embraced--and implemented to hugely profitable effect--by such titans as Nike and Ford Auto. And it is the vital key, now and in the future, to your own organization's e-business survival and success. Welcome to The Interactive Marketplace. Here is the first comprehensive and in-depth exploration and explanation of the most crucial and forward-looking innovation in e-business today: mass customization. Renowned e-commerce visionary Keith Brown guides readers into tomorrow's interactive marketplace, arming business professionals at organizations of all sizes with the resources and wherewithal to create and customize a viable, economical, competitive, and future-ready business models guaranteed to take them beyond the click-and-buy shopping cart plans that today are teetering on the brink of extinction. In The Interactive Marketplace, Brown looks to a range of real-life examples and industry trends as he explores how customer-targeted e-business is shifting more and more toward an emphasis on B2B platforms that integrate Internet technology into all phases of business operations. Readers will learn exactly how to create a business model that is capable of seamlessly reaching from the manufacturer, through the supply chain, to the contractor and point-of-sale--while delivering interactive capability to the consumer on an extremely user-friendly technology platform. At once an indispensable survival guide to the future and a fascinating look at the state of e-commerce today through the eyes of one of its leading pioneers, The Interactive Marketplace delivers all the knowledge, skills, and tools required to stay on top and thrive in today's perpetually evolving business world. [author photo and credit]
Keith T. Brown (Durham, North Carolina) is chairman of BuildNet, Inc., the home-building industry's largest e-business, technology, and project management software company. A privately held company, BuildNet, Inc. manages the construction of over 40% of all residential home construction in the United States. [Back cover] "Keith Brown makes a clear and convincing case for the strategic mandate of personalization and the implementation tactics that lend profitability... A must-read if you want to survive the Interactive Age."
--Martha Rogers, Peppers and Rogers Group, co-author of One to One Enterprise "The Interactive Marketplace… reveals the profound impact mass customization will have on business operations, as it tells how to take advantage of this paradigm shift. American consumers already benefit from the great technological revolution, powered by the Internet, but Brown explains how the next step in this revolution will be characterized by interactivity and the delivery of customized goods and services to the great mass of consumers."
--Jack Kemp, Empower America
Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development "The Interactive Marketplace is one of the few, if only book in the market place today that captures the vision of a new generation. A generation that will demand to have ‘what they want; exactly as they want it; when they want it; and THEY will dictate what they will pay.' Mr. Brown's book should be viewed as the definitive text for those companies that intend to do business with the Internet generation. If there was ever a company that is ‘Net Ready,' it is Mr. Brown's BuildNet.com--he really does practice what he preaches. This book is a definite ‘must read' for those companies that wish to be winners in the E-conomy." --John Sifonis, co-author of Net Ready

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The Interactive Marketplace

They're barely two years old, but the "old-fashioned" click-and-buy business-to-consumer (B2C) Web sites are already poised to become a thing of the past. The real innovation today-and the real profit-lies in the principle of interactivity and mass customization between B2C systems linked to integrated business-to-business (B2B) backbones. Call it "B2B2C." With the interactivity that integrated computers are now making commonplace, businesses can now empower customers to design and customize the products they buy as they shop. It is a phenomenon already embraced-and implemented to hugely profitable effect-by such titans as Nike and Ford Auto. And it is the vital key, now and in the future, to your own organization's e-business survival and success. Welcome to The Interactive Marketplace.

Here is the first comprehensive and in-depth exploration and explanation of the most crucial and forward-looking innovation in e-business today: mass customization. Renowned e-commerce visionary Keith Brown guides readers into tomorrow's interactive marketplace, arming business professionals at organizations of all sizes with the resources and wherewithal to create and customize a viable, economical, competitive, and future-ready business models guaranteed to take them beyond the click-and-buy shopping cart plans that today are teetering on the brink of extinction.

In The Interactive Marketplace, Brown looks to a range of real-life examples and industry trends as he explores how customer-targeted e-business is shifting more and more toward an emphasis on B2B platforms that integrate Internet technology into all phases of business operations. Readers will learn exactly how to create a business model that is capable of seamlessly reaching from the manufacturer, through the supply chain, to the contractor and point-of-sale-while delivering interactive capability to the consumer on an extremely user-friendly technology platform.

At once an indispensable survival guide to the future and a fascinating look at the state of e-commerce today through the eyes of one of its leading pioneers, The Interactive Marketplace delivers all the knowledge, skills, and tools required to stay on top and thrive in today's perpetually evolving business world.

Keith T. Brown (Durham, North Carolina) is chairman of BuildNet, Inc., the home-building industry's largest e-business, technology, and project management software company. A privately held company, BuildNet, Inc. manages the construction of over 40% of all residential home construction in the United States. "Keith Brown makes a clear and convincing case for the strategic mandate of personalization and the implementation tactics that lend profitability... A must-read if you want to survive the Interactive Age." -Martha Rogers, Peppers and Rogers Group, co-author of One to One Enterprise "The Interactive Marketplace... reveals the profound impact mass customization will have on business operations, as it tells how to take advantage of this paradigm shift. American consumers already benefit from the great technological revolution, powered by the Internet, but Brown explains how the next step in this revolution will be characterized by interactivity and the delivery of customized goods and services to the great mass of consumers." -Jack Kemp, Empower America Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development "The Interactive Marketplace is one of the few, if only book in the market place today that captures the vision of a new generation. A generation that will demand to have 'what they want; exactly as they want it; when they want it; and THEY will dictate what they will pay.' Mr. Brown's book should be viewed as the definitive text for those companies that intend to do business with the Internet generation. If there was ever a company that is 'Net Ready,' it is Mr. Brown's BuildNet.com-he really does practice what he preaches. This book is a definite 'must read' for those companies that wish to be winners in the E-conomy." -John Sifonis, co-author of Net Ready

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

Jack Kemp, Empower America Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development:

The Interactive Marketplace... reveals the profound impact mass customization will have on business operations, as it tells how to take advantage of this paradigm shift. American consumers already benefit from the great technological revolution, powered by the Internet, but Brown explains how the next step in this revolution will be characterized by interactivity and the delivery of customized goods and services to the great mass of consumers."  — Jack Kemp

Martha Rogers, Peppers and Rogers Group, co-author of One to One Enterprise:

Keith Brown makes a clear and convincing case for the strategic mandate of personalization and the implementation tactics that lend profitability... A must-read if you want to survive the Interactive Age.  — Martha Rogers

John Sifonis, co-author of Net Ready:

If there was ever a company that is 'Net Ready,' it is Mr. Brown's BuildNet.com-he really does practice what he preaches. This book is a definite 'must read' for those companies that wish to be winners in the E-conomy.  — John Sifonis

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