When Marshall McLuhan wrote about the global village in the 1960s, he did not foresee that 60 years later the world would become a rather global marketplace.
This is largely due to the pandemic, which has forced us all to accelerate the course of digitalization not only in commerce, but also in education, services, health, entertainment and culture.
Consumers have also changed. Faced with the hassle of shopping in physical stores, budget constraints and security concerns, many of them, for the first time in their lives, ventured into “virtual” shopping journeys.
This is an unprecedented opportunity for small internet businesses that aspire to become resilient global brands and reach beyond Poland’s borders with their products.
Know the specificities of foreign markets
Did you know that the biggest e-consumption holiday in China is not Black Friday but Singles Day? Do you dream of selling your products on the Japanese market? No problem, but remember that in this country of 126 million people, 99%. the population speaks only Japanese. Do you plan to expand into the UK market? Therefore, you will need only 78 percent information. local e-consumers buy on impulse, most often clicking on their smartphones while lying in bed at night.
When planning an overseas expansion, you need to prepare carefully. Know that in In many countries, payment terms and delivery methods are very different from those in Poland. Free shipping, returns and post-purchase payments are almost universal in Germany. In Mexico and Japan, consumers will feel comfortable paying for electronic purchases at the grocery store. In Brazil and Japan, shoppers like bank transfers and installment payments are usually handled in Australia, Mexico and Brazil, where more than half of cross-border shoppers pay this way.
This type of information is “to be or not to be” for companies planning international e-commerce. Without knowing the specifics of new markets, the habits and preferences of consumers, the technological trends determining the way of shopping – the chances of global expansion diminish to zero.
This is why such a valuable source of information is the report “Global e-commerce industry facing huge changes. Trading Across Borders Report 2021” prepared by PayPal, which included information on specific economic, technological and culture of e-consumers from 13 countries around the world.
Here are five markets selected in this report
Russia
Our eastern neighbor is the 11th largest economy in the world which guarantees access to 144 million people, 66% of whom have smartphones. And also an appetite for online shopping. So far, Internet sales of $15.6 billion per year is only about 5%. the entire Russian retail market, but the digital market there is growing rapidly, at a rate of 29%. annually.
Cross-border shopping is of great interest to Russians, who are keen on international retailers looking for discounted products from established brands and items they cannot buy locally.
Already 70% of purchases abroad are made. The Russians who most willingly buy goods from China, the United States and Germany.
Important information – 78% of online shopping in Russia is done via smartphones.
United States
The world’s largest economy, pioneer of the “digital economy”, with 327 million inhabitants of which 86% are freely functioning on the Internet – yes, the United States is a very tasty piece on the Internet online sales cake. Importantly, a third of US shoppers have already made digital cross-border purchases in the past year, most often looking for unique items and better deals, as well as high-end items. of famous brands. They most willingly threw clothes, shoes, accessories, as well as jewelry and watches into virtual baskets. Statistician John Smith makes electronic purchases using a smartphone, but at the same time is stressed by the possibility of identity theft or fraud. Therefore, it considers PayPal to be the most reliable payment method for cross-border online purchases.
The average American likes to shop at stores and websites they already know. Therefore, he prefers global shopping platforms, famous brands, and secure payment methods. He wants to be able to pay in his own currency and appreciates stores that offer their offer in English. He buys the most at the end of the year, around Christmas.
Germany
Our western neighbor has for many years been the biggest economic partner of Polish companies. Unfortunately only for offline trading at the moment. It’s a shame, because today Germany is the 8th largest online market in Europe, providing access to 83 million consumers.
Germany is a country with universal internet access and a unique business past – mail order was an important part of Germany’s economic miracle in the 1950s and 1960s and is still hugely popular today. Although 71 percent. Germans have a smartphone, the vast majority of people in the country make cross-border purchases using a desktop computer.
German e-consumers are very loyal to major international brands such as Amazon, Zalando or Otto. Their main concerns about buying “from strangers” are transaction security. Most often, e-commerce payments in Germany are made with digital wallets. And PayPal is considered the most reliable payment method for cross-border purchases.
The basis for success in the German e-commerce market is the practical return system. This is the German specificity – 53%. German online shoppers returned at least one product in 2018. Consumers also expect free shipping.
China
It’s the holy grail not only of internet commerce. Their massive $13.6 trillion economy continues to grow, and China’s e-commerce market is growing at an impressive rate.
The population of China alone is impressive – 1.4 billion people, whose incomes are constantly growing. People in the Middle Kingdom already have enough money to shop on national shopping platforms such as Alibaba, JD.com, Pinduoduo. Appetite grows while eating – already 43%. Chinese online shoppers buy goods from foreign websites, most often from the United States (23%), Japan (20%) and South Korea (11%).
54 percent Chinese use digital wallets for online payments. Cards, bank transfers and cash payments are rare here. Note – in the Chinese market, consumers can easily and quickly abandon virtual shopping carts if they find that shopping will not be convenient, fast and safe.
Britain
For centuries, the islanders have been a nation open to the new, and their thirst for consumption has not been quenched even by Brexit. The UK is not only an economic powerhouse, but also a country with very high internet and smartphone usage rates and the third largest e-commerce market in the world. They have a similar consumer buying profile in the United States, although online spending per capita is lower here than abroad.
Britain, as an island nation, faces several unique cross-border challenges, including frequent cart abandonment due to excessively high charges for shipping goods. As the authors of the report, “Global e-commerce industry facing huge changes. PayPal Borderless Commerce Report 2021” point out, Britons most often buy clothes, toys, collection, souvenirs and artwork online, and PayPal is their preferred method of payment.Black Friday is the easiest way to persuade them to shop online.
One thing is certain: if we want to sell products in the international market, our brand must speak many different languages. Because the world – even if it has become global – still has its local color. It is worth knowing it to take full advantage of the potential of e-commerce.
All data in this article is taken from the PayPal Trade Across Borders Report 2021, PAyPal Cross-border Insights Study 2021 commissioned by PayPal from Ipsos MORI. n = 13,000, 13 markets. Online survey of adults (18+ who purchased online in the previous three months), December 2020 to February 2021.