Customers go through a life cycle in the acquisition and use of any product or service.
Information systems and information assets can be deployed so as to assist the customer overcome many of the uncertainties encountered in the various stages of this life cycle. The major stages in that life cycle are shown below. There are ample opportunities to use information technology, and particularly the worldwide web, to support the customer in these activities. These CSLC stages are briefly described below. How they can be enhanced with information technology is described in the tutorial .