How to Optimize International Sales

Starting an e-commerce business can be complicated when you're exporting on a national level, not to mention trying to optimize your business for sales on an international scale.

Selling to a global market is contingent on delivering a great localized experience for shoppers from every corner of the globe. Local issues and cultural nuances can affect your international SEO strategy when it comes to global e-commerce sales.  

In this article, we will explore key parts of any global content marketing strategy.

Multilingual Content

When it comes to any form of content marketing it's always a good idea to customize your website to suit your target market. This is the same when it comes to international markets. Although the best approach is to have translated variations of every page on your website, that isn’t always feasible, especially for small businesses. As a rule of thumb, translate at least your home page for foreign language searches and your order pages. 

For the best results, be sure to use experienced translators for each specific country and their specific language. An online translation tool may seem like a great cost-effective choice at the moment but steer clear. Online translation tools translate literally and are often grammatically incorrect. For example let’s say you have a headline that reads “freshen up your closet with these cool new threads” unfortunately your translation tool doesn’t pick up on the slang and colloquial meaning of this statement so the translated version would read, “make your closet smell better with these cold strings”.  As you can see, this headline is very different from the intended meaning.

Outside of providing translations for several different languages there are other ways of catering your content to suit a foreign target market. Referencing local content and country-specific references help increase trust from your international market. You’ll also want to tailor your local SEO strategy, online marketing, and social media campaigns toward local markets.

Local Currency

No one likes feeling like an afterthought, especially not your customers. Don’t make your website visitors have to work to figure out your prices. Displaying prices in local currency gives your consumer one more reason to choose your business rather than your competition.

Payment Preferences

Payment preferences are as diverse as the shoppers who use them. Make sure you can accept payments in local and U.S. funds. Your billing processes should be as easy to use as your competitors'. Research the most common payment processes for your global audience to improve your user experience. 

Check out the top payment methods for every continent:

Europe

• Trustly
• Swedbank
• Sofort
• S€PA
• OP-Pohjota
• Nordea
• WebMoney
• Paraf
• Qiwi wallet
• Finansbank
• Giropay
• Bank transfer

North America

• 7 eleven
• ACH
• Discover
• Check
• Bank transfer

Africa

• Bank transfer
• Cash

Asia

• JCB
• Bank transfer
• Asya card
• Alipay
• Union pay 

South America

• Hipercard
• Elo
• Bank transfer

Australia

• Poli Banking

Fulfillment Services

A large hurdle that most small businesses face is dealing with local taxes and regulations of different countries. Fortunately, most targeted countries have the resources to answer frequently asked questions. Still, it would e in your best interest to make contacts with local brokers or other international e-commerce specialists.

Companies such as brokers, wholesalers, and distributors as well as couriers such as UPS, FedEx, or Purolator can often help online businesses with local warehousing, drop-shipping, and other order fulfillment services as long as you don’t mind operating through a middleman.

Online Marketplaces

Multinational online marketplaces like eBay, Amazon, and Alibaba can simplify the process of international sales by providing easy features like pre-sales support, shipping, post-sales survey, etc.

If you choose to pursue amazon or another online marketplace as your international sales platform you should start with a well-thought-out marketing plan that covers how you’ll present your products and services to target customers and measure your progress. You will also need to create an effective pricing strategy and search engine optimization strategy.

Be careful when utilizing online marketplaces. Many companies on amazon and eBay deal with commission rate hikes when they start making serious sales. Keep in mind that shifting to an e-commerce site-focused strategy can be pretty pricey and difficult when your customers are used to finding your products on an online marketplace.

When utilizing online marketplaces it’s best to adapt your online sales strategy per channel. For example, you might want to sell returned goods on eBay because it’s known to work well for second-hand merchandise. Or you might want to sell your older products on Amazon for great prices to increase your score on the Best Sellers Ranking list.

How Can Sav Help

Sav’s web builder provides several assets when it comes to international sales. Including automatic and manual translation features so you can reach more of your audience. 

For users in the US, Canada, Australia, and Europe, Sav calculates the tax rates automatically based on the store and customer's location. Upon checkout, the customer will be charged a proper tax rate according to country and regional tax rules.

Tax laws are constantly changing. Country, state, or even city governments may apply new tax rates that a business owner is expected to keep up with. Sav will always stay up to date on the tax law.

We also support several globally popular payment methods. To see the complete list of supported payment services check out our FAQ.