To meet the needs of suppliers in today’s marketplace, the functional requirements of a B2B e-commerce solution must fulfill the objectives and challenges previously described. Whereas some may be more important than others to different suppliers, they make up the basic building blocks of any effective sell-side B2B solution.
Now, let’s look at B2C electronic information systems. This part of the chapter explores the common pitfalls in the design and implementation of a successful e-commerce information architecture. After identifying the most common problems, this part of the chapter shows how to architecturally guarantee continuous Web site availability and scalability, successfully implement a clickstream data warehouse, and create a contractual environment with technology suppliers that ensures the business success of the e-commerce enterprise.