In recent years, cross-border e-commerce has broadened the path for enterprises to enter the international market with an open, multi-dimensional and three-dimensional multilateral economic and trade cooperation model. Its small-batch and multi-batch “fragmented” characteristics have effectively adapted to the development trend of international trade, saved many intermediate links, reduced product prices, and given consumers greater freedom of choice. In addition, the related logistics distribution, electronic payment, electronic certification, IT services, and online marketing belong to the content of modern service industries. These advantages have promoted the development of cross-border e-commerce. However, as an industry that has only emerged in recent years, cross-border e-commerce has also brought challenges along with opportunities. Whether cross-border e-commerce can become the next blue ocean still needs to be tested by the market.
In recent years, my country’s e-commerce industry has developed rapidly. In 2013, my country’s e-commerce transaction volume exceeded 10 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 26.8%, of which online retail sales exceeded 1.85 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 41.2%. my country has become the world’s largest online retail market. As an important part of e-commerce, cross-border e-commerce has become the fastest growing area of China’s foreign trade. In 2013, my country’s cross-border e-commerce transaction volume was about 3.1 trillion yuan, and it has maintained a compound annual growth rate of more than 30% in the past five years. As a strategic emerging industry, e-commerce has played a huge role in transforming the economic growth mode and promoting industrial transformation and upgrading.
So, what opportunities does cross-border e-commerce bring to my country’s e-commerce?
1. Cross-border e-commerce has become a new growth point for expanding foreign trade imports and exports
With the help of electronic tools such as the Internet, the connection between foreign countries and domestic countries, producers and consumers is more direct. Foreign consumers can understand China’s high-quality and low-cost products and efficient and high-quality processing and production capabilities more comprehensively and timely, which can stimulate greater overseas market demand, and at the same time expand Chinese consumers’ choice of foreign products and services and expand foreign trade.
2. Cross-border e-commerce provides new opportunities for enterprises to build international brands
In the Internet era, brand and reputation are important components of corporate competitiveness and key factors in winning the favor of consumers. At present, although the quality and performance of products and services of many Chinese companies are very good, they are not known to overseas consumers. Cross-border e-commerce can effectively break the channel monopoly, reduce the intermediate links, save transaction costs, shorten the transaction time, and provide an effective way for Chinese enterprises to create brands and enhance brand awareness, especially to create new development space for some “small and beautiful” small and medium-sized enterprises, thereby giving birth to more “hidden champions” with international competitiveness. At present, 80% of my country’s foreign trade enterprises have begun to use e-commerce to explore overseas markets.
3. Cross-border e-commerce has become a new driving force for promoting the upgrading of industrial structure
The development of cross-border e-commerce has directly promoted the development of modern service industries such as logistics distribution, electronic payment, electronic certification, and information content services, as well as related electronic information manufacturing industries. Some well-known e-commerce platform companies, logistics express delivery, and third-party payment local companies have accelerated their rise. More prominently, cross-border e-commerce will trigger changes in production methods and industrial organization methods. Faced with diversified, multi-level, and personalized overseas consumer needs, enterprises must be consumer-centric, strengthen cooperation and innovation, build a complete service system, and while improving product manufacturing technology and quality, strengthen R&D design, brand sales, reconstruct the value chain and industrial chain, and maximize the optimization of resource allocation.