尽管国际销售提供了巨大的增长机会, 一些在线企业主对全球销售的想法感到害怕. 然而, 经过一些规划和研究, 您可以比您想象的更快地开始向海外销售.
花时间准备在国际上拓展业务可以帮助确保您在向外国客户开放在线商店时成功启动，并且不会犯任何可能损害您品牌的代价高昂的错误.
了解如何为您的商店扩大影响力做好准备并开始在世界各地进行销售.
步 1: 认识您的全球销售机会
在准备国际销售策略之前, 确保你有一个真正的, 独特产品的有效机会.
How do you do that?
Start by conducting market research around your products to determine 产品可行性. This is the same thing you did when you developed your domestic 商业计划, only this time, you’re analyzing global markets.
Begin with a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) to determine how your product will stand out in this new market.
例如, let’s say you want to sell your t-shirt line in other countries. A SWOT analysis goes:
Strengths: You sell high-quality shirts that are known for being extremely comfortable and long-lasting. 加, 你的 T 恤设计是独一无二的, 并且您是唯一为该品牌进货的人. 这一切都使您的产品非常独特.
Weaknesses: 您当前的产品线仅包括四种设计, 因此您的产品供应有限.
Opportunities: 目前国际市场上没有人销售您的品牌, 这样你就可以为观众提供一些全新的东西. 您还计划投资另一笔 $4,000 今年将印刷另外四种设计, 这将有助于扩大您的产品范围并解决您的弱点.
Threats: 您的设计没有版权, 因此其他零售商可能会窃取您的设计并使您的商店过时.
请注意进行此分析如何帮助您为挑战和机遇做好准备，从而使跨境销售为您的企业带来利润.
这项研究不仅可以帮助您确定您是否正在追求利润丰厚的机会, 但这也是制定全球营销策略的第一步. 通过事先进行这项研究, 您将风险降到最低. That includes losing time and money on expanding globally when your products won’t sell in international markets.
阅读更多: How to Do SWOT Analysis For Eсommerce
步 2: Research the Global Market
Before you switch to cross-border selling, it’s important to research the foreign market and understand the needs and wants of your potential customers. What products are they looking for? How much are they willing to pay for them?
Research the Needs of Global Customers
To conduct international market research, 您可以首先查看当前客户的数据. 你有一些国际客户吗? 如果是这样, 他们在哪里? 他们购买什么产品?
如果您没有国际客户, 您可以使用 Google Trends 和 Google AdWords 等工具来了解不同国家/地区的人们正在搜索什么.
通过谷歌趋势, 您可以按地区比较对特定产品或主题的兴趣
与焦点小组合作
在全球销售之前, 您希望确保您想要的国外市场的客户会对您的产品做出积极反应.
与居住在您想要定位的国家/地区的人们进行焦点小组研究将是衡量您的产品是否在全球市场上表现良好的一个很好的指标.
无需旅行: 您可以聘请进行市场研究的公司. 例如, CRI 或 FieldworkHub 在线开展国际焦点小组讨论. 您可以在以下位置寻找更多市场研究公司 绿皮书 目录.
看看你的竞争对手
You can also look at your competition to see how they’re selling in international markets. What products do they offer for cross-border selling? How do they market their brand in other countries? What are strategies that you could learn from?
Use Tools for Market Research
If you’re willing to spend some money on market research, there are also a number of tools you can use. 例如, Attest and Answer the Public are both tools for content marketing, 调查, and consumer research.
While some market research tools cost money, 也有免费的.
例如, 与谷歌一起思考 工具可以让您找到不同国家的目标市场并探索这些市场有兴趣购买什么. 您可能已经熟悉 Google 趋势, 但请务必利用全球商机搜索和查找我的受众工具来获得最佳结果.
开始使用全球商机通工具, 您需要输入您的商店网址
了解更多有关国外潜在客户的另一种直接方法是浏览 Statista. 它是一个数据可视化网站，从网络上信誉良好的报告和调查中收集数据. 然后 Statista 将这些数据转化为易于阅读的图表. 笔记: 并非所有 Statista 报告都可以免费访问.
步 3: 研究跨境销售的要求
一旦您确定您的产品在全球市场上是否有真正的机会, 您应该开始考虑您想要营销的几个特定国际市场. 这将帮助您更好地了解新受众并制作更相关的营销信息.
商务礼仪
第一的, 确保您阅读了目标国家/地区的海关和标准商务礼仪.
了解在电子邮件中使用哪些短语被认为是礼貌的, 迎接顾客的正确方式, 以及一些关于这个国家的历史，以确保您不会无意中犯下文化不敏感的错误.
竞争对手研究
下一个, 开始熟悉目标国家/地区的主要竞争对手.
看看您是否可以将您的品牌和产品与现有品牌区分开来. 如果您不确定从哪里开始这项研究, 您可以考虑聘请目标国家/地区的品牌顾问来帮助加快流程.
合法合规
请务必检查该国家/地区的法律限制，以确保您没有试图销售和分销非法产品. 例如, CBD产品 无法在某些国家/地区发货或销售.
为了避免罚款, 在开始全球销售之前了解边境法规. 进口货物所需的要求和文件因国家而异.
某些产品可能有限制或特殊规定. 例如, 比利时的皮革制品需要进口许可证.
无论您决定将国际业务扩展到哪个国家, 坚持全球销售的最佳实践. 这意味着使用公平的商业和营销实践, 创建安全的在线支付方式, 并保护消费者隐私.
定价和货币
在全球销售时，您需要确定产品的定价结构和货币汇率.
第一的, 算出汇率. 在线货币转换器可以帮助您. 他们还将向您展示最近几个月汇率的变化情况.
