E-commerce and the global marketplace
Online we trust
According to Rao, there are three main ways you can earn trust from online buyers. The first is to gain endorsement from an established player. With Chinese payment gateway Alipay, Paymate created Haiwaibao.com, an online shopping mall for Australian businesses to sell to China. With Alipay’s referral, more than 80 million existing customers already trust this online store.
Language is also a factor. “We made it a dual language website so people can see products in English and Mandarin. While a lot of people speak English, they’re not comfortable enough to make an online purchase,” notes Rao.
Other types of communication also provide peace of mind. “If you have an email address where people can contact you that’s good, but you have to respond. If you don’t respond for three days, you won’t get a sale,” says Rao. “On Haiwaibao you can chat to somebody online and that’s a good way to have engagement on your website, especially internationally. When you can answer a question you’re more likely to get a sale because you feel there’s a real person behind the website.”
E-commerce tips
Trust: Have a professional website with information about your business, including contact details and credentials.
Availability: Make sure you have items in stock. Sell in a widely accepted currency, like US dollars.
Communicate: Have clear and accurate information about products, prices and shipment methods. Translation must be accurate and should use promotional terms. Be clear about whether prices include duties or other additional costs. Make your privacy policy and any disclaimers accessible.
Options: Give several payment and delivery options. Be clear about how each method works and how much they cost.
Safety: Secure payment systems and provide security details to customers. Ensure shipments can be tracked and/or offer insurance.
CASE STUDY
All wrapped up
According to logistics franchise Pack & Send, good things come in all-sized packages. Operating on the premise that no package is too big, awkward, delicate or valuable to send, Pack & Send is known for taking on business that others reject. And e-commerce has certainly been kind to the company, reports CEO and founder Michael Paul. “It has certainly fuelled our growth. Today, even small home-based businesses can sell products on a global scale, which has been good for us in the logistics game.”
The biggest shift has been the growth of the business-to-consumer (B2C) market. Traditional logistics has been business-to-business, but Pack & Send’s ability to adapt to the B2C model has served them well, says Paul. “The parcel is delivered to the nearest Pack & Send store and the recipient can pick up the parcel at a time convenient to them.”
He also notes reverse logistics—a return for repair, for example—is another feature of the new e-market because consumers no longer have a physical outlet to visit.
Named 2007 Franchisor of the Year in the PricewaterhouseCoopers Excellence in Franchising Awards, Pack & Send now has over 90 stores in Australia and new master franchises signed in New Zealand and the United Kingdom. “One competitive advantage is our Store Connect system where multiple Pack & Send stores work together to deliver solutions,” he says. “It made sense to get a network in the UK and New Zealand, where we were already sending a fair bit of our freight, to take advantage of that.”
While it has taken over two years to get the overseas franchises up and running due to extensive research, intellectual property registration, investment in IT infrastructure and development of financial models, Paul says he’s glad they took a proactive approach because it means they’re in good shape to create a global network. “We’ve registered our trademark in over 50 countries throughout the world; we expect to be in all of those in due course. Having those global stores means we build more value into each franchisee’s businesses.”
Related Keywords: Business Development Manager, Export Income, Fulfilment, Global Marketplace, International Business Development, Internet Benefits, Inventory Management, Market Environment, Marketing Consultant, Overseas Markets
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