A newly established company in Pretoria is taking to market a managed e-business solution for businesses that regard e-commerce as core to their growth. CommerceSWITCH, established through the amalgamation of two Pretoria-based companies - Information and Image, and DataKinetics, has installed a multi-million rand technology infrastructure to host e-business activities on behalf of businesses. This offering is augmented with a product and service suite which gives companies the option of moving their infrastructure in-house should their business demand it.
"The gap between business and technology has never been more evident in the open suspicion with which e-commerce is viewed," says commerceSWITCH MD Philip de Bruin. "South African e-commerce solution providers have made a complex technology issue out of business solutions, instead of addressing business needs and providing information need to make a decision on e-enablement."
CommerceSWITCH`s outsourced offering hinges on Saqqara, a content management solution which ensures that a business`s products are catalogued, sorted and managed to service on-line business; and Salesmation, a solution addressing customer interaction management and active marketing and sales management. "An outsourced solution overcomes the major barriers experienced by businesses to entering into an e-commerce initiative," explains de Bruin. "Start-up costs are eliminated because costs are fixed monthly, or based on transaction numbers; we provide the skills necessary to implement the system and to manage companies` content and trading partners, and technology upgrades are guaranteed. All-in-all, the solution is a low-risk, cost effective option for businesses."
De Bruin says that commerceSWITCH has also ensured a development path for companies whose business grows to the degree that they need to bring the facility in-house. "Should a company decide to host its own e-commerce front-end, commerceSWITCH will again provide installation and integration skills, and will manage elements of the solution if so required.
"This is particularly the case when it comes to content management," De Bruin continues. "Content is the lifeblood of a company`s e-business activities. Creating an accurate product catalogue, and providing secure access to trading partners is an on-going task which requires a high level of skill. Companies will find that they would choose to entrust this aspect of their business to professionals."
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