The Internet Evolution

The Internet is a vast network that connects computers all over the world. Through the Internet, people can share information and communicate from anywhere with an Internet connection.

HISTORY

The history of the internet can be traced back to the 1950s and 1960s,  It is rooted in the United States during the Cold War. The US Defense Department wanted to develop a communications system that could withstand a nuclear attack from the Soviet Union.

The Internet started in the 1960s as a way for government researchers to share information. Computers in the ’60s were large and immobile and in order to make use of information stored in any one computer, one had to either travel to the site of the computer or have magnetic computer tapes sent through the conventional postal system. Due to the fact that they were large and expensive machines, they were exclusively used by military scientists and university staff.

For instance, the UNIVAC I (the name stood for Universal Automatic Computer) which was delivered to the Census Bureau in 1951. It weighed some 16,000 pounds, used 5,000 vacuum tubes, and could perform about 1,000 calculations per second. It was the first American commercial computer, as well as the first computer designed for business use. (Business computers like the UNIVAC processed data more slowly than the IAS-type machines, but were designed for fast input and output.) The first few sales were to government agencies, the A.C. Nielsen Company, and the Prudential Insurance Company. The first UNIVAC for business applications was installed at the General Electric Appliance Division, to do payroll, in 1954. By 1957 Remington-Rand (which had purchased the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation in 1950) had sold forty-six machines.

Another catalyst in the formation of the Internet was the heating up of the Cold War.

The Cold War was at its height and huge tensions existed between North America and the Soviet Union. Both superpowers were in possession of deadly nuclear weapons, and people lived in fear of long-range surprise attacks. The US realized it needed a communications system that could not be affected by a Soviet nuclear attack.

The Soviet Union’s launch of the Sputnik satellite spurred the U.S. Defense Department to consider ways information could still be disseminated even after a nuclear attack.

The Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET) was created in 1969 and was the foundation for the internet. The first message sent over ARPANET was “LO”, which was an attempt to log in to the SRI computer from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). The term “internet” became widely used in 1982 to describe a worldwide network of connected networks.
ARPANET was a great success but membership was limited to certain academic and research organizations who had contracts with the Defense Department. In response to this, other networks were created to provide information sharing.
E-mail systems predate the ARPANET and the internet, dating back to the mid-1960s. The World Wide Web was created in 1991, and the first graphical web browser made it very popular.
January 1, 1983 is considered the official birthday of the Internet. Prior to this, the various computer networks did not have a standard way to communicate with each other. A new communications protocol was established called Transfer Control Protocol/Internetwork Protocol (TCP/IP). This allowed different kinds of computers on different networks to “talk” to each other. ARPANET and the Defense Data Network officially changed to the TCP/IP standard on January 1, 1983, hence the birth of the Internet. All networks could now be connected by a universal language.
Data processing &
COMMERCE
History of Data processing
The Elliott 401 Computer at Rothamsted First electronic computer in civilian research
Harpenden was the home of the first electronic computer used in civilian research.  Dr Frank Yates, head of the Statistics Department at Rothamsted, had built up a strong team of statisticians and computing assistants serving not only Rothamsted but also the agricultural institutes throughout Britain, and the experimental farms of the Ministry of Agriculture.
Computer hut by Rivers Lodge. Credit: Gavin Ross, 2016
By 1953 there was urgent need for greater computing power to cope with demand, and negotiations started to acquire the Elliott 401, the prototype computer built by Elliott Brothers and no longer in use.  Finance was provided by the National Research and Development Corporation, NRDC, and a temporary hut was built alongside Rivers Lodge to house the machine and provide extra office space.

The expansion of the internet was fueled by commercial opportunities and advances in semiconductor technology and optical networking.

The internet has no single inventor, but has evolved over time. Today, the internet is used for almost everything, and many people would find it difficult imagine life without it.

Conversational commerce refers to the place where e-commerce and technology intersect, allowing brands to connect with their customers in new ways, 24/7. Gone are the days of filling out an online contact form and waiting for a response during “business hours,” or trusting in a company that doesn’t consistently engage on social media.

Personalization is key to creating and retaining loyal customers, and it’s being executed with help from AI chatbots, messaging apps and other automations. Convenience is paramount to shoppers who want to cut through the clutter and receive answers immediately. With the majority of buyers spending most of their time online, they expect brands to always be available to provide insight, help guide their decisions and interact in real time.

