Abstract

            In general, e-commerce refers to the process and procedure of exchanging services and goods in a digital mode where the payment of services and goods occurs in the electronic form. Actually, e-commerce is a market where consumers tend to purchase services and goods from their homes and the products are delivered right at the doorstep. In this paper, it has been analyzed that e-commerce is quite different from traditional commerce. There is a stark difference between the two and they generally have their own benefits and drawbacks. It has been determined in this paper that e-commerce has advanced significantly and it continues to evolve with time, constituting and contributing to both local and international economy. In addition to it, social media seems to augment both traditional and e-commerce. It has been identified that social media plays quite an important role in making sure that commerce is effective. It seems to facilitate the whole process of commerce and enables brands to reach out to their target audience in a more efficient manner. Through a literature review and interview of non-native Turkish students, it has been identified in this research that social media platforms have the potential of improving and facilitating traditional and e-commerce. It is, however, important to note that social commerce seems to present a more effective method of reaching out to customers and even selling products directly to a certain extent, though more studies and research are required for proving this claim. This study determines that e-commerce is rising at a rapid rate and it presents a new horizon to be studied.

Keywords: Traditional Commerce, International Economy, Social Media, Social Commerce,Social Media Platforms

Table of Contents

Introduction. 4

Background. 5

Research objectives. 6

Research question. 6

Research Significance. 6

Literature Review.. 7

Social Media and Commerce Types. 7

Social Media for E-commerce. 9

Differences and Similarities. 10

Advantages and Disadvantages. 13

The Process of E-commerce. 14

Case Study of Instagram.. 15

Methodology. 17

Qualitative Method. 18

Snowball Sampling. 18

Interview Questions. 18

Findings/Conclusion. 19

References

Introduction

            Generally, in modern times, e-commerce has become quite an important and even significant business sector. In fact, e-commerce seems to support businesses and contributes to the economy of a nation. Although the main idea underlying it is concerned with selling products and services over the web, different businesses are capable of generating significant revenues and returns from it. Furthermore, e-commerce presents potential opportunities for businesses to expand and upgrade their functions and operations. In fact, it can be said that in recent times, significant attention has been directed at e-commerce, its processes, and the opportunities that it presents for businesses and for nations(Laudon & Traver).

            In contrast with e-commerce, traditional commerce is a type of business that seems to focus on the exchange of services and products directly. In simple words, traditional commerce involves in-person dealing and face to face dealing with all the customers and parties for exchanging services and goods with predetermined or specified prices. In addition to it, traditional commerce involves manual transaction processing. It implies that when customers make a purchase decision and they have selected a specific product, they must deliver cash by hand or digitally to the dealer. In return, the dealer has to calculate the amount of money before providing the product. It is quite important to note that both of these commerce styles and modes are different from each other. In fact, they have several major differences that tend to make them different from each other and differentiate their scope from each other(Huang & Benyoucef, 2013).

            In recent times, e-commerce has advanced significantly. For instance, in 2019, sales in retail e-commerce amounted to approximately 3.53 trillion dollars and these figures are only expected to grow at a significant rate in the coming years. Such a large amount of money is generated by e-commerce. There are several countries in the world where e-commerce is not really present. It implies that in the future when e-commerce platforms will be available everywhere, the sales would grow significantly. Furthermore, with the advancement in technologies, e-commerce has evolved to be a lot more user-friendly before. This only adds more value and appeal to e-commerce and its potential to facilitate the purchasing experience.

            In addition to traditional and e-commerce, social media has also gained significant attention in recent times. In fact, with social media, a new mode of doing business has been developed. Social commerce generally involves selling products and services directly in platforms of social media. It is quite different from social media marketing where the aim is to drive traffic from social media to an online store or website. With social commerce, the entire experience of shopping seems to occur without the customer leaving the site on social media. Social media seems to present not only a mode of carrying out business processes but it also enables businesses to use it for attracting customers to their websites. In this research, the difference between e-commerce and traditional commerce will be explored, the capability of social media will be analyzed, benefits and drawbacks, and the process of e-commerce will be discussed(Grandón, Nasco, & Jr., 2011).

