The thought of trying to serve an online audience may be quite daunting, but the process is a lot easier than it used to be. Even new startups can make it happen with just a few simple upgrades. Here’s how.
Adapt Your Website
When the venture aims to target online sales via the internet, at least for international sales, the website needs to look the part. In truth, the design and navigation aspects should be of a professional standard anyway. Nevertheless, a few minor changes can make a world of difference.
You’ll need to take care with regards to Google penalties when creating new pages for secondary territories. Still, giving international clients the chance to set the website to their geographic settings is vital. This can include setting the language features as well as the currency selection. It may also be necessary to set zonal pricing strategies to ensure that your products are open to all markets.
Not having those features can leave customers feeling excluded from everything your website has to offer. This could end up costing you a lot of sales. After all, many customers won’t conduct the research into your services if it seems that you aren’t even interested in them.
Embrace Third-Party Sites
Your website will remain the primary source of sales in your local area. In time, it’ll become the main outlet for those international sales too. However, it may take some time to build your presence and respect in those locations. This is especially true with regards to gaining their trust for completing transactions.
As such, it may be worth setting up eBay and Amazon stores to give yourself a sales boost and help build the brand overseas. You may lose a small percentage of the profits due to the operational costs involved. But it may hold the key to success throughout those early stages.
Be Visible In Multiple Locations
With over 1.3 billion websites on the market, potential customers won’t land upon your website via potluck. When searching for products and services, most people set filters related to their locations. As such, building a strong localised SEO strategy for each intended country or city is key. In truth, though, your commitment cannot end there.
Adding a virtual headquarters can transform everything. By having a postal address in the secondary locations, most clients will naturally take a more positive view. Therefore, that increased presence should bring maximised traffic and converted sales. This is a formula for success in anyone’s books.
Build A Global Team
The growth of online technology and communication doesn’t only enhance the selling activities. It can also provide a major boost for your leadership duties. Those sentiments ring particularly true when recruiting new staff members.
Expanding the team with international employees can enhance your business in many ways. This is particularly true when you maintain the close-knit vibe. Their insight into cultural differences and the expectations of audiences can be pivotal as you aim to satisfy their needs. Meanwhile, those key people can manage things in those unique territories too.
Audiences need to identify with businesses and relate to the brand as well as the products. Having a globalised team is easily the best way to make this happen. Besides, if you decide to follow this with more traditional expansions at a later date, the wheels are already in motion.
Adapt Products
As humans, we all share general expectations of companies and specific products. Nevertheless, geographic locations can have a huge influence. Whether it’s due to weather conditions, cultural differences, or local trends doesn’t matter. As a business looking to gain success in those areas, appreciating those values is imperative. Otherwise, you limit any hopes of sales.
Even the seemingly small changes can make a world of difference. Of course, those exact aspects will be dictated by the type of products manufactured or sold. Opting for eco-friendly packaging may also promote a far more positive response in certain territories. Those subtle tweaks and changes are pivotal.
Improve The Service
The products are one thing, but the logistics of getting items to their final destination is another altogether. If your products continue to originate from the current location, finding the best international couriers is key. Speed and efficiency are top of the agenda while you also need to factor in the insurances.
It’s equally crucial to consider the customer care aspects of the service. FAQs and returns policies may need to be adapted to individual locations. For the most part, though, providing an honest and fair service should suffice. Those demands are constant across the globe.
If you provide a winning service to new customers, they’ll have no reason to take their business elsewhere. Once you gain a loyal following from around the world, the entire business will be destined for far greater outcomes.
Use Testimonials
News travels fast in business, regardless of whether it’s good or bad. Ensuring that the vibe remains positive is one of the key factors for anyone wanting to gain significant sales in multiple locations. Testimonials can be a great way to build that positivity. This is especially true when supported by a productive referral scheme.
The benefits include increased trust, respect, and interest in the products. Influencer marketing can achieve an even greater result, and is always worth consideration. Once that snowball effect of sales starts, there’s nothing to stop your venture achieving greatness in all locations.
The Final Word
While international success isn’t always a necessity, it should be a long-term goal for all entrepreneurs. If it can be achieved far sooner in a way that removes some of the pressure for domestic success, you’d be a fool not to take advantage. Now that you know how, there’s never been a better time to follow this pathway.