Today, there are several proven conversational commerce methods, and companies are implementing many of them simultaneously to deliver the best possible customer service.

1. Messaging Apps

Messenger, WhatsApp, WeChat and Snapchat are some of the top messaging platforms being used by buyers, letting them exchange messages, memes and emojis with companies they are interested in. These social messaging apps provide brands with an avenue for communicating with customers and boosting engagement, which usually leads to higher conversion rates.

2. Live Chat

Offering a channel designed to improve response time and customer service, live chat is software that allows users to initiate a chat session when they type a message into a pop-up window on a brand’s website. It’s typically monitored by staff who work behind the scenes to answer questions and provide support to customers, offering a less expensive option than phone-based assistance.

3. Chatbots

As an alternative to live chat, which requires physical employees to respond to customers, many companies have instead decided to outsource to chatbots. Using artificial intelligence (AI), chatbots are computer programs designed to understand customer questions and automate appropriate responses to them. The exchange that takes place simulates human conversation, making it easy for users to find the information they need by responding to the chatbot’s questions and requests.

4. Voice Assistants

Using voice recognition technology, AI and natural language processing, voice assistants allow customers to use voice commands through apps in order to obtain a product or service. There are two categories of voice assistants: general purpose, which includes connected speakers such as Amazon’s Alexa, and bot voice assistants, which is when an assistant is integrated into a website or app to help customers navigate.

Benefits of Conversational Commerce

Through conversational commerce, customers can interact with brands in new ways, have access to support and information at every hour of the day and make purchases through messaging apps. It allows businesses to tailor their services and give buyers exactly what they are looking for through innovative sales channels. These are a few of the many benefits to implementing a conversational commerce strategy:

      • Increase engagement: By incorporating conversational commerce into touchpoints such as website chat buttons and through social media, companies can increase engagement by providing customers with an easy way to learn more about products. At these points, live chat operators or chatbots can push buyers closer to a purchase by answering questions, making recommendations and helping to narrow down their options.
      • Reduce abandoned carts: Customers abandon their carts for a myriad of reasons, including high shipping fees, slow wait times and finding better prices elsewhere. Conversational commerce helps to bring those customers back and turn them into buyers through tools such as automated email messages, pop-up reminders and shared product information.
      • Obtain helpful feedback: Companies want to know what is working, what isn’t and what needs improvement, and they want that information as quickly as possible. Conversational commerce helps provide real-time customer feedback through surveys and messages, often delivered by a chatbot and typically soon after a purchase is made.
      • Boost online sales: By leveraging appropriate tools and technology, businesses can offer the most efficient automations, thus providing more value to buyers. Conversational commerce automations make it easy to promote upselling and cross-selling, since AI can instantly access huge amounts of data and make personalized recommendations based on that information. These tactics work together to continue nurturing the customer relationship, which often leads to a boost in sales.
      • Build brand loyalty: Customized solutions, built through conversational commerce strategies, show buyers that the brand they are considering is worth their time and money. Creating a streamlined experience, with plenty of engagement and personalization, is key to increasing customer retention and boosting lifetime brand loyalty.

Top 3 Conversational Commerce Challenges

Although it boasts many positive benefits, conversational commerce is not without its challenges. It’s a time-consuming process that requires a great deal of resources and investments.

Lack of Human Interaction

Not everyone enjoys chatting with bots, especially if there is a disconnect with language, a perceived lack of empathy or if a system is running too slowly. To stay ahead of this potential issue, businesses should plan to implement the most up-to-date tools possible, in addition to having human operators on standby, ready to jump in if the AI method is no longer working.

Difficult To Implement

Conversational commerce is accompanied by many moving parts, each of which is almost constantly changing and evolving with technology. Businesses will also likely be employing several different channels, each of which will be frequented by a unique set of consumers. This will require using multiple distinct approaches, which can be difficult to juggle.

Siloed Data

When conversational commerce interactions are bouncing between different channels, the data inevitably spreads out, similarly to individual silos. The information never connects and mixes together, which can lead to poor customer experiences. To avoid this, businesses should opt for tools that integrate easily, helping to ensure detailed insights and data without silos.

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