Background

On the global scale, as the market has become intertwined, the ways that are demandedby the customers are being supplied; these are getting refined with time. The dynamic range ofsources can be particularly utilized to obtain the production, labor and raw materials. All of thesesources are specifically used for small and large businesses to seek lower cost. The process ofthe supply chain is referred to as the incredible significance for the e-commerce sectors that arerapidly growing. For instance, the particular global field is taking under the process ofproductions. It has been observed that there are several technicalities that are discussed in thephenomena of e-commerce and the business requires the process of supply chain management.The trends and technologies are also required for control and coordination of the company goods flow, it has become the entire integral for making sure productive and smooth operations.The particular documents explore the several trends and technologies that are used for exploringthe relationship of e-commerce with supply chain management. To perform the activities of e-commerce the supply chain management plays an essential role(Zhang, et al., 2011).

In recent decades, there are multi-billion businesses that have been grown under e-commerce. The typical expression of e-commerce are; electronic payments and online shopping, but under this term online the non-material communication can are described among the seller and buyers. There has not been introduced any technology that can be used for the process of transportation and manufacturing from raw materials in the facilities of the production for the finished products at the location of the customer which cannot be easily accomplished by using the internet. The solid handlings of the goods are required under this process that can be easily supplied the products from raw materials to end product. The administration cannot be supported by the technologies of e-commerce that is concerned with the process of manufacturing(Ghobakhloo, Arias‐Aranda, & Benitez‐Amado, 2011).

Research objectives

The research objectives are particularly established in order to explain and explore the most important and major points of the research study. There are several objectives of the said study but the most important and major is to explain and explores the particular aspects of e- commerce. There are several other research objectives of the said study that will be attained in the various parts of the study. These are;

·         To explores the type of commerce by consulting it with social media

·         To examine the role of social media for e-commerce

·         To compare e-Commerce with traditional commerce with the accordance of its advantages and disadvantages

·         To analyze the views of non-native Turkish students regarding e-commerce.

Research question

There are several research questions of the said study but the most important and major is how the particular aspects of e-commerce can be explored? There are several other research questions of the said study that will be attained in the various parts of the study. These are;

·         What is the role of social media for e-commerce?

·         How the procedures of e-commerce can be provided by using social media?

·         What are the major similarities and differences betweene-Commerce and traditional commerce in accordance with its advantages and disadvantages?

·         What the are views of non-native Turkish students regarding e-commerce, their uses, and their applications.

Research Significance

The particular said research significantly contributes to the literature review. It offers various innovative ways by which the researcher and various studies can help to know aspects of digital marketing in various industries. This study also explores the means of eth digital marketing that can be utilized by the various industries in order to implement the models of digital marketing as well as social media marketing. This research study significantly contributes to the knowledge of the policymakers and management who are working for an e-commerce site.

Literature Review

Social Media and Commerce Types

Social media and commerce, both of these are different aspects even both of these are totally different things to evaluate and calculate. Social media is referred to as any kind oftool device which enables the users in order to share and create content quickly with the public. There are huge ranges of apps and websites that can be encompassed by social media for instance, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.  There are a number of various other websites that can be particularly utilized for sharing the contents as well numbers of websites are utilized to promote the products and services. There are three major types of commerce; itincludestraditional commerce, social commerce, and electronic commerce(Huang & Benyoucef, From e-commerce to social commerce: A close look at design features, 2013).

Traditional Commerce

Kaur (2011) identifies that traditional Commerce is considered as the traditional approach that is particularly utilized in order to purchase and sell services and goods in person. The face to face dealing is included in it. It is particularly utilized to save money and valuable time. Traditional commerce is the process of buying and selling goods in direct form, this began with the start of human civilization, namely the Barter system. While the Barter system was exchanging goods for other goods, the recent traditional business exchanges goods for monetary gains.

