If your eBay ads read "Ship to U.S. Only," you're missing out on a lot of sales. And though you've likely heard that the overseas markets are burgeoning with eager buyers, you've also thought, is it really worth the bother? The answer is: yes. Ecommerce-Guide will show you the numbers backing up the buzz about the potential for profit from international markets on eBay and provide you with the tips you need to capitalize on them. In the end, you'll see it's not as complicated as it seems, and the pay-off is huge.
Consider this: eBay now accrues 50 percent of its revenue overseas. While eBay's domestic listings grew a healthy 19 percent in the second quarter of 2006, it was a performance dwarfed by eBay's international markets. A case in point is Germany. According to A.C. Neilsen International Research, Germany has about 20 million registered eBay users, that's close to 25 percent of the population — a greater share than any other country in which eBay operates, including the U.S. Germans bought $6 billion in merchandise on eBay in 2004, the last year for which such data is available.
This growth extends throughout most of Europe and across the globe. The year-to-year growth for the second quarter of 2006 for eBay's European markets is 49 percent or more, while non-European worldwide markets fare even better, such as eBay Hong Kong (266 percent) China, (140 percent) Korea, (326 percent) Singapore, (142 percent,) India (77 percent) and Australia (46 percent).
Further, in August eBay and its rival Google signed a deal in which Google will sell eBay advertising overseas, allowing for potential overseas buyers to contact eBay sellers or Google advertisers with one-click calls.
Additionally, commonplace goods in the U.S. can command hefty premiums overseas. At the 2005 eBay University tour, a speaker tantalized sellers with tales of $3.99 Oreo cookie five-packs selling for $77 in Europe and cans of Folger's coffee fetching $40. While the $77 pack of Oreos is now a wistful memory for the seller, as 'monkey-see, monkey-do' competition kicks in, there are still many other items that are easy to find in volumes here that are difficult to obtain overseas.
According to DataWarehouse stats, these were the top 10 U.S. export categories at the start of the year: auto parts and accessories; watches; laptops; guitars; women's clothing; golf equipment; digital cameras; men's clothing; women's accessories, handbags; records.
While these categories are perennials, tastes and cultures vary. For example, "dolls" make the top 10 lists in Germany and Australia, while MP3 players and iPod Nanos are popular in the UK.
So, if you're ready to broaden your selling horizons, where do you start? The first step to selling to specific overseas markets is determining what sells — now. Experienced eBay merchants realize sales are subject to trends, changing tastes, needs and rules. For this reason the eBay International Seller's Forum is an excellent source for the latest news on scams and their locales, as well as the latest selling trends and tips on shipping and other aspects of overseas selling.
Further, the Web sites for targeted markets such as eBay Germany, France, Australia and so on will show what moves according to local tastes. Free services such as e Bay "Pulse" and "What's Hot" and subscription research sites, such as eBay-certified service providers Terapeak and Andale, can also offer insights.
Worldwide Selling There are three ways to sell to overseas markets: listing worldwide, listing for specific countries or listing on a selective basis using "Ship to U.S. Only" as the default and opting out from time-to-time. If you plan to sell primarily overseas, posting 'Worldwide' rather than the default setting 'Ship to U.S. Only' is a requisite. However, if overseas eBayers like what you're offering for sale, chances are they will bid regardless of your shipping terms. The careful and polite will e-mail asking if you will accept international bids before bidding, but many do not.
Increasingly, some inexperienced international eBayers bid first then are unwilling to accept seller terms for payment and shipping. If you offer Worldwide shipping, make your terms clear — use a template or be sure to post for each sale the details for overseas transactions — where the item will ship from, approximate shipping times, and the proviso that you are not responsible for duties, tariffs or customs delays. Whether or not you post your terms in the description, it's wise to e-mail overseas bidders with little or no feedback to confirm that they will honor your terms. If the bidder's feedback record is hideous, simply cancel the bid and don't look back.
Listing to Foreign Markets If you have an item that you notice sells well in a specific foreign market, well then, it makes sense to sell there. Use your same log-in information to list on eBay overseas sites on the "Sell Your Item" form and select "will ship to countries." While English is the second language of the world, do not count on your bidders speaking English. Use English but also translate into the language of the country; there are a number of translation tools available online, eBay recommends Alta Vista's Babel Fish, a free utility that allow the translation of text blocks and entire Web pages of language. EBay provides currency conversion from dollars to the currency of the market in which the ad appears for cross-border sales, though buyers must pay in the currency you specify.
If you sell primarily to a domestic audience but are willing to ship overseas, listing "Ship to U.S. Only" under the terms provides leverage. It lets you cancel bids and sales to foreign buyers who will not honor the payment and shipping terms — without fear of receiving a negative feedback. A template note in your item's description requiring potential bidders to e-mail for your cross-border selling terms helps, but remember that overseas buyers tend to bid if they like what your selling, regardless of terms.
Payment Poison: Western Union, EFT, Foreign Checks EBay warns against sending or accepting money through Western Union. Certainly never ship before receiving payment via Western Union Electric Funds Transfers (as some thieves have done in the past). Don't leave your bank account information in the hands of a stranger, yo u should know that and foreign checks not drawn on a U.S. bank incur conversion charges from $10 to $35 or more. Don't shipto a buyer's Fed-Ex account if you do not know and trust the buyer. There's a good chance the account is fraudulent. Even if it's legitimate, Fed Ex account holders can refuse to pay one specific charge; the small print on the Fed-Ex waybill states you cannot collect from them.
To PayPal Or Not To PayPal If you do not accept PayPal payments (like me), it's worth reconsidering your strategy if you intend to sell mainly cross-border. EBay claims international transactions average 16 percent more when using Papal. This makes sense since third-party checks in dollars payable at a U.S. bank cost money and running to a bank for U.S. cash is inconvenient.
In short, PayPal is a requisite if you sell primarily overseas, but there is a downside. With some exceptions for the U.K. and Canada, international buyers have only to say they did not receive an item for PayPal to issue a charge back to the seller's account. For this reason, delivery trackor register a parcel, where possible, for high ticket cross-border PayPal sales.
The wisest course is to offer as many payment options as possible: PayPal, credit cards, checks in dollars drawn on U.S. banks and cash. If you don't accept PayPal and your feedback score is very good, many overseas buyers will send cash. With the exception of a few notoriously shady foreign postal systems, the money, when packed securely, always arrives.
Make Sure It's Legal Most common goods can be shipped overseas, and generally items valued at $200 or less are not subject to import tariffs. Some countries, such as Italy, ban specific items and certain destinations known for receiving prohibited imports. The Worlds Customs Organization is an excellent source for items banned from importation by specific countries. Additionally, eBay's "Help" page offers an "Is My Item Allowed?" section that lists items generally "prohibited," "questionable" or "potentially infringing."
Descriptions: Keep It Simple Keep your item listings straightforward, concise and complete. Sarcasm, discursive descriptions and insider jokes are a bad idea in any eBay listing, particularly so in an overseas platform where they can be misconstrued or lost in translation. Simultaneously, detailed and accurate descriptions are all the more important in cross-border listings. It's bad enough to have an unhappy buyer return an item returned from Sheboygan, worse yet from Shanghai.
Also, remember to launch your sale so it closes at a decent time in the overseas location. Don't count on Hans in Stuttgart or Nigel in London to have sniping software or rise at 4 a.m. to bid on your merchandise.
Shipping Basics In