{"id":46292,"date":"2017-10-14T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-10-13T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gengo.com\/uncategorized\/tips-global-ecommerce-sales-holiday-season\/"},"modified":"2025-02-28T17:06:56","modified_gmt":"2025-02-28T08:06:56","slug":"tips-global-ecommerce-sales-holiday-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gengo.com\/ecommerce-articles\/tips-global-ecommerce-sales-holiday-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Five tips to boost global ecommerce sales this holiday season"},"content":{"rendered":"As of last year, the overwhelming majority of U.S. shoppers are buying online, and ecommerce sales worldwide hit a record high of $1.3 trillion. The news couldn\u2019t be better for ecommerce predictions for ecommerce sales this holiday season\u2014global sales are expected to grow 6.4%. But just because there\u2019s enough pie for everyone at this holiday table doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re guaranteed a slice.<\/span>\r\n\r\nHere are our tips for tapping into the potential profits of a global marketplace.<\/span>\r\n

1. Go global, but think local<\/b><\/h3>\r\nA marketing strategy that works well in North America won\u2019t necessarily do the same in Asia or Europe, which means you\u2019ll have to rethink your strategies and messaging for each target market. It\u2019s going to take research\u2014and lots of it\u2014to find the words and images that resonate best with each audience, but it\u2019s not only the people you have to impress, it\u2019s also their preferred search engines.<\/span>\r\n\r\nFor example, SEO strategy should change to target the more popular search engines used around the world\u2014Google hasn\u2019t taken over the earth quite yet. Yahoo is more used in Japan; Baidu in China; Naver in Korea; Yandex in Russia; and Bing gives Google stiff competition in the United Kingdom.<\/span>\r\n

2. Localize your mobile app (omni-channel advantage)<\/h3>\r\nSome 66%<\/span><\/a> of all time spent on ecommerce sites is done from mobile devices\u2014and 61% of customers will leave a site if it isn\u2019t mobile friendly. More than that, Google will now prioritize mobile-friendly pages on search engine results (UX is the new SEO, if you haven\u2019t heard!). But it\u2019s not enough for you to make your site and product pages responsive to mobile\u2014you have to ensure that the brand experience is consistent across all platforms and in all countries.<\/span>\r\n

3. Translate user-generated content<\/h3>\r\nUser-generated content like reviews and comments do more to increase international buyer confidence than any other marketing activity, which is why we recommend translating them. While translating user-generated content is usually last on the priority list for companies, for online shoppers in particular, reading reviews is an important part of the purchase process (especially when buying holiday gifts, people might be willing to take a chance on themselves with an unknown product, but not on dear old <\/span>grandp\u00e8re<\/span>). For ecommerce companies, it can drastically enhance customer experience to translate page text, product listings and user reviews as one bundle. (<\/span>Read more about translating user-generated content here.<\/span><\/a>)<\/span>\r\n

4. Embrace local payment methods<\/h3>\r\nEcommerce makes global retail more accessible now than ever before, but two barriers stand in the way for many buyers: language and currency. Ecommerce sites interested in global markets know they have to translate product pages, but fewer think to change how their currency is listed. When buyers see a product price in an unfamiliar currency, a string of questions begins:<\/span>\r\n