E-Commerce Experiences in the Real Estate Industry: a preliminary study in regional Queensland

Computer systems have become commonplace in most SMEs and technology is increasingly becoming a part of doing business. In recent years, the Internet has become readily available to businesses; consequently there has been growing pressure on SMEs to take up e-Commerce. However, many perceive e-Commerce as being unproven in terms of business benefit. This research aims to determine what, if any, benefits are derived from assimilating e-Commerce technologies into SME business processes. This paper presents three in-depth case studies from the Real Estate industry in a regional setting. Overall, findings were positive and identified the following experiences: enhanced business efficiencies, cost benefits, improved customer interactions and increased business return on investment.