Cross-border e-commerce export country selection and strategy: market research, logistics considerations and customs declaration process

With the rapid development of global cross-border e-commerce, more and more e-commerce sellers are beginning to turn their attention to overseas markets and carry out cross-border e-commerce export business. However, choosing the right cross-border e-commerce export country is crucial, as it will directly affect the seller’s market opportunities, risks and profitability.

Market research and analysis

Before choosing a cross-border e-commerce export country, sellers should conduct sufficient market research and analysis, including the following aspects:

• Potential market size: Assess the population size, spending power, and purchasing power of the target country or region to understand the potential market size and growth potential.
• Market demand and trends: Understand the consumer trends, preferences and demand characteristics of the target market, and determine whether your product or category is suitable for you.
• Competitive environment: Analyze the competition situation in the target market, including the number, strength and market share of competitors, and evaluate your own competitiveness in the market.
• Legal and policy environment: Understand the import regulations, laws and regulations, and cross-border e-commerce policies of the target country or region, and ensure that your business complies with local legal requirements.

Logistics considerations

India

Users in the Indian market have very high requirements for timeliness, because local e-commerce companies such as Flipkart and Amazon India have trained their users to develop the habit of placing orders today and receiving the goods two days later. In order to improve user experience, Amazon has almost doubled its total warehousing area in India in recent years, reaching 32,258 square meters of cross-border e-commerce logistics, providing logistics and warehousing services to thousands of retailers and small and medium-sized enterprises in India. In addition, companies such as Flipkart, Snapdeal, eBay, etc. are also establishing their own logistics centers and distribution networks. It is worth mentioning that young logistics companies with fresh blood are more likely to attract e-commerce companies because emerging logistics companies can provide fast delivery services, IT services and COD (cash on delivery) mechanisms. These factors are the factors that make e-commerce companies successful. The most basic elements.

UK

British consumers spend a lot of money per capita on foreign shopping websites and are very confident in online retail, so they are always ready to buy products from abroad. The biggest factors influencing their decision remain delivery service and returns and exchanges. In the UK, although consumers prefer home delivery, in the past five years, more and more customers have chosen to shop online and pick up goods offline.

Germany

Across Europe, Germany leads the way in logistics and distribution. 90% of Germans like home delivery, and delivery method and time are crucial to them. The supplier must ensure that the goods are delivered smoothly on time as promised, and during the delivery process, consumers can know the delivery status of the goods.

Russia

Logistics is still the biggest pain point for cross-border e-commerce in Russia, which has a land area of ​​17.0982 million square kilometers. The longest distance between the east and west ends is about 9,000 kilometers. The transportation “main artery” only relies on railways, and the one-way transportation time is 6 and a half days. For consumers living in large and medium-sized cities such as Moscow, the delivery time for online purchases generally takes 15 to 30 days.

Australia

Australia has a vast geographical area and the dispersion of distribution locations makes efficient delivery the biggest challenge. Particularly in areas such as the Northern Territory, Tasmania, Queensland and Western Australia, geography and population density all influence the level of delivery service.

United States

The standard delivery time for U.S. e-commerce is 5 to 7 days. If you need delivery in one day or two days, you need to pay a shipping fee of US$3.99 to US$7.99. Many websites in the United States also provide same-day delivery services, and the shipping cost is basically around US$20.

Customs declaration process

Import and export customs declaration refers to the process in which the consignee and consignee of import and export goods or their agent handles relevant customs clearance procedures for their inbound and outbound goods in accordance with customs regulations and obtains the corresponding customs declaration form. The following information is required for customs declaration:

• Customs Declaration Form for Export Goods
• Loading note or consignment note
• Commercial invoice
• Export Collection Verification Form
• Agency customs declaration entrustment agreement (necessary for customs declaration)
• Export trade contract
• Other supporting materials, such as inspection and quarantine certificate, certificate of origin, etc.

Conclusion

Choosing the right cross-border e-commerce export country is the key to successfully developing cross-border e-commerce business. Through sufficient market research and analysis, choosing the target market suitable for your products and formulating corresponding market entry strategies and implementation plans can help sellers gain more opportunities and success in the global market.

At the same time, sellers also need to constantly pay attention to market changes and policy adjustments, and flexibly adjust their business strategies to adapt to the changing cross-border e-commerce environment. Considering the logistics situation of each country, choosing the right logistics partner to provide efficient distribution services is crucial to the success of cross-border e-commerce.