June 16, 2017

International Internet Marketing: The power of virtual shopping

This article was originally published by the International Association of Business Communicators -see http://www.iabc.com/cwb/archive/2005/0305/international.htm

© 2012International Association of Business Communicators.
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Linda, an American living abroad in a country with limited merchandise, orders online for books, contact lenses and smoked ham. Her Dutch husband buys from www.amazon.com and www.ebay.com because U.S.-based retail web sites offer a wide range of goods at a cheaper price than their adopted country, including lower import duties and lower shipping costs from U.S.-based cargo carriers.  

Lourdes, a Peruvian immigrant in New York City, wants to surprise her family back in Lima on special occasions with gifts, including birthday cakes. But to do so from the U.S. requires planning, packaging and time, and cakes are out of the question. Thanks to www.tortasperu.com.pe, a network of housewives in seven Peruvian cities, Lourdes' relatives can receive fresh, high-quality cakes in a timely manner. 

Welcome to the burgeoning field of marketing tangible goods internationally through the Internet. Already, global e-commerce is used to find information, software, financial advice, ticketless travel and music, which can be downloaded directly to the customer's computer.  Is the Internet really a viable business-to-consumer (B2C) marketplace for non-downloadable consumer goods?  

Internet Commerce Data      

A 2002 survey by Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) found that 28 percent of Internet users globally either have shopped online or plan to do so within the next six months. Exactly how much of this shopping is domestic or cross-border is unclear. However, a ComScore Networks study shows that 10 to 15 percent of e-commerce sales by U.S. retailers are to customers outside of the U.S.

At 32 percent, the United States has the highest percentage of Internet users who shop online. South Korea, France and Norway are other nations with a significant number of online shoppers.

According to Internet audience measurement service comScore Media Metrix, the top-selling product categories, excluding travel, are computer hardware (US$2.3 billion), office supplies (US$1.5 billion), apparel and accessories (US$1.3 billion), consumer electronics (US$716 million), home and garden (US$442 million), music (US$193 million), furniture and appliances (US$179 million), and toys (US$114 million).

These figures indicate potentially significant cross-border revenues. Yet according to CyberSource, an e-commerce payment services corporation, 41 percent of U.S. merchants do not accept overseas orders, primarily because of fraud risks and the logistical complexity of filling international orders. Interestingly, a 2003 VeriSign survey indicates that almost half of fraud attempts come from the United States (47.8 percent), with the rest made up of small percentages from various other countries.

Two Major Consumer Worries

Merchants are not the only ones concerned about international Internet orders. There are two major concerns for any overseas buyer, whether they are in the United States or the United Arab Emirates:

Security of Card Transactions
A 2002 annual report by TNS found that the biggest impediment to cross-border e-commerce is concern about security. Almost one-third of Internet users who have not shopped online stated that they were uneasy about giving credit card details online. It is therefore crucial that merchants inform online shoppers of security measures in place and the availability of other online payment methods such as WorldPay (www.worldpay.com) and PayPal (www.paypal.com).

Shipping Reliability
Postal pilferage and theft are rampant in many countries. In addition, FedEx, DHL or UPS have rates that make shipping any product very expensive.
In many North American neighborhoods with a high concentration of immigrants, there are shipping companies that reliably deliver packages to towns and villages, and include local and foreign customs duties in their charges. Marketing and promotional partnerships with these cargo companies might prove lucrative.  

Market Niche  
            
The cases of Linda and Lourdes indicate that entrepreneurs on both sides of a border can benefit from international e-commerce, despite challenges like potential fraud attempts and logistics.  However, from a U.S.-based standpoint, who do we target, with fewer risks, and how?  

Expatriates
Linda is one of millions of Americans living overseas who still carries a credit or debit card from a U.S. bank. While one is living in a country where there is a dearth of U.S. products or where those products, if available, are incredibly expensive, there will always be a strong need to order online overseas. In some cities, organizations of expatriates have created their own web sites. One way for them to generate organizational funding is through paid links on these sites.

Low U.S. shipping costs are also an attractive selling point for those far from home. Promotions like Amazon.com's new offer of unlimited two-day shipping for an annual US$79 family membership will surely make the online market more competitive.  

Immigrants
First-generation immigrants often have very strong ties to their home countries, which means connecting not only through letters but also through gifts. Advertising in multilingual media will help convert newcomers into customers. Marketing and public relations work best when targeting select groups.  

On the other side of the coin, online merchants could also consider appealing to home-country relatives who surf U.S.-based retail sites and who might then send requests to their relatives living in the U.S. Advertising in home-country media would also support outreach in the U.S.

E-ready countries
The Economist's Economist Intelligence Unit has developed an e-readiness ranking to indicate how conducive a country's business environment is to Internet-based commercial opportunities. E-ready leaders in this ranking are the U.S., Canada, Western Europe, Japan and Australia.

There are, however, many other countries ranked highly in The Economist’s measurements, including Brazil and Venezuela in Latin America, South Korea and Taiwan in East Asia, and Algeria, Egypt and South Africa on the African continent. In many of these countries, people study English as the language of commerce. This means they also surf English-language web sites. Advertising and web sites that target this sector should be visual, detailed and descriptive, and should use simple English, especially in payment instructions. These sites should also explain concepts like 1-800 numbers, which might not be familiar to an international audience.

Is the Internet a viable B2C marketplace for non-downloadable consumer goods?

Provided businesses carefully select a region to market to, partner with local representatives and distributors, and exercise caution when accepting orders from countries with a high risk of fraud, the answer is yes.



Joseph Lopez is an international strategic planner and communications consultant. His e-mail is writetojosephlopez@yahoo.com


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