How to prepare your company for e-commerce

The local market is a very small portion of the enormous market represented by global online sales. E-commerce continues to grow worldwide, and if we compare the local population with the volume of purchases made globally, there's no doubt that focusing on the global market is of utmost importance.

In light of these facts, it’s clear that for most companies, the internationalization of e-commerce is one of the most efficient and profitable ways to open new markets and reach the maximum number of potential customers.

Launching an export strategy through e-commerce is one of the most effective ways to overcome the barriers and limitations that traditional distribution channels have. Of course, it’s essential to take into account that the local regulations of the destination country must be considered without exception. But with e-commerce, it’s possible to avoid the high costs of establishing a foreign sales force or commercial network.

Is my company ready for international e-commerce?

We need to analyze our strengths and weaknesses to make the right decision. The products or services must be globally competitive, and if a company is struggling in the local market, it will be difficult to succeed in the global one. In e-commerce, trust is a fundamental pillar for a potential customer to move forward with a purchase.

The product or service the company wants to export must be of the highest quality and offer differentiating values (price, quality, design, after-sales service, etc.) that allow it to position itself in other markets.

Closely tied to trust is the importance of the brand image we build.

After-sales service (phone, email, chat) and logistics (transportation, storage, shipping, and handling returns) must be flawless. This builds online reputation, which is a fundamental asset in e-commerce.

What devices are our customers using?

Purchases via mobile devices are increasingly common and currently account for more than 70% of all transactions.

That’s why it’s essential to ensure purchases can be made from any device—whether mobile phone, tablet, or desktop. If an online store isn’t properly optimized for mobile, it could result in significant financial losses. It's also important that users perceive mobile payment methods as trustworthy.

How do I get paid for sales made through e-commerce?

Part of an e-commerce’s success lies in how easy it is for customers to make payments online. In fact, studies on e-commerce show that users often abandon purchases when they don’t find payment methods that suit their needs. That’s why it’s vital to work on earning user trust by offering a safer, more diverse, and more reliable shopping experience.

What makes a good payment gateway?

• Costs: how much will it charge per transaction?

• Integration time: how long does it take to activate the service? How long to integrate with your e-commerce platform?

• Subscriptions: does it support recurring payments?

• API: is there a documented, available API?

• Security: is the gateway PCI DSS compliant?

• Accepted credit cards: which credit card brands are supported?

• Anti-fraud system: does it include fraud detection tools?

• Support: what is customer service like? Is it only via email or is there local, personalized support?

How to increase e-commerce sales?

Online marketing
Online marketing refers to attracting traffic to your site—and converting that traffic into customers and sales.

Product page
The product page will determine whether or not the purchase is completed. That’s why we must provide detailed information, guarantees, and motivation to encourage the sale.

Minimalist, simple pages with relevant information, that highlight the most important elements and feature high-quality images, are often the most successful.

It’s also essential that the site includes a clear and direct call to purchase and uses different tools to build customer trust, such as testimonials, customer reviews, and return policies.

Sales channel integration
All sales channels—online store, physical store, social media pages, websites, and contact information—should be consolidated in one place.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Your site should always include an FAQ section, especially since there’s no face-to-face interaction with a salesperson.

Answering common questions about your product, shipping options, payment methods, delivery times, and more is crucial for building trust. FAQs should always be visible and easily accessible.

Having an online salesperson
The physical salesperson still plays an important role. Since this isn’t possible in an online transaction, it can be replaced with a product search tool and a proactive live chat that allows direct interaction with the customer.

Infrastructure and security
Infrastructure refers to ensuring a fast browsing experience—pages must load quickly, servers must stay up, and the online store must be reliably available 24/7, 365 days a year.

Security is a highly sensitive issue, since users are sharing information such as credit card data. To address this, your site must be secure and supported by a PCI DSS-compliant payment gateway that instills confidence in the customer during checkout.

Carlos Caetano
CEO of PagosWeb.