E-commerce is booming across the world. Today’s consumers are savvier at comparing goods and services online and making informed purchase decisions. They now look beyond their country for the best deal.

As one of the fastest growing sectors (growing an astounding 5-7 times the rate of global gross domestic product) in the retail industry, retailers should sit up and pay attention. Successfully extending your offerings beyond your local markets can boost sales by 10-15%.

Here is where a robust cross-border e-commerce logistics infrastructure comes into play. To tap into this deepening gold mine, merchants need to think internationally. Here’s how. 

Streamline your logistics processes to enable cross-border e-commerce

Cross-border delivery journeys are more complex than domestic deliveries. Journeys tend to involve multiple delivery handoffs between postal and commercial logistics partners for each leg of the journey. This complexity carries more risk and uncertainty. 

Addressing this uncertainty requires logistics data. With this data, the delivery process becomes more transparent. You can see exactly where each parcel is, and what’s happening to it in real-time.

This level of visibility can empower your logistics team with the logistics intelligence they need to manage the delivery process. If this data is presented onto a dashboard, your logistics team can identify and resolve delivery bottlenecks before they become a problem. 

They can also use it to monitor carrier performance and compliance. That can help your logistics team pinpoint the carriers that suit the business and negotiate for better deals. 

Localize your delivery experience for local markets

87% of consumers that are not fluent in English refuse to purchase at English-only sites. That makes localization of content a top priority. While translating your website’s content is an excellent first step, the localization process doesn’t stop there. 

It should also be extended to the post-checkout process. Your customers want to know exactly what is happening to their order–in their own language. However, if you are using multiple carriers to deliver your products, the logistics data can come in different languages. 

To address this issue, you need to aggregate the logistics data you get and map it to standard events. Once you have the standard events, localization becomes easier and more effective. 

For instance, our tracking pages can be displayed in over 30 languages! This allows your customers to check on their parcels or receive parcel updates in their own language.

Use logistics data to build trust with your customers

The internet is your bridge to new markets. With just one website, you are opening your doors to consumers worldwide. Expanding into overseas markets as part of your growth strategy is much more feasible now than say 10 years ago. 

The only barrier now is your delivery process. 

You might have invested in creating the best possible buying experience on your website. But your overseas customers are more concerned about their delivery experience. The post-checkout phase is when overseas customers are most emotional. 

Any hiccups here could lead to customers getting frustrated and never coming back. 

Your overseas customers want to know that they can trust your business to fulfill their orders. They want to be kept updated about their parcel at all times. This is where logistics data comes in yet again. 

As we mentioned earlier, logistics data needs to be standardized. This not only helps with translation, it helps with keeping consumers in other markets engaged and informed. 

When you take customers along for the ride during the delivery journey, they are more inclined to trust that your business will deliver. This can help eliminate WISMO (where is my order) inquiries. 

At the same time, logistics data also empowers your customer service team to resolve WISMO-related queries quickly and efficiently. They can even take a more proactive approach–identify delivery issues before they even become a problem. 

Cross-border e-commerce is part of an effective growth strategy for your business. And now is the time to get started. Book a no-obligation demo with us, and find out how Parcel Perform can fuel your future ambitions to expand into new markets with tracking data across 1015 carriers and mapped to over 140 events.