What comes to mind of an average person who thinks of the United States? The most powerful economy on the planet Earth, the nation of small- and medium-scale business, numerous start-ups, gigantic corporations, as well as numerous widely known successful entrepreneurs. The US indeed has an image of a businessmen’s paradise that attracts people from all over the globe.
(Picture Unsplash @guibolduc)
Yet, as controversial as it may sound, more and more American entrepreneurs consider doing business in Europe or worldwide in general. Globalization tendency and different factors occurring in the US and the World make businessmen from the “land of the free” begin to work with or even transfer some of their businesses to European states such as the United Kingdom, Germany, or France. The mentioned countries have established economies, exciting professional opportunities, and liberal policymaking, meaning that it is a nearly perfect target for foreign entrepreneurs. Moreover, some European governments offer attractive subsidies, grants, and tax reduction laws to help an overseas move of a businessperson.
With this in mind, understanding the consumer behavior of Europeans (which also differs loads from that of Americans) is of key importance whilst starting a business in European states. Does it surprise you that online grocery shopping is not popular in Europe, unlike in the US? Did you know that more than half the Europeans make purchases online at least once a month? In accordance with the studies from 2017, 60 percent of the people shop every month and 25 percent do so every week. These numbers have only been reinforced by the years and the recent COVID-19 pandemic.
Having that said, the business culture in the United States and European Union is vaguely different too, which may be an issue for the business. Customers from the European highly developed, economically capitalist countries are spoon-fed with the service of high quality. An American entrepreneur should take into account that European clients demand good-looking websites, decent service, quick shipping with adequate shipping fees. In this article, the exact shipping issue is discussed.
Selling and buying products or services on the Internet is taking over the world (especially Europe) rapidly, displacing traditional stores and paper money payments as money transfer transactions are used in Electronic Commerce. An online shopkeeper puts a lot of effort into making sure their customers get a great experience by finally delivering goods to a client. Shipping is a key part of any business and an essential part of global eCommerce. It is the part where a client experiences the product personally. Consequently, the entrepreneur is responsible for organizing the whole shipping strategy wisely, so the customer is served well.
Just as it has been mentioned above, shoppers really expect their goods delivered on time and with no unexpected occurrences. An entrepreneur has better be working with reliable shipping organizations as long as they wish their customers to be satisfied with on-time arrived goods. It, however, may be tough to choose a courier or a delivery company that would suit both the business and the customer. Quite a lot of international couriers provide their services in delivering within the European Union, or from the US to European states. Many couriers, by the way, are well-known American organizations, so if one has experience of doing business in America, they probably at least have heard of some of the couriers.
Apart from being late, no buyer, obviously, wants their ordered goods to arrive damaged. It does happen occasionally – sometimes even at an excessive shipping rate. Commodities being transferred transatlantic (from America to Europe and vice versa) may get broken or even lost. Accordingly, to prevent devastating profit losses and customer confidence undermining, the commodities have better be covered with a decent insurance policy. Such insurance, however, may cost “an arm and a leg” and still be flawed. A business should spend a certain time and effort on looking for adequate shipping insurance to cover their goods. Sometimes shipping services can include complementary coverage of nearly 100-150 USD or up to 200 USD in certain cases. As long as one sells inexpensive goods, this complementary sort of insurance will be a great deal of security. On the other hand, the business really wants to consider getting insurance on big-ticket items so that, in uncommon cases when a package gets damaged or lost, it will be covered by the insurance. While selecting the insurance company, one has got to make sure the company covers the item (it may be a high-risk commodity, or hazmat – short for hazardous materials), works with the destination, and the mode of transportation the item is to be shipped.
This whole shipping organizing procedure may look to a business like the most complicated task ever. Are you aware of the shipping rates and methods? Are you really proficient in calculating shipping costs? Or selecting insurances, filling in customs declarations and forms? Will a fulfilment center in Europe be the right choice? This all seriously seems like a mind-blowing process that needs to be done thoroughly for the business to work. If one is not informed of the latest information, customs issues can delay shipments and affect the delivery experience of customers. Every now and then, even experienced entrepreneurs use the help of special specialist services that especially focus on eCommerce. Whether you are growing the company in Europe and expanding the organization across other borders, tools and experts of such specialists make trade simpler to understand and easier to operate.
We from Viking Consulting can support you in entering the European market and find the optimal solution for your needs & wishes. This complies with our culture to build long-lasting beneficial relationships.
We welcome you to book your free meeting now to discuss further. Hit the “Let’s talk” button so we can start our journey together. As well stay up-to-date and connect with us on LinkedIn. Glory and honour await us!
Friendly regards
The Viking Consulting team
Who we are
We are Viking Consulting. The specialists within the fields of 3rd party integration and eCommerce software solutions. With 20+ years of experience in eCommerce, 15+ years of experience in development and integration, and 5+ years as a 3PL provider. We are the only contact needed for implementing integration, development and consulting.
The company is based in Scandinavia and the team extends to even embracing more countries. We serve companies worldwide. Our foundation is based on the values: Be Brave, Be Prepared, Be A Good Merchant, and, Keep The Camp In Order. Therefore we see ourselves as business partners and friends of the clients, employees, companies, networks and the industry.