It is important to note that traditional commerce seems to involve business exchanges that generally occur and take place through direct and face-to-face interaction in a physical space. Typically, with traditional commerce, customers have the opportunity of coming in personally and purchasing services and products. Actually, some of the most critical characteristics and specifications of traditional commerce involve offering customers the opportunity to rely on all five senses before making a decision regarding the purchase and providing personalized services to consumers. Through such interaction, businesses are better able to create relationships with customers, which helps businesses in achieving and accomplishing the objective of developing long-term customer loyalty(Kaur, 2011).

Although having a storefront and using it present a great way of providing personalized services, it seems to carry some significant costs. For instance, in traditional commerce, the location cost of brick and mortar is quite high whether space is being purchased or just rented. Once space has been obtained, there is a need for recruiting staff for sales, management, and accounts. As a retailer, there is a need for maintaining product stocks and due to it, a significant amount of money is generally blocked in the business. Furthermore, there is a need for the store to be centrally located so that it can attract customers easily. Actually, traditional showrooms seem to run only for a limited time like evenings from morning or from Monday to Saturday. In comparison with this model, e-commerce is quite different.

E-commerce

E-commerce is the online business of buying and selling goods over the internet. E-Commerce covers three areas that are online retailing, electronic market, and online auctions. With the continuous modernization in the world, e-commerce is also getting advanced andmodern. Electronic commerce is now using the World Wide Web for its business purposes.Many businesses over the world are also using online shopping and targeting the peoplethrough e-commerce as people are finding it easier to shop by staying at home rather thangoing outside to buy the desired object. Many online shopping websites offer free homedelivery making it easier for people to shop without paying extra for the delivery charges(Abyad, 2017).

            It should be noted that in e-commerce, most of the money and time can be saved in spending on selecting the products and traveling. In addition to it, payments can be made easily in any form of digital mode such as Digital Wallets and Debit Card etc. Actually, in e-commerce, the products can be bought and purchased throughout the day without worrying about having spare time. Authors determine that one of the key reasons why a large number of customers tend to consider and purchase from online stores is they desire to save valuable money and time that they have to spend on traveling and physically selecting and inspecting a specific product(Maity & Dass, 2014).

            Authors determine that in this modern period, almost all consumers make use of the internet on daily basis. This is also one of the major reasons why e-commerce is growing at an exponential rate. For instance, in March 2020, e-commerce growth increased by approximately 25 percent. Numerous businesses generally depend on e-commerce for scaling their firms, increasing convenience for all their consumers, and decreasing costs. Businesses have realized that they can attract a larger audience by providing an option of e-commerce and this is capable of leading to increased sales and revenues for the business. With e-commerce, consumers have the ability and the option of purchasing from the site whether they are using their smartphones, tablets, or their computers, from just around anywhere as long as they have an internet connection(Tuten & Solomon, 2017).

Social Media for E-commerce

As indicated in the report of the Forrester that has been published in the study of the Haenlein, (2009) thatthe social media is utilized by 75% of the internet users in the 2008 second quarter by connecting with social networks, contributing reviews for the shopping sites and readings blogs. The significant rise is represented by this from 56% in 2007. The growth of any site or connection is, not particularly limited with teenagers; meanwhile, there are the numbers of several other peoples that are particularly connected with the members of Generation X. It has been observed that now the people who are lies in the age group of 35-44 years are increasingly linked with ranks of the critics, joiners, and spectators. It is, therefore, reasonable to say that social media is representing a new trend for revolutionary, which must be linked interest for the companies that are particularly operated in online spaces for any kind of particular matter (Haenlein, 2009).

