E-Exporting: Using the Internet to Access New Markets

Today, the world has fast moved from traditional brick-and-mortar stores. Unlike what was applicable decades ago, you can now conduct business and conclude transactions from the comfort of your home. This shift has been made possible by e-commerce. 

According to the United States Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the total value of retail e-commerce peaked at over $25 trillion in 2020. This value highlights that more businesses are jumping on the digital commerce wave and need a suitable source of quality and affordable supply from other markets to meet increased demand at home.

However, aside from the regular domestic e-commerce that has gained popularity, another brand of e-commerce is gaining traction: e-exporting. This article will walk you through what e-exporting means, its benefits, and how you can kick-start your e-exporting journey.

What is E-Exporting?

E-exporting involves utilizing digital mediums in exporting goods to foreign buyers. In this case, it entails connecting with potential customers and shipping products through e-commerce platforms. E-exporting is similar to the conventional form of exporting. The only difference is that you connect with importers digitally, and all other processes like order placement and payment are also done without the need for physical contact.

To make this simplified exporting possible, digital export marketplaces are key. One is Doocan, a full-service export-import trade platform connecting US buyers with Indian exporters. With a platform like Doocan, a buyer can easily find an Indian supplier, negotiate rates, and access value-added services to make the export process easier.

Benefits of E-Exporting

E-exporting holds numerous benefits for exporters. Some of them are: 

• Limitless Access to More Buyers: One of the significant benefits of e-exporting is that exporters can easily access a wide range of importers from different countries. It is generally difficult to break into new import markets as an exporter. This difficulty is due to the numerous paperwork and logistical demands that exporters encounter in the process. However, e-exporting eliminates these challenges. As the famous saying goes, the internet is a global marketplace. As such, e-exporting provides exporters with the opportunity to offer their products to potential buyers from different countries across the world. With this, businesses can expand their global footprints even without the presence of a physical store. With Doocan, you can access the US buyers as an Indian vendor of apparel, leather accessories, construction materials, and toys, amongst others.
• Broader Brand Awareness: E-exporting enables exporters to create product listings and offer them to virtually any suitable customer who can connect to the internet. Thus, even when potential customers do not make a purchase, there is a guarantee that your exporter's brand recognition has increased. In addition, e-exporting allows exporters to upload information like product descriptions and customer reviews. This information drives trust, brand loyalty, and awareness. 
• Fewer Costs and Increased Profits: As earlier stated, e-exporting ensures that exporters are not required to establish a physical store or warehouse to export to numerous foreign countries. Another significant cost is the bi-annual export fair required of exporters, with an average cost running into thousands of USD. From rental cost for a booth to travel costs, transportation costs for the goods to display and investment of time and energy, exporters have to go through this strenuous process to export. By leveraging an export-import trade marketplace like Doocan, this potential cost can be eliminated. With these low costs and eliminated trade fairs, the profit margins of your business will undoubtedly soar. 
• Ability to Adjust Product Offerings in Real-Time: E-exporting allows exporters to monitor their customers' sourcing behaviors. By doing this, they can determine the products that customers generally prefer. Hence, ensuring that product listings can be readily adjusted to suit customers' needs. 
• Stress-free Delivery: There is no doubt that the entire exportation process can be stressful. From transporting goods to the port to clearing them, exporters are often subjected to a chaotic process. However, e-exporting eliminates these constraints because digital marketplaces assist with these potentially stressful processes. For example, platforms like Doocan render logistics assistance to exporters. This assistance significantly eases the delivery process for exporters. 

Kick-starting Your E-Exporting Journey: Basic Steps to Take

• Conduct Your Research: While many of the challenges you ordinarily face with traditional exporting are eliminated by e-exporting, you would still need to conduct extensive research before venturing into e-exporting. This is because your reach will not only be limited to your domestic market. On the international stage, your business will face stiffer competition. Thus, you need to understand what the e-exporting business terrain is all about fully. The research will help you achieve this. You can read about how to export from India here.
• Tailor Your Product Offerings to Your Target Export Market: While e-exporting provides exporters with a global customer base, your product offerings should lean towards specific target markets. You can choose these markets based on market size, economic well-being, and general purchasing power. For example, the United States of America's online shopping revenue surpassed $761 billion in 2021. This indicates that the US is a lucrative market with strong purchasing power. Thus, you might want to modify your product offerings according to the leading US import products. Multi-vendor marketplaces like Doocan currently cover critical product ranges for export from India to the US, from apparel to construction materials. 
• Utilize a Reliable Digital Trade Marketplace: This is the most crucial step in your e-exportation journey. There are different e-commerce platforms. Some platforms have restricted markets, while others provide a fully global market. Similarly, some restrict product ranges while some do not. It may be best to settle for a restricted market, and product range as streamlining makes the export process efficient.

Here are tips on choosing the right e-commerce platform for your e-exportation business:

• Prioritize Payment Security: Exportation can be risky, especially concerning payments. Given that e-exportation transactions are concluded digitally, the fraud risks are higher. Thus, it is advisable to opt for a platform that guarantees your payment upon the delivery of goods. E-commerce platforms like Doocan operate a trustless payment system that involves holding payments in escrow and releasing them to the exporter immediately after goods are delivered. This significantly reduces fraud. 
• Efficiency: Choosing an e-commerce export platform would mean that all your offerings will be displayed on the platform. Hence, you need to ensure that the platform is fast and efficient. Buggy platforms can affect customer experience and even reduce the prospect of sales.
• Pricing: Whether a small business owner or an established exporter, affordable pricing is vital in adopting an e-commerce platform. A costly platform could erode your profits and threaten your business sustainability. E-commerce export marketplaces like Doocan provide exporters with pricing flexibility to choose their terms like minimum order quantity, price, etc. To leverage Doocan’s unique offerings and start to export to the US, you can join other reputable Indian suppliers via the waitlist.

Exporting has always been a highly lucrative business venture. However, it comes with many challenges and risks. E-exporting eliminates those challenges while maintaining your business' profitability. Thus, it would be best if you prioritized choosing a suitable e-commerce export marketplace like Doocan as this will largely determine the success of your e-exportation venture.