Who is Embracing Cross-Border Commerce?

Australian consumers have adopted crosscountry shopping much more widely than those in the UK or US. Seven in ten Aussies have already purchased from a merchant outside their home country, but only four in ten consumers from the UK or US have.

Men in the UK Are More Likely to Buy Cross-Border

Although there isn’t a wide difference, men in the UK are slightly more likely than women to purchase outside their home country. Just over half (53%) of cross-border shoppers in the UK are men versus 49% in AU and 48% in the US.

In terms of age, each country displays a somewhat different profile for cross-border purchasers. UK consumers skew more to the extremes, with 22% of buyers under the age of 25 and 25% over 55. Australia, on the other hand, sees more of an affinity for international buying from those 55 and up, while young adults (ages 25-34) lead the charge in the US.

Where’s the Loyalty?

There is still a small group in each region who aren’t ready to shop across borders. One in five consumers in both the UK (20%) and the US (23%) wouldn’t consider buying from merchants outside their home country, while fewer than one in ten Aussies (7%) share those sentiments.

One in Five Consumers Are Loyalists in the UK and US

Women are Less Likely to Shop Cross-Border

In each country, these loyalists tend to be female, but the proportions are more pronounced in Australia (60%) and the US (63%).

Additionally, the oldest segment of the population is the least likely to consider purchasing from merchants outside their home country. In the UK, nearly half (47%) of those who reject cross-border shopping are 55 and older. And in the US and Australia, this age group represents nearly two-thirds of the loyalists (65% and 64%, respectively).

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Where in the World Does Purchasing Occur?

China receives considerable commerce from all three groups of consumers.

Of those who are open to cross-border shopping, it’s not surprising to find that there is a clear preference toward other English-speaking countries. The common language eliminates one potential barrier to shopping and buying.

Consumers in Australia and the UK have purchased more from the US than any other country (60% and 56%, respectively). Australian consumers also purchase frequently from UK merchants (39% have completed such a transaction), and US consumers purchase from both the UK (27%) and Australia (6%) but not in the same high proportions.

China receives considerable commerce from all three groups of consumers. A majority of cross-border purchasers from the US and Australia (56% in both cases) have bought from China, and UK consumers have also demonstrated a propensity to buy from China with 44% having already made a purchase.

Behind China and the UK, US consumers purchase most from Canada (20%), Japan (19%) and Germany (10%). Similarly, UK consumers purchase most often from Germany (20%) and Japan (14%), but they vary from their US counterparts in having purchased much more often from France (15%).

From What Countries Would Consumers Consider Purchasing?

The most interesting finding is that in all three countries, merchants from other countries have far more potential than they are currently realizing. In nearly every case, the proportion of consumers open to purchasing from a specific country far exceeds the proportion who have done so to date. For example, while only 6% of US global shoppers have purchased from Australia, more than half (52%) say that they would be interested in doing so. Similarly, only 3% of UK global shoppers have purchased from Canada, but 45% would be willing to do so.

Merchants from Canada, Germany, Japan, France, Sweden and Italy can all find ready markets for their products among AU, UK and US consumers. In some cases, as in Canada and France, there are clearly some countries that present better targets of opportunity. No surprises here, the US is a better target for Canada, while the UK is a better target for France. On the other hand, countries such as Japan have nearly equivalent opportunities in each of the three regions. Their decision about which global markets to pursue will have more to do with absolute market size or demographics than simply focusing on a particular country

What Motivates Cross-Border Shopping and Purchasing?

For consumers in Australia and the US, the two top reasons for buying from another country are better prices and unique merchandise. For UK consumers, that order is reversed.

What Are the Barriers to Global Commerce?

Consumers in all three countries agree, far and away, that the largest barrier to global commerce is concern about shipping costs. Although the Australians are far more engaged in cross-border commerce, they also rate concern about shipping costs most highly, with 75% identifying it as a barrier. Americans generally express slightly higher levels of concern on all issues than Aussies or Brits.

It’s Time to Take Advantage of Global Ecommerce

The Internet’s ever-expanding role in our lives has forever changed the face of commerce. Gone are the days of ‘opening up new markets’ by distributing your products through the retail outlets of a given country. Your products can now be available anywhere in the world that you’re willing to ship to and the consumer is willing to pay. The result: Competition has increased a hundredfold as brands from across the world are now compared side-by-side. How do merchants survive and even thrive in this environment?

The key: Take advantage of the wider audience the Internet provides for your products and services. Make your differences clear. Yes, price shopping is a major motivator in online shopping, but not the only one. Unique merchandise is another strong motivator and allows you, as a merchant, to stand out from the crowd. And don’t forget to address the barriers up front to help minimize their impact. Since shipping costs dominate shopper’s concerns, clearly state your shipping policies early in the shopping process. Don’t force consumers to get to the final stages of the purchase process to learn what the shipping costs are. Doing what you can to diminish the barriers to cross-border commerce allows you to take fuller advantage of this new larger marketplace and the cross-border shoppers that go along with it.