This is how you expand your eCommerce business internationally: four steps!

As a successful eCommerce business, you might want to consider expanding to other countries. It can help your company grow even more. This way you increase your sales, but also target a different group of people and make your business even more profitable. But how do you start with this? We take you by hand through several steps. This way you will see if your company is ready to go international!

Step 1: Market research

First of all, you need to do your market research. This step is important and answers some important questions. Which country will you expand to? How does the market look right now? When you have the answers to these questions, it is good to analyze the competition, customer behavior and other important factors. Besides, you need to research the culture, the language and customer attitudes to be able to design your content. So, visit international websites and talk to other businesses that have expanded to another country.

Step 2: SEO and marketing

It is also important to have an international strategy regarding marketing. Your SEO has to be up-to-date so that you increase the visibility of your business in another country. This means translating your website content and meta descriptions. Use keywords that are relevant to the webpage and the country. Use modern tools such as Amazon ads to increase your visibility. This way the findability in search engines of your website will grow. Finally, do not forget to create social media campaigns focused on your specific target group.

Step 3: Logistics

Then it is good to focus on some operational aspects. For example, you need to offer a variety of payment methods. Not all countries work with the same payment method. Do your research and add it to your website. Find out what the options are for international shipping and work with partners that have a strong international network. Does it take too long to ship a product internationally? Then you might have to consider changing to a different strategy.

Step 4: Customer support

Finally you need to expand your customer support. You need to work with international companies that offer customer service in a different language. It is important to know how people communicate in a certain country, so research this. Some countries need a more direct way of communication than others. This way you can provide good customer service and increase customer satisfaction all around the world.

By following these steps you get a good insight in what you need to do to expand your business internationally. This way you can meet new customers, get in contact with new business partners and increase your sales all around the world!