Social media is quite an important and powerful tool and resource for e-commerce. The capability of not only directing customers to an attractive deal and a new product but also to engage with them in an effective manner and create a sense of community is more than just useful. In addition to it, a complete and deep social media presence also seems to include direct sales through some network while having the necessary back-end tools and methods required for enabling customers to share products with followers and friends through only a single click. Although it is sometimes difficult to measure and determine concrete returns on the direct features and aspects of using social networks like engaging in conversation and asking questions, these components assist in building brand loyalty. Actually, when it comes to managing and dealing with issues related to consumer care, these social media interactions and engagements are quite important in retaining consumers and demonstrating diligence regarding the resolution of issues(Rietsema & Watkins, 2012).

It would not be wrong to say that social media has the potential of increasing the number of customers of a business and expanding the follower base. The more people see the posts, the more effective and efficient they become. Furthermore, offering content that is quite exciting and useful help in growing the follower base because people tend to share content with their friends and close people. It plays a critical role in making sure that customers are increased. In addition to it, when potential and current customers are offered incentives, it helps in increasing the number of customers purchasing from the business. Other than augmenting the process of marketing, social media also seems to present a potential method of doing business without having to create a website or a platform on the web(Adekola & Sergi, 2016).

Generally, social media includes a number of platforms including Facebook and Instagram etc. that enable people to communicate with each other in an effective manner. Other than just being communication platforms, these platforms also allow businesses to reach a large number of customers by providing their products and services and offering posts on the platforms. The process of selling products directly through social media platforms is recognized as social commerce. This is completely different from the previous case in which businesses and organizations tend to market through social media platforms and attract customers for selling products and increasing their customer base. In this case, the aim is not to actually attract customers but to sell products and services directly to customers in an effective manner. In fact, with social commerce, the shopping experience tends to occur without making a customer visit another website or platform. There is no need for customers to visit different platforms or sites. Instead of it, they need to stay on the social media platform and they will be able to purchase the product without any difficulty(Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2010).

Differences and Similarities

Traditional commerce is considered as purchasing and selling merchandise at a geological area, of which the merchandise can be actual items or administrations. Clients can go to the store to pick and buy the merchandise or contact the store to convey for them(Scarborough & Cornwall, 2014).

E-commerce is known as purchasing and selling through the Internet. This structure is otherwise called electronic business or web business, where merchandise, like conventional trade, can be actual items or administrations. In any case, clients won't straightforwardly pick yet select merchandise through photographs or item depictions gave by the dealer. From that point forward, the merchandise will be dispatched to the purchaser or some other way, contingent upon the sort of item and administration.

            Following are the main differences between the two modes of commerce:

·         E-commerce is a type of online shipping where customers are able to shop online and they can purchase both services and products from their electronic devices including tablet, mobile, and laptop. In contrast, traditional commerce is generally a traditional approach in which products and services are bought physically and direct or face-to-face interaction is involved in it(Eugenia, 2017).

·         Another important difference is that when it comes to e-commerce, there is no need for the person to actually visit the store and check the product before purchasing it. Meanwhile, in terms of traditional commerce, customers are generally required to visit the stores and purchase the products. This process not only consumes a significant amount of time but also money.

·         In order to operate e-commerce, there is a significant need for the person to be capable of reading and understanding what different messages mean. Meanwhile, in terms of traditional commerce, there is no need for academic knowledge as communication is the only thing that is required for making a purchase and dealing with the vendor.

·         E-commerce is available all the time which means that customers can visit any platform and it will be ready to serve the customers regardless of the time. There are no limitations or restrictions on time. Meanwhile, when it comes to traditional commerce, the same cannot be said because a specific time is generally followed by traditional stores. For instance, most stores tend to open and they remain open only for a specific period of time. Other than that, they do not remain open and in order to purchase anything from the stores, there is a need to visit them only when they are open.

·         When it comes to e-commerce, it is not really possible to actually inspect and evaluate the product because it cannot be touched. In contrast, it is possible for the customer to not only evaluate but also inspect the product in traditional commerce because customers have the facility of checking the product easily(Jimenez, Valdes, & Salinas, 2019).

