In the dotcom industry, the ability for a Web site to grow at a rate comparable to that of the business itself is known as scalability. In order to stay competitive, a site must be able to add and drop merchandise and inventory from their online store in a relatively short period of time. The site must also be able to handle the increasing volume of online traffic that comes hand and hand with a successful Web business.
While specialized software exists for those who want to attempt scalability projects on their own, there are also many firms around that will help a business design their sites to become efficient models of scalability. These firms are experts in the latest technological innovations and specialize in tiered Internet architecture that allows the site to grow without having to rewrite mainframe systems, while at the same time making better use of existing servers. They also help larger sites set up subdirectories within the domain directory to help serve a large number of accounts simultaneously. By performing these functions, scalability experts can help prevent Web site crashes and save the company lost revenue and damaged reputations.
The inability for an e-commerce site to scale properly could cripple their business. As Nicholas G. Carr stated in an article that appeared in The Standard: "On the Internet, if you can't scale—if you can't get really big really fast—you're nowhere. And it's not enough for just your technology to be scalable. Your entire business model has to have scalability, as well; you need to be able to quickly extend your business into new markets, either horizontally or vertically. 'Will it scale?' is one of the first questions venture capitalists ask."
While scalability is a critical issue for dot-coms, the actual advantage that comes with growing up to become a large Web site can still be debated. A larger site can appear to be more of a threat to a possible competitor that is thinking about entering the market, so much so that small sites are being bought up by larger sites in an effort cut down on the competition. This sort of consolidation can get pretty expensive, and presents a whole new set of scalability issues for the company that is doing the consolidating. Many dot-coms have learned the hard way about the problems that come with rapid and immense growth. A lot of the time, it is the consumer that gets hurt the most.
Carr sums it up by stating: "While scalability will continue to be critical for e-businesses, I doubt scale itself will provide much of an advantage. Companies will need to be able to expand their businesses fast, but their bigness won't ensure lasting success. Rather, once they've scaled up in one market, they'll need to immediately look for new markets in which to replicate their growth. Defense was the name of the game in the old economy. In the new one, offense is everything."
Carr, Nicholas G. "The Myth of Scalability." The Standard. January, 10, 2000.
Van Winkle, William. "Setting Up Shop." Home Office Computing. October 2000.
West, Kelley. "Managing Content on the Web." Network Computing. October 30, 2000.
SEE ALSO: Web Site Design
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