Navigating Downstream Into New Markets Made Easy, with Digital River

14 August 2018 | 3259 Shares

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The world’s economy has been growing by close to four percent a year for the last decade. Technology has been and continues to be one of the primary drivers of this tendency, so it’s unsurprising that online ecommerce is playing a large part in the upsurge in economic activity.

While the first attempts at taking payments and presenting goods and services online back in the 1990s were decidedly hit-and-miss affairs, the ecommerce abilities available to any organization are now sufficiently mature to be acceptable, just about anywhere.

Of course, regional differences exist, especially between the developing world and more mature markets like the US and Europe. However, even areas which have been seen to be “off limits” are now opening up, with viable internet communities happy to purchase and transact online.

All but the most gigantic multinationals simply don’t have the localized knowledge, however, to be able to move confidently into new, foreign markets, despite the internet’s ubiquity.

Source: Digital River

Global organizations, therefore, are turning to Digital River for answers to some of the seemingly imponderable questions regarding online trade in unfamiliar markets. Businesses need to convert more customers, wherever they may be, and Digital River is the cornerstone of the method best utilized to achieve rapid, trans-national growth.

Opening up new storefronts for different regions is more complicated than buying a local high-level domain and translating relevant web pages. If it were only so simple, every online storefront would be happily servicing every market under the sun!

Localizing storefronts is a complicated business at any level. Even geographies which might seem to be similar, such as the US and the UK are (as they say) two countries divided by a common language.

Even if language issues are resolved, there remains a whole raft of other considerations, which can best be laid to rest by employing an organization which specializes in empowering businesses to open up ecommerce facilities in multiple locales and regions.

Digital River’s many years of experience can help your organization with many of the thornier issues which, until now, have prevented any expansion into unfamiliar, yet highly lucrative, markets:

Product fulfillment

Local logistics methods and preferences vary. Some geographies rely on local collections due to their immense size. In Australia, for example, logistics which serve well in highly urbanized areas can fail in the immensity of the distances “down under.”

Source: Digital River

Paying tax

In some countries, sales are subject to local as well as national taxes. Of course, some products are tax exempt entirely, but just a few miles away, the same products delivered to customers need an additional levy. At this granular level, Digital River’s expertize can make the difference between orders accurately carried through, and an uninformed approach causing constant headaches.

Payment patterns

Does your existing ecommerce engine allow partial payments? The splitting of orders across multiple payment methods, or even ordering numerous consignments to various destinations – these are the details which customers (and businesses) are increasingly demanding. If they’re not available, your competitors are just a click away.

Holding debit and credit card details remains problematic so repeat charges to cards (for a monthly stipend-based payment plan) may also be cumbersome. But not with Digital River’s cloud-based solutions. Digital River is not only PCI DSS-compliant but is also highly cognizant of local governance and data protection, from GDPR to California’s Consumer Privacy Act of 2018.

Product placement

Digital River’s ecommerce solutions are not only deployable across the globe, but its in-house knowledge and experience informs its clients with specialist digital marketing knowledge which can form the difference between one-off online sales, and a loyal base which shops and transacts repeatedly.

Source: Digital River

Special offers, time-limited promotions, and personalized shopping experiences can all be deployed individually, wherever that person or business might be.

Whether it’s handling the possibilities offered by national or local events, or managing cybersecurity and fraud, handling returns, logistics or just providing a simple, consistent product range across multiple territories, Digital River is the company you need on your side.

If global commerce is your aim, then you need more than just a technology provider. Digital River provides both the expertize and the infrastructure every organization needs to capitalize on new markets on the internet.

Its SaaS offerings are perfect for every organization to expand its global footprint, whether it’s a simple shop for the Thai market or a fully-fledged digital ecommerce presence in the US or Northern Europe.

To learn more about the possibilities afforded to your organization by Digital River, get in touch today to request a demo.