Paying towards several international shipping options can be a huge expense when you are setting up a new online store or eCommerce site to sell your products worldwide. Especially when you need to fulfill the expectations of consumers who are already getting fast and free shipping from online sellers like eBay and Amazon. Along with allowing customers to make online purchases in a safe and secure environment, you should offer them exceptional shipping service while keeping the costs as lower as possible.
Tips For Shipping Internationally while keeping the costs lower
Here are the 5 best international shipping tips for online sellers and eCommerce stores to take advantage of selling products worldwide while growing their revenues and providing an exceptional shipping experience to their customers.
Determine the international markets for your products
Before you launch a marketing campaign tailored to international consumers, do your homework to find out if there is a bigger demand for your offerings in the international market. If there are lots of requests from international customers for your products, it is a green signal for you to expand your business to those countries. For instance, if you sell contact lenses online, international market research will provide you with enough numbers to determine whether there is a huge demand for your products in other countries or not. And if there are no overseas customers for your offerings, then you have to build an ingenious strategy for entering the overseas markets. This will give you a clear idea of specific international shipping needs and help you choose the right shipping method that is efficient and economical as well.
Determine Your International Shipping Strategy
To build a failsafe shipping strategy for international consumers, you need to consider several things like:
Where You'll Be Selling?
Most eCommerce startups usually sell out within a particular territory for a short time period. As they grow, they need an omnichannel approach to grow their customer base by selling across different marketplaces and in different countries with huge demand. Each online selling channel and marketplace has different terms and conditions. That’s why you need to make sure you can effectively meet all the requirements before you get started.
Who You'll Ship With?
With a growing international customer base, you may need a multi-carrier approach and matching carriers based on the goods you are shipping and the shipping methods they require.
Whether You'll Outsource or Not?
Managing shipment for international customers on your own can be a bothering process. This can consume a lot of time and resources that you can use for business growth. This is where working with a third-party shipping services provider can help you store and drop ship your products to your international customers.
Considering all the above-mentioned aspects can help you end up with a robust international shipping strategy that is lighter on your business budget and fulfills the shipment expectations of your customers as well.
Online shipping solution that offers Electronic Trade Documentation and paperless invoices
Electronic trade documentation is greater convenience for eCommerce businesses. Since different countries require more than a few (up to 5) copies of each invoice dispatched to the shipping container package, submitting customs documentation digitally eliminates the need for printing multiple copies of invoices. You may just need to attach a single copy of each invoice inside the package if the label is damaged in transit. This will also make your business eco-friendly by encouraging the use of paperless invoices.
Keep international shipping costs as lower as possible
It is important for small businesses to understand the costs involved when selling products worldwide and how to keep the shipping costs lower.
Below you can find some effective ways to reduce your international shipping costs:
- Feel free to negotiate with shipping companies to get the best rates. Most shipping companies have an option to adjust shipping costs based on annual shipping volume.
- Get quotes from multiple shipping companies to find out the best one with multiple methods and lower rates.
- Different shipping services providers ship to different destinations. So, try to find one that ships to all your favorite destinations across the boundary while charging you less.
Choose the right international shipping company
Working with the right shipping company to ship international orders can reduce shipping costs effectually. Following are some factors to consider when choosing the right career for your business:
Before you enter into the international markets, you should do your research to find out profitable markets and shipping services that meets your shipment needs and expectations of modern customers.
