E-commerce (electronic commerce) refers to selling goods or services online: on a merchant website, a mobile app, a marketplace or social networks, with ordering and payment done over the internet.
Several models exist: B2C (a brand sells to consumers), B2B (between businesses, with catalogs and negotiated prices), D2C (a brand sells directly without a distributor) and marketplaces that connect third-party sellers with buyers.
Behind the storefront, an e-commerce site is a complete system: product catalog, search engine, cart, payment, inventory management, logistics, customer service, and analytics and marketing tools to attract and retain customers. Many merchants rely on off-the-shelf solutions (Shopify, Adobe Commerce, PrestaShop, WooCommerce); the largest often build their own platform. Site performance and payment reliability directly affect revenue.
Why it matters when hiring
E-commerce profiles come either from product and marketing (acquisition, conversion, CRM) or from tech (platform, payment, performance). For a technical role, ask the candidate how they handled a traffic peak or improved a conversion rate, with figures they can explain. Experience on a solution like Shopify does not necessarily prepare someone for a custom-built platform, and vice versa.