• Forest landowners 
• Sawmill and primary producers 
• Secondary manufacturers (wood workers, millwork, furniture makers) 
• Wholesale distributors 
• Retailers 
• Contractors 
• Homeowners

Figure 1: Value-Added Distribution Chain for Forest Products

Forest and wood products traditionally fall into three broad categories

• Lumber and building materials (SIC 24, NAICS 321) 
• Furniture and fixtures (SIC 25, NAICS 336) 
• Paper and allied products (SIC 26, NAICS 322)

SIC refers to the recently retired Standard Industrial Classification codes used by the U.S. Census Bureau. NAICS is the new coding system, the North American Industrial Classification System. Details of the NAICS designators can be found at the U.S. Census Bureau site, http://www.census.gov/econ/www/mm/naics.html.

• Information on local forest resources 
• New techniques for value-added manufacturing 
• Characteristics of local production 
• Availability of financial resources

Survey participants were also asked to identify the effectiveness of various training methods. The Internet ranked sixth behind face-to-face, conferences, short courses, workshops and classroom instruction. This result may be consistent with the slow adoption and lack of familiarity with Internet and e-commerce technologies among the survey participants. However, it is important for extension staff to note the well-recognized differences in communication effectiveness for different communications media. Kotler (1984) breaks down communications channels into personal and impersonal. When a product/service/technology is new or purchased infrequently, personal channels (face-to-face meetings) of communication may be more effective. When routine purchase decisions must be made, impersonal communication forms (Web page, email) may be adequate. The choice of e-commerce solutions to meet small business needs must match the particular business outcomes that are sought.

Vlosky and Chance (2001) ranked 42 different training needs for Louisiana wood products firms. They found the major hurdle to filling available positions was the lack of adequately trained applicants. Specifically they identified safety regulations, dealing with customers, and knowledge of quality and process control as the top three requirements for desired employee knowledge.

Quality, pricing, and safety regulations were ranked as the three most important subject areas by Hansen and Smith (1997) in their study of forest product industry educational needs. They assessed a broad range of educational needs in the areas of marketing, management and wood processing.

Jensen and Pompelli (2000) studied marketing and other business assistance needs for forest products firms in Tennessee.  Their conclusions showed the greatest needs in:

• Locating and identifying potential buyers 
• Promoting products/advertising 
• Market research

Small firms showed a greater need for marketing assistance than large firms. Furthermore, Jensen and Pompelli found that firms wishing to expand into export markets generated a set of additional specialized needs.

Figure 2: Website Information of Building Materials Firms, 1997

• Customer contacts 
• Web pages 
• Marketing

The most highly ranked perceived benefits from eBusiness from the Vlosky study included: increased access to industry information, timeliness of information exchange, greater exposure to potential customers and greater access to my company by potential customers. Vlosky (2000a), in eBusiness considerations covers some basic definitions and in addition to information sharing, points to both cost reduction through more efficient order processing and distribution, and customer service as key eBusiness uses.

A study of web usage for forest products firms involved in exporting by Pitis & Vlosky (2000) shows that e-commerce uses are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Promotion ranked highest among the uses found, but advancing the value chain and business processes were accelerating in frequency of use. Pitis & Vlosky also recommend that forest product websites be tailored for increased functionality by providing information on:

• Inventory levels 
• Prices 
• Delivery terms 
• Product specifications

These studies were conducted relatively early in the era of e-commerce adoption. The companies surveyed were generally larger businesses, those most likely to have a solid financial footing. The data suggest that firms were primarily using e-commerce to support marketing and to provide technical information. The results do not indicate a strong usage of e-commerce for meeting firms' financing needs, which is typically a start-up/small firm issue. E-commerce solutions for addressing the finance needs of small forest products businesses are discussed in the links section of this paper.

Siegel describes a typical business evolution beginning with the old economy "commerce" progressing through a stage incorporating information technologies labeled "e-commerce" and terminating in a fully integrated web-based business strategy that he calls "e-business". He emphasizes the need for businesses to be customer-driven or bottom-up, in contrast to being management-driven or organized in a top-down structure. His six-step process for developing an e-business strategy includes:

1. Generating commitment throughout the entire firm's organization
2. Understanding who customers are and segmenting the customer base 
3. Engaging in active listening with target customers and determining the desired scope and quality of a firms' web presence 
4. Identifying measurements for determining success of an e-business strategy including both short term and long term business objectives 
5. Constructing a model of the desired e-business features for each target customer segment
6. Lastly, prioritizing and planning an implementation strategy and measuring its' success

Vlosky (2000b) reinforces several of these strategic steps in his article, Some Thoughts on Getting Started in eBusiness. For additional detail see Siegel's on-line "boot camp" for helping businesses walk through this planning process, http://www.futurizebooks.com/bootcamp/

For specific help in the use of e-commerce for the forest products industry Vlosky (2000c, d) has authored a series of articles on eBusiness and the forest products industry. Hardwood Lumber Plays eBusiness Catch-up analyzes current and future uses of internet technologies for hardwood lumber producers. This article includes survey results on cost and age of websites in the hardwood industry. The most recent article in the series discusses the role the internet can play at the customer/manufacturer interface. In eBusiness Can Improve Relationships Between Wood Products Manufacturers and their Customers, Vlosky points out that internet technologies are another tool which firms can use to improve their marketing partnerships.

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