·         One of the most important differences between the two is the scope. It would not be wrong to say that the scope of traditional commerce is quite limited and one can even say that it can reach only a specific number of people. However, in the case of e-commerce, the same cannot be said because the scope is quite broad. For instance, there are no geographic limitations or restrictions. Businesses can easily target a large number of people without having to establish a business in a different location.

·         Communication in terms of e-commerce is far more convenient than in traditional commerce because e-commerce sites provide customers with the functionality and capability of chatting with the customer agent. Customers can chat and communicate with the agents and they can also discuss their problems and issues with them. In this manner, it helps in facilitating engagement.

Following are some similarities:

·         Even though there exist some major differences between traditional and e-commerce, they tend to share some common characteristics. First of all, both types of commerce tend to manage and deal with products and services.

·         Another common characteristic of the two different modes of e-commerce is that they aim to attract customers or buyers. It is quite important to note that without customers, it is not really possible for businesses operating in both types of commerce to succeed and make sales.

·         In addition to it, both types of commerce involve and aim to make sure that customers are satisfied with the services and products. Without customer satisfaction, it is not really possible for businesses to achieve success in the market and make sure that they accomplish their objectives or business goals.

Advantages and Disadvantages

The Process of E-commerce

As indicated in the study of Kaplan (2010), such kinds of particular evolution can nit be surprising particularly.  After all of these perspectives, the internet started out just like nothing is better than a huge Bulletin Board System by which the exchanging of the software is not allowed to the users. It also permits the users to exchange news, data, and messages along with each other. In the homepages, the popularity surge has been seen in the late 1990s at where the information has been shared by the Average Joe for his private life. Now the blog and web blog have become equivalent to this situation. The trends and time of e-commerce, as well as corporate web pages, has been started relatively recently with the accordance of the launching of eBay and Amazon in 1995. It has also got the accurate ways for the ticking off of only 6 years later at the bursting of the bubbles of dot-com in 2001 (Kaplan, 2010).

In accordance with Ilyashenko (2016) it is quite important to note that in several ways, e-commerce seems to work like a brick-and-mortar store. Actually, there are some components that are generally seen only by customers and there are some components or parts that are reserved for employees. Areas that are only for employees include the management office and employees are managing tasks and different processes from their computers. Other than that, different areas that face customers are quite similar to retail features such as signage, aisles, and sales floors. In terms of e-commerce, such areas are often recognized as the frontend and the backend.

The backend is generally the side that faces only the business. It is often recognized as the administrator panel or the dashboard. Actually, backend tends to include different tools and methods for managing the website. For instance, different tools are used for uploading products and organizing them into different categories. Some other important features involve control, inventory tracking, marketing tools, and even order processing. In contrast with it, the frontend is generally the consumer side of the website operating in e-commerce and it seems to comprise everything that customers see when they purchase. Actually, the functionality and the appearance of the frontend is the direct outcome or result of the options that are set up in the backend.

When a complete website is a set-up, it is open for customers to visit. It means that when customers go to the website, they will be able to see different products and place their orders for the products that they need. Once they place their orders, these orders are recorded and they are sent to the inventory system. In this system, orders are recorded and products are dispatched from the warehouse or inventory. Another program tracks the delivery of the product or goods to the customer. This is actually the basic structure of how e-commerce works and proceeds(Ilyashenko, 2016).

Case Study of Instagram

            In general, Instagram is recognized as the second most used and logged in the social media platform for daily or regular use after Facebook. There are more than 1 billion active users and this base is projected to grow and expand in the coming time. Having such a large base of users, it seems to present an effective method of attracting customers and even selling products and services to them. Social selling is actually the process of converting followers into consumers. Basically, it is concerned with establishing credibility and relationships naturally by understanding the prospects. Actually, social selling seems to attract 45 percent more opportunities in terms of business. There are different features that are used by businesses such as paid advertisements for attracting customers and raising their sales.

