New global, online shopping research from Pitney
Bowes Inc. (NYSE:PBI) reveals that cross-border ecommerce is gaining
traction with nearly 40 percent of consumers having purchased goods
online from another country. The market opportunity for online retailers
looking for a global foothold remains significant.
According to the 2014 Pitney Bowes Global Online Shopping Study, the
U.S., U.K. and Germany are the most desirable e-destinations for
consumers to purchase goods online outside their own country. As a
result, retailers based in these countries are in a great position to
tap into this trend to expand their reach to global buyers. Australians
are the most likely to buy products online from retailers outside their
own country (63 percent) followed by Canada and Russia (both 54
percent). Surprisingly, shoppers in South Korea (21 percent), China (19
percent), and India and Japan (both 15 percent) ranked highest in
believing they can only purchase goods online from retailers in their
own country.
While nearly all respondents (96 percent) have made an online purchase,
the relatively low cross-border purchases highlight an opportunity for
international retailers that want to capitalize on the $1.5 trillion
market opportunity (citation: eMarketer).
The Pitney Bowes research reveals that consumer misperceptions around
cross-border shopping represent a valuable opportunity for global
retailers to raise awareness around the ease and accessibility of online
shopping.
“Retailers looking to expand their businesses online to international
markets should consider the unique mindsets and shopping preferences of
consumers in each country,” says Craig Reed, Vice President of Global
Ecommerce, Pitney Bowes. “In addition, it’s critical for retailers
to provide buyers with clarity and accuracy in the online buying
process, certainty and transparency in delivery, and competitive
pricing. Once these barriers to consumer confidence are overcome, the
opportunities and appetite for buying goods outside their own country
can increase dramatically.”
Barriers to Adoption
According to the study, the biggest barrier to cross-border commerce is
high shipping costs (68 percent). This is followed by additional fees at
time of delivery, such as duties and taxes (58 percent). Product
delivery taking too long was the third largest barrier to completing an
online purchase (42 percent).
Another major concern is perceived safety, including data security and
fraud. Only 46 percent of respondents said that they thought it was safe
to buy a product online from a retailer based outside of their own
country. Another 33 percent said they didn’t know if it was safe.
Consumers in Japan were by far the least likely to believe that these
purchases are safe (17 percent), while over 60 percent of respondents in
Australia, Canada, India and Brazil thought it was safe.
These findings indicate that security and real-time fraud detection is
an important capability that retailers should consider incorporating
into their international ecommerce business--educating global buyers on
the safety of online purchases is vital.
Additional study findings
-
Price is the top reason (68 percent) why shoppers have purchased a
product from an online retailer outside of their own country or would
consider doing so. This was followed by availability (46 percent) and
better selection (38 percent). Brand names were the highest with
consumers in India (52 percent) and China (34 percent), followed by
Russia and South Korea (both 27 percent).
-
The U.S. is by far the top country (70 percent) to be considered by
shoppers who have purchased products online or would consider doing
so. However, there was a major exception: Russia. While 54 percent of
Russian respondents have made international ecommerce purchases, only
35 percent would purchase from the U.S.
-
The ability to track an international order was most important to
consumers in Brazil (41 percent), the U.S. (40 percent) and Japan (39
percent), among those who have purchased products online from
retailers in other countries or would consider doing so.
Methodology: The 2014 Pitney Bowes Global Online Shopping Study was
conducted online by ORC International and surveyed approximately 12,000
adults across 12 countries regarding their perceptions, habits and
preferences for making online purchases. Consumers were polled in
Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, South
Korea, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The survey was
conducted in August 2014.
About Pitney Bowes
Pitney Bowes provides technology solutions for small,
mid-size and large firms that help them connect with customers to build
loyalty and grow revenue. Many of the company’s solutions are delivered
on open platforms to best organize, analyze and apply both public and
proprietary data to two-way customer communications. Pitney Bowes
includes direct mail, transactional mail and call center communications
in its solution mix along with digital channel messaging for the Web,
email and mobile applications. Pitney Bowes: Every connection is a new
opportunity™. www.pb.com.
Copyright Business Wire 2014