在线货币转换器的示例
当你给你的产品定价时, 一定要考虑汇率，这样你就不会在国际销售中亏钱. 请记住，您的价格可能需要随着时间的推移进行调整，以适应汇率的变化.
确定合适的定价模型, 请务必检查竞争对手在市场国家/地区针对特定类型产品的价格.
使用比较目标国家生活成本的网站. 例如, 努贝奥 列出了世界不同地区一条牛仔裤的以下价格:
如你看到的, 不同国家牛仔裤的价格差别很大. 在德国, 它可能会花费 $77, 而在冰岛则花费 $113.
You should consider the average cost of goods in different countries when pricing your products. You may have to create separate pricing structures for products sold globally.
步 4: Prepare Your Store for Global Shoppers
After you analyze your product opportunities and research your potential global market, it’s time to prepare your online store for foreign shoppers.
Pay Attention to Your Brand Name
A brand name is an important part of your international business, so make sure it resonates with foreign customers.
You’ll want to avoid any cultural missteps, so take the time to research the meaning of your brand name in different countries.
例如, Coca-Cola seems innocent enough in English, but it turns out that in Chinese it sounds similar to the phrase “bite the wax tadpole”—not exactly that appealing for a drink, 不? The company had to find a phonetic equivalent instead of the original name to market the product in China.
A Coca-Cola brand name in China
还, make sure it is easy to spell or say your brand name in the target country. 如果不是, 您可能需要考虑使用不同的名称或替代拼写.
以多种语言展示您的在线商店
想象一下，为了购买您喜欢的产品，必须将产品描述复制并粘贴到翻译器中. 你很难形容这是一次很棒的购物体验, 正确的? 您的潜在客户也不会. 这就是为什么跨境销售最重要的事情之一就是向客户展示您的在线商店’ 首选语言.
与 Lightspeed 的 Ecwid, 您可以轻松地将您的在线商店变成 多语言在线商店. 您的网站将检测客户浏览器的首选语言，并自动以该语言显示商店.
使用 Ecwid by Lightspeed 建立多语言商店的非凡之处在于，您不必自己翻译商店. 店面默认文字, 纽扣, 目录, 发票, 电子邮件通知会自动翻译为 50+ 语言.
重要的提示! 您确实需要为任何独特的文本添加手动翻译, 例如产品名称和描述.
商店标签自动翻译
跟随 这些说明 以多种语言提供您的在线商店.
考虑以当地货币显示价格
一些国际企业以单一货币显示价格, 比如美元或欧元. 这是一种方法.
然而, 并非所有全球购物者都准备好在网上购物时手动转换价格. 当一些顾客看到外币价格而不是自己的价格时，他们会离开在线商店. It’s often too much work to research the exchange rate and calculate the price—so make it easy for them!
When you sell globally, it’s worth setting it up so that your customers see your prices in their native currency. Not only does that improve customers’ shopping experience in your store, but it also increases the chance of converting global shoppers into customers.
If you run an online store with Ecwid by Lightspeed, 你可以使用 Currency Converter 来自 Ecwid 应用市场的应用. The app automatically converts the prices in your store and shows them to a customer in their local currency.
Customers can switch the currency to their preferred one when browsing your store
Set up Local Payment Methods
Customers in different countries have different preferences when it comes to paying for goods and services. When selling internationally, you need to make sure you’re using local payment methods.
To 接受付款 from the target country, research what payment methods customers in those countries use. Also include a couple of international methods popular with shoppers worldwide, 喜欢 贝宝.
Check that your ecommerce platform enables you to accept payments in the countries you expand your business to. 例如, Lightspeed 的 Ecwid connects to 80+ payment providers all over the world, so it will be easy to set up local payment options for your global customers.
Add International Shipping Options to Your Store
当然, you’ll need to offer convenient shipping to the countries you’re selling in. Make sure to enable international shipping 在你的店里.
You’ll need to research shipping options and figure out which ones make the most sense for your international business. You might need to partner with a global shipping service, like DHL or FedEx.
Keep in mind that shipping internationally can be expensive, so you’ll need to factor that into the price of your products.
If you run an online store with Ecwid by Lightspeed, adding international shipping methods to your store is a breeze. The platform integrates with major shipping companies that deliver all over the world, 例如联邦快递, UPS, 敦豪快递, 和更多.
Adjust Your Marketing
You’ll also need to adjust your 市场策略 when selling internationally.
例如, if you’re running a Facebook ad campaign, you’ll want to target people in the country or countries you’re selling to.
The same goes for other marketing channels, like emails, 社交媒体, 等等. Consider cultural differences when setting up promotional campaigns. What might be considered polite in one country could be seen as rude in another.
Avoid using stereotypes in your marketing as it can harm the perception of your brand. 例如, 在 2018, Dolce and Gabbana ran social media video ads that featured a male voiceover giving instructions to a Chinese woman as she tried to eat Italian food with chopsticks. Chinese shoppers were offended by the ad because of the racial stereotypes and the voiceover’s suggestive lines. 因此, Dolce and Gabbana’s sales decreased drastically that year.
Start Selling Globally
Covering these bases guarantees that you’re making it easy for global shoppers to visit your site and make purchases no matter where they live.
Take your time and do your research to create the best possible experience for this new group of customers. And with the right platform, 例如 Lightspeed 的 Ecwid, you’ll be able to prepare your online store for global shoppers in no time.
You can do so much for your budding international business with Ecwid by Lightspeed. Not only can you offer your online store in different languages and currencies, but you can also customize payment methods and shipping options for your store. 那样, you ensure your online store is convenient for customers from all over the world.
And once you open your store to international selling, you’ll start seeing your products shipped to customers around the globe! It’s amazing to see your business grow.