·         Brands

Instagram is actually used by a number of international brands for reaching out to the audience and attracting customers. Nike and Adidas are two sports apparel brands that are recognized throughout the world and they tend to make use of Instagram for reaching out to their customers and ensuring that products are sold. For instance, Nike has 122.7 million followers on its account that actively view the content posted by the brand and even share it with their friends and close people. This plays quite an important role in increasing the customer base and attracting more people to raise sales. It would not be wrong to say that international brands rely on different marketing tactics and techniques that they consider on social media platforms for attracting customers and ultimately raising their sales(Govindarajan, 2007).

·         Influencers

One of the most common and important types of marketing techniques that is considered and implemented by brands is influencer marketing. Actually, influencer marketing enables brands to increase and improve their reach to customers and generate significant sales. It is important to note that influencers refer to those people on social media who have a large base of followers and their presence on social media is quite significant. It would not be wrong to say that these influencers have significant power over their followers. For instance, when these influencers promote a product, followers develop the sense and desire to use and purchase the same product. This situation is considered and utilized by brands for making sure that a large number of customers are attracted through influencers. For instance, Cristiano Ronaldo, a renowned footballer, often promotes the products and shoes of Nike. This helps the brand in attracting a significant number of customers from social media.

Posts of Ronaldo wearing the shoes and clothes of Nike are generally post on Instagram and it causes the followers of Ronaldo to desire the same product.This benefits the brand significantly and it enables the brand to reach a large number of people. The same marketing tactic is generally considered and utilized by many other major brands such as Adidas and even Coca Cola.

·         The Power of Friendships

Friendships seem to play quite an important role in expanding the customer base and increasing the sales of a brand. In general, when it comes to social media platforms such as Instagram, different users are connected with each other, mostly friends and close people. When a person is satisfied with a specific product, he might tell his close friends about the product and it would create a positive image of the brand in front of his friends. These friends might be impressed and they might consider purchasing the same product. In this manner, friendship facilitates Word of Mouth it serves to raise the awareness of people about a brand.

·         The implication of Instagram on E-commerce or Social Commerce

Kotler (2013) determine that instagram, as a social media platform, has a significant potential for both social commerce and e-commerce. As it has been explained above, it is the second most popular platform after Facebook and there are numerous people or users that spend time on the platform. It presents major opportunities for brands to consider promoting their products and attracting people to their websites. Meanwhile, for people, it presents an opportunity to directly promote their products and services, and sell them. It presents an effective approach to market and sell.

·         Community-based Commerce

In recent times, community-based commerce has grown significantly and it would not be wrong to say that community commerce sites like Etsy where an internet storefront is utilized by individual sellers are gaining ground and foundation against major e-commerce brands. They tend to present opportunities for individual sellers to effectively promote their products and sell them to customers(Kotler, 2013).

Methodology

In-depth Interviews

In general, interviews as a research method are quite different from both literature reviews and questionnaires. The key element that makes them different from these research methods is that they involve social interaction (Corbetta, 2003). In contrast with questionnaires that do not involve any type of interaction with the respondents, interviews include direct interaction. For instance, the interviewer directly asks several questions and gains answers for these answers. Actually, the interview is considered quite a critical data collection technique that involves verbal communication between the interviewees and the researcher. It is important to note that interviews are often considered and used in researches for filling the gaps in other research techniques.

Semi-structured Interview

From entire kinds of the interviews, the semi-structured interview has been conducted in this study. The same applies to this case as well. Although there are a number of ways in which interviews can be performed. For instance, interviews can be structured in which interviewees are required to answer only in a specific range. In addition to it, they can also be unstructured and open-ended in which any question can be asked and the answers of interviewees are not limited to some specific answers. Unstructured interviews are referred to as unstructured because they do not possess any structure. The interview is generally approached by the interviewer with the objective of discussing a specific number of topics, sometimes only one while the other times, a few of topics.

