Expanding Your E-Commerce

Expanding your E-Commerce website to reach an international market is a great step forward in further developing your product and brand as well as increasing your revenue.

With China, Russia and North America leading the way in online consumers, moving into international waters to reach booming countries and the online community in a wider arena is a wise move. This year China is estimated to spend $265 billion online.

Before expansion, it is important to devise a strategy that will allow your online store to perform successfully in different countries and also accommodate to their payment methods, currency, policies and culture.

Although it may seem natural to most westerners to use credit or debit cards to process most online payments, in many countries consumers prefer to pay via Alipay or Qiwi Wallet because of their local economies and the access to certain banks. When choosing which countries your online store will be available to, investigate to see the most popular method of payment within this country and incorporate this technique into your checkout section.

In addition to creating an accommodating payment method, it is important to include a currency converter. Inclusion of conversion rates whilst adding items to baskets will help consumers whilst they are browsing online and overall provide a more positive shopping experience. Most online shoppers are looking for the lowest prices, by having each item displayed in the corresponding currency; it will allow consumers to shop within their budget constraints.

Keeping in mind local cultures and legal aspects of each country, will help you to maintain a growing client base and ensure smooth processing between parties. Researching government policies and legalities for each country’s online commerce before expansion will avoid any fines, uncertainties and make sure that guidelines are followed. It will also inform you of any taxes or tariffs that may need to be considered with logistics.

Creating a universal shipping and returns page will define the policies for your online store for each country regardless of their currency, positioning and payment methods. Incorporating these policies will also minimise any questions consumers may contact you to ask and possible future problems with shipping.