International shipping policy examples: How the big brands do it

Hungry for international e-commerce success? Find out how three of Australia’s biggest online retailers do it.

When putting together your international shipping policy, it helps to see what works for other successful e-commerce brands that have successfully built a global presence off the back of efficient international shipping procedures.
Here’s how three big Australian online retailers set out their international shipping policies:
Bonds
Leading Australian fashion retailer Bonds is known around the world and ships to a wide range of countries.

What do customers want: fast or free delivery?

Australians can be a demanding bunch – especially when it comes to online shopping.
According to research by Lithium Technologies, customer expectations are rising sharply in Australia as we embrace the conveniences of the ecommerce revolution.
The study revealed that Australians are among the most demanding and impatient internet shoppers in the world – 72 per cent of us expect a same-day response to online enquiries compared to 66 per cent of Americans.
That adds up to a potential nightmare for ecommerce businesses that must run the gauntlet of balancing rising customer expectations against real-world limitations.

6 free online tools to improve your international shipping

Use these six free online tools to make managing your international shipping easier than ever.

Thanks to a suite of free online tools and resources, managing your international shipping is easier than ever. Use these online calculators to make sure you’re set up for success:

Duty calculator
Each country you ship products to applies different duties and taxes that you may be required to pay. Use this duty calculator to assess country-specific duties that you’ll need to build into your international shipping costs.

E-commerce lessons from the big five: shipping and returns

Transparency in your postage and returns policy is the key to managing customer expectations and avoiding disappointment and disputes.
However, knowing where to display your postage and returns policies on your website, how to navigate to them, which content to cover and how to format it can cause enough confusion for you to toss it all in the too-hard basket.
Here, we take a look at how the big boys do it, and what you can learn from them.

Checklist: How to start shipping overseas

Ready to take your e-commerce business global? Follow this seven-step checklist to start shipping overseas…

Setting up your international shipping policies and processes can seem overwhelming, but it all comes down to investing some time in research before launching into new overseas markets.
While it’s vital to understand your new international markets, you’ll also need to do a cost analysis for each target destination to ensure country-specific duties, taxes and shipping costs don’t price you out of the market.

6 steps for setting a successful ecommerce postage strategy

Cut your postage costs and keep your customers coming back with this easy six-step postage strategy. 
Postage and shipping might not be the sexiest aspect of your ecommerce business, but it is one of the most important.
Offering your customers fast, reliable and cost-effective package delivery will help you build your competitive advantage and boost your credibility as the positive customer reviews pile up.
However, solving the postage puzzle is easier said than done. That’s why you need to set a postage strategy that governs everything from how you label and pack products,

6 common mistakes when shipping overseas (and how to avoid them)

From forgetting duties and taxes to over promising on delivery timeframes, here are the most common mistakes e-commerce businesses make when shipping overseas…

Thanks to online shipping aggregators and freight companies that are rapidly evolving to ease international shipping for Australian e-commerce retailers, it’s easier than ever to grow your business into a global brand. (If you’re thinking about starting global shipping- check out our four step guide to determine whether your business should go global.

Should you ship overseas? The four-step guide

Not all products suit overseas shipment. Follow this four-step guide to determine whether your e-commerce business should be going global

While the potential of accessing international markets may leave you feeling more excited than ever about the future of your e-commerce business, it’s important to remember that not all products suit overseas shipment.
Follow this four-step guide to determine whether you should ship your product overseas:
1 Product weight
Just like domestic shipping, international freight is largely calculated on the weight and size of your product.

5 ways to use parcel tracking to increase repeat sales

For ecommerce retailers, your online reputation is everything. And as consumers increasingly turn to your online reviews to gauge the quality of your business, ecommerce entrepreneurs must pull out all stops to avoid negative customer feedback.
According to a BrightLocal survey, 88 per cent of consumers have read online reviews to determine the quality of your business. And 85 per cent said they read up to 10 reviews.
That means your customers are paying close attention to what other customers are saying,

The pros and cons of international shipping

Entering new international markets can be an effective way to rapidly grow your e-commerce business. But it comes with a few challenges you need to consider.

 
Thinking about taking your e-commerce business global? (If you are, check out our 4 step guide first to decide whether you should ship overseas).
Implementing an international shipping policy comes with many positives including the opportunity to grow your business by selling a wider range of products to larger markets.