4.3.3. Carting System – a carting system is almost obligatory for web sites selling physical products, and optional for sites selling soft products and services. It is not required for publisher web sites.
4.3.4. Payment Processor – with the exception of publisher web sites, all other e-business web sites require a means of accepting online payments, preferably through a payment gateway. Sites that sell soft products would require a much high degree of fraud screening and protection than others.
4.3.5. Promotion - although promotion is required for all four different types of e-businesses, it is much harder for some than others. Those businesses with a lot of existing competitors will find it much more difficult to promote than other e-businesses. These businesses are generally the ones that are widely perceived to offer high rewards such as adult sites, or those that require little skill or investments such as reselling web hosting.
4.3.6. Customer Service Management – with the exception of businesses that derive their income from publishing, all online businesses including those that sell their products through auction sites require some degree of customer service. Obviously, the requirements would be greatest in those offering services.
Different e-business opportunities have different requirements in terms of technical and strategic aspects. It is now quite clear that Hong Kong has closed the gap considerably with N. America and Europe in terms of technical aspects, especially the processing of payments. Promotion is critical to the success of any e-business and there are many methods available. In the next chapter, the different types of home-based e-business opportunities will be compared in terms of risk, investment and reward. Conclusions will be reached as to whether and which type of e-business is most suitable for Hong Kong residents.