Web business engineering

Web Business Engineering is your bridge from technical understanding tc, business savvy~ Web practitioners and entrepreneurs will learn to approach the Web as a technology that serves business needs, not a technology in search of a business need. This book shows you, step-by-step, how to identify those needs and then create a profitable Web site that truly adds value to the business.

The author presents a new methodology-Web Business Engineering-that combines business concepts with engineering- strength design and analysis techniques. He demonstrates how to use this methodology to analyze an organization's offline needs, determine where the Web opportunities lie, and create an effective online solution.

You will find coverage of such topics as:

o Business 101-idea-to-Product-marketing, sales, and support

o How information supports the value chain for physical and knowledge-based products Competitive advantages of the Web Calculating Return on Investment (ROI), Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), and the amount of payback for Web sites

o Mapping business activities

o Building a model of interaction costs

o Diagnosing business problems and opportunities

o Designing Web-based solutions

o Ten free ways to create Web site traffic

o How to generate revenue with information-based Web businesses

o Memetic marketing for driving traffic to your Web site

A large portion of the book is devoted to real-world case studies that demonstrate how Web Business Engineering benefits a wide variety of businesses in diverse industries-from a small hair salon to a large institution conducting a survey. Further case studies illustrate how te, use Web Business Engineering to enhance existing Web sites for greater impact and profitability.

Both forward-looking and practical, Web Business Engineering can help all those in the business and technology communities identify and implement the real value-added opportunities of the Web.

• Contents
• Preface xiii
• Acknowledgments xv
• Introduction xvii
• SECTION 1 : WEB BUSINESS 101
• BUSINESS BUILIDING BLOCKS
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• How an Idea Becomes a Product: The Case of the Guitar
• The Value Chain and the Web
• COMPETITION AND THE WEB
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Understanding the Effects of Competition: The Case of the Guitar Maker
• Basic Strategic Moves
• ROLE OF INFORMATION IN THE VALUE CHAIN
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• How Information Supports the Value Chain for Physical Products
• Knowledge-Intensive Products
• Pure Information-Based Products
• New Business Models: The Autonomous Business
• VALUE AND VALUING A WEB SITE
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• The Web Site Proposal
• Value: Return on Investment (ROI)
• Net Present Value (NPV)
• Some Alternatives to NPV & ROI: Payback and IRR
• SECTION 2. WEB BUSINESS ENGINEERING:
• A QUICK PRIMER
• INTRODUCTION TO WEB BUSINESS ENGINEERING: MOTIVATION AND BASIC PRINCIPLES
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Definition: Web Business Engineering
• Ways of Studying Business Processes
• The Web Business Engineering Framework
• Basic Steps in Web Business Engineering
• QUICK PRIMER: STEP 1, MAP BUSINESS ACTIVITIES
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Mapping Notation
• The Employee Distance Education Case (EDEC)
• QUICK PRIMER: STEP 2, MODEL ACTIVITY
• VALUE
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Valuing a Business Activity
• Case (Continued): Building an Interaction Cost Model for the EDEC Assignment
• Mailings
• QUICK PRIMER: STEP 3, DIAGNOSE
• PROBLEMS AND OPPORTUNITIES
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Case (Continued): Diagnosing the EDEC Mailing Costs
• QUICK PRIMER: STEP 4, DESIGN TREATMENTS
• xecutive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Case (Continued)- Finding Treatments for the EDEC Mailing Assignments
• SECTION 3: CASE STUDIES: PUTTINC OFFLINE ACTIVITIES ONLINE
• WBE IN SMALL BUSINESSES: THE CASE OF
• THE HAIR SALON
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Case Study: Hair Crafters
• Step 1: Map Business Activity (Haircut)
• Step 1- Map Business Activity (Hair Care Products)
• Step 1: Map Business Activity (Reminder Card)
• Steps 2 and 3: Model Activity Value, Diagnose Problems and Opportunities
• Steps 4: Desi2n Treatments
• WBE IN LARGE INSTITUTIONS: THE ONLINE
• SURVEY CASE
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Case Study: Background
• Step 1: Map Activity (Distributing the Survey)
• Step 1: Map Activity (Result Generation)
• Step 1: Map Activity (Result Distribution)
• Step 2: Model the Value of the Survey Activity
• Step 3: Diagnose the SurveyActivity
• Step 4: Design Treatments
• WBE IN SOCIAL/CULTURAL SITUATIONS:
• THE CASE OF THE ONLINE MATCHMAKING
• SERVICE
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Case Study: Background
• Step 1. Map Newspaper Matchmaking
• Step 2: Value Newspaper Matchmaking
• Step 3-. Diagnose Newspaper Matchmaking
• Step 4: Design Treatments for Newspaper Matchmaking
• SECTION 4: CASE STUDIES: APPLYING WEB BUSINESS ENGINEERING TO ONLINE ACTIVITIES
• MARKETING YOUR WEB SITE
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Ten Free Ways of Generating Traffic
• The Product
• Step 1: Map (Prototype) Activity
• Step 4: Treat Business
• FUNDAMENTALS OF MEMETIC
• MARKETING
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• What Makes a Good Meme?
• How a Meme Spreads Without Technology
• How to use the Web to Replicate a Meme
• Example: A Good Meme and Web Replicator
• ISSUES IN REVENUE GENERATION FOR INFORMATION-BASED WEB BUSINESSES
• Executive Summary
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Case: Dating Expert Matchmaking Activity
• Deciding What to Charge For: High Value, Low Risk
• Information Currency
• Conclusion
• Bibliography
• Index