Citizens from every country around the world have been a few clicks away since the dawn of internet. Instant messaging is one thing, but selling a good in another hemisphere is a little more tricky.
Selling in both hemispheres is also increasingly necessary to maintain growth, as developing countries present retailers with much less saturated markets. While the yearly expected growth of US ecommerce through 2017 is 10%, in countries like Italy, Brazil, China, and Russia, that growth rate is in the 18-21% range. So how do you go from an average internet retailer sitting at home to an international merchant sailing the cyber trade routes? Whether or not you sell rare spices and precious metals, there are a few ideas you can gather from 16th century commerce and apply to your online store.
Learn Cultural Idiosyncrasies
Did you know that when China hosted the Olympics in Beijing, the opening ceremonies were on August 8th? Probably not, because that’s obscure trivia. But it matters a lot in China. That is because the Chinese people find the number 8 to be extremely lucky, so they opened the Olympics on 8/8/2008.
What came first, the luck or the Maybach?
The number 9 may be the ‘charm’ number for pricing in the US; but in China, tinkering with prices to include the number 8 may pay off in a big way. It isn’t just lucky numbers that you can use to your advantage though; shopping behavior differs around the world as well. For instance, in China as well, shoppers prefer text-heavy product descriptions– as opposed to US shoppers opting for bullet points and pictures. And in India, up to 80% of online retail sales are paid for in cash upon delivery. Whether that stems from a distrust of electronic payments or the preference for a cash economy, operating in India would require a completely different analysis of your cash flows and pricing strategy.
Only Trust Native Translators
This goes well beyond making sure to spell color with a ‘u’ when listing a product in England. While that is a forgivable omission, companies have made more costly mistakes when marketing for international audiences. Microsoft Vista didn’t do fantastically in Latvia, and not because Apple got to market first; ‘Vista’ in Latvian is slang for an unfashionable woman. Worthy of a chuckle, but also a great way to make sure half the population of a country never buys your product.
There are plenty of individual vocabulary mix-ups that happen when translating, but the body as a whole is far more important. Think for a second if you would make a purchase from a site in broken English. Misplaced helping verbs, lack of articles, etc; most people would choose to shop elsewhere. Google Translate won’t cut it either, as any college freshman who got a C+ in Spanish will tell you. Take the time, and money, to have a native speaker translate your copy to avoid scaring off your foreign customers and hurting your brand value.
Not a passing grade in eCommerce
Deal with the Local Law
As anyone who has travelled abroad can tell you, laws vary widely between countries. This can range from the duties placed on imports to protect domestic industries to consumer privacy regulations that could nullify your entire pricing strategy. The international shipping rates and custom duties alone could easily double the price of your product for shoppers in some countries.
While compliance with these regulations may be taxing and costly, often the information needed is widely available to foreign companies trying to enter the market. In Denmark, ecommerce is vigorously defended by a national official, who hawks over online retailers doling out hefty fines to violators. To help online merchants, the Danish ombudsman in charge of monitoring ecommerce issues ‘trust certifications’ to those who apply their web stores through official channels. Without this certification, your presence in Denmark would be forgotten. Check to see if similar seals of approval exist in any country you want to enter.
So how would one best enter a foreign market? Just as you put your pants on: one step at a time. Keep initial transition costs low by starting with one country. That way you can focus on developing a pricing strategy catered towards a specific customer base. When you are confident about your prospects, you can begin to develop a dropshipping relationship with suppliers. You’ll then have to decide when the time is right to invest in local inventory, the last step in setting your international footprint.
Are you a cross-border selling pro? Let us know of other strategies when to selling internationally in the comments!
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Contributing WiseWorder: Jack Symington
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