Qualitative Method

As a method of research and data collection the qualitative research methods has been employed; in which an interview is considered to be quite important because it enables the researcher to better comprehend the responses (Edmonds, 2019). In contrast with surveys that only involve non-verbal communication, interviews involve verbal communication through which the feelings, ideas, and experiences of interviewees and respondents are understood better. A drawback of conducting surveys is that the feelings and ideas of.

Snowball Sampling

In the term of the research, the snowball sampling methodsare considered as referral sampling, chain sampling, and chain referral chain sampling (Sadigov, 2019). Usually, it is known as the non-probability sampling technique which was particularly utilized for existing subjects or studies. It is used to recruit future subjects for various consequences. Hence, the group of the sample is known as the rolling snowball. This particular kind of sampling technique is utilized in this study. It means in thesaid study the first person you will define and find... the second will be offered by him or her

Interview Questions

            There are a number of interview questions that will generally be asked to 100 non-native Turkish students and business-related people and their responses will be analyzed using thematic content analysis. Following are the questions that will be asked:

·         Are you aware of e-commerce? Have you used it before?

·         Do you think e-commerce is better than traditional commerce?

·         Do you consider social media for promoting your product?

·         Is social commerce better than e-commerce?

·         What do you think is the future of commerce?

Findings/Conclusion

            The majority of participants considered in this research are non-native Turkish students while the remaining participants tend to belong to the field of business. Upon performing thematic content analysis on the responses and answers of respondents, it has been determined that 98 percent of the respondents are aware of what e-commerce is. It is important to note that most respondents have even considered and utilized e-commerce. For the purchase of different products and services, respondents have considered e-commerce and they have used it for acquiring the products that they desired. For the second question, the responses had significant variations. Although most of the respondents determined that e-commerce was more effective and efficient than traditional commerce, some respondents determine that traditional commerce presents a more effective method of performing the business and selling to customers. These respondents identified that investing everything on the web is not as efficient as it appears. Instead of it, businesses should consider dealing in traditional commerce. For the third question, a large number of respondents determined that they consider the use of social media for promoting their product. 81 percent of the respondents determined that they promote their product through social media.

            Respondents identified that social commerce has significant potential but at the moment, it is not better than e-commerce. 79 percent of the respondents identified that social commerce is not better than e-commerce because the platform itself on which this commerce is based is not as effective as it needs to be. It does not have the functionalities and features that are required. For the last question, respondents identified that in the coming time, commerce will be transformed. It will have a wider reach and there will be new modes of doing business. In addition to it, all respondents determined that commerce will have a significant contribution to the international economy.

            Overall, it would not be right to conclude that e-commerce has advanced significantly over the years. In fact, it would not be wrong to say that at present, e-commerce contributes significantly to the development of the economy on both national and international basis. Actually, e-commerce is quite different from traditional commerce and it seems to be more efficient in several aspects as well. For instance, when it comes to e-commerce, the reach of a business increases exponentially and it can target customers and audiences without any concern about geographical limitations. In addition to it, it helps businesses significantly in reducing costs that are generally invested in creating a physical space and even operating it.

            Social media has emerged to play quite a critical role in commerce role. It enables businesses to not only make their promotions and marketing strategies more effective than ever but also reach the desired number of people. Other than assisting only businesses, it enables people and entrepreneurs to begin their businesses directly through social media platforms and reach out to their customers without an issue. In the future, social commerce is expected to grow even more. Both non-native Turkish students and business-related people have identified that they tend to make the use of e-commerce significantly more than traditional commerce. In comparison with traditional commerce, they tend to make the use of e-commerce more for purchasing different types of products. In addition to it, they believe that e-commerce is far more convenient than traditional commerce. Their responses imply that e-commerce has a significant potential to grow ad even advance in the coming time.

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