Ecommerce has been a major contributor to the growth of the global economy for decades, but its origins date back over two centuries ago. In 1724, a Parisian businessman named John Law implemented a system called “Mississippi Scheme” which would be considered the first attempt at an online trading platform. The scheme involved trading land from France for shares in Louisiana, which was then controlled by France.
The two most important events in the history of ecommerce include the creation of the first search engine and the advent of social media. These two developments have enabled consumers to reach any information or product they want with a few keystrokes from anywhere in the world. The world’s first search engine was created by two Stanford graduate students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in 1996.
The history of electronic trade is nothing short of fascinating. E-commerce has advanced significantly over the years and would be impossible to imagine without the internet and search engines. Therefore, it is not surprising that the history of e-commerce has undergone a fascinating transformation, evolving from a virtually unknown entity in the 1970s to the thriving multibillion-dollar industry it is today. It has shown to be quite useful, particularly in supporting today's tech-savvy businessperson or woman who want to operate from the comfort of their own home. During the 1970s, electronic data transfer (EDT) and electronic funds transfer (EFT) were the only two types of electronic transactions available. The term ‘e-commerce' was created to refer to these two types of electronic transactions.
Several online marketplaces were established in 1982 and continued to operate throughout the 1980s. In addition to the design and hosting of websites, the use of credit cards, ATMs, and telephone banking services has grown in popularity in recent years. All of these events represented a watershed moment in the progression of the history of electronic commerce. Through the use of the internet, used computer components were offered and sold to customers in locations as far away as the Boston computer exchange market and other areas of the globe.
When the decade of the 1990s arrived, it represented a watershed moment in the history of e-commerce, as the technology blossomed. During this time period, the first static web page was designed and hosted on a web server. In this case, it was a website that connected people, companies, and even governments to the global online market into which the economic world had begun to emerge. The year 2000 was a watershed moment in the history of electronic commerce, with electronic transactions reaching a point of no return to the aftermath of the event. Other laborious and time-consuming marketing campaigns were being pushed to the sidelines by e-commerce, and they had no option but to withdraw their support. Early in the new century, in the early 2000s, major computer software vendors created straightforward e-commerce websites to compete with one another.
By far, this aided in the selling of their software, since music and movies could now be published and downloaded by anybody who satisfied the membership requirements. Analysts in the finance business dubbed it “the greatest economic boom of all time.” The usage of the internet has expanded, and the globe has been transformed into a single global e-market. Sales of services and goods were increasing by the hour. People in wealthy nations have stopped going to work every day and have instead begun working from home. The fact that e-commerce generates money on the hour has increased the number of rich families, which has raised the need for costly items and services to satisfy the whims of the affluent.
Within a year (2000-2001), sales from e-commerce increased dramatically, with developed nations leading the way, from a meager number in the tens of billions to more than seven hundred billion US dollars in total sales from e-commerce recorded. The net worth of rich families increased, new employment were generated, and the overall health of the global economy improved as well. Today, about 10 years after its inception (2000-2009), e-commerce is essentially necessary. It is necessary to advertise services and goods via electronic commerce.
A significant portion of the health of global economic giants and technological trailblazer's depends on e-commerce. Companies continue to deliver profit returns that are far above the expectations of even the most optimistic CEO. Online sales have continued to expand, and now they account for up to 5 percent of total sales worldwide, a number that seems to be increasing virtually on a daily basis. The history of e-commerce has resulted in it being the most stress-free electronic transaction option available at any time, and the global economy is largely reliant on e-commerce, which is accessible at the touch of a button, making it both user and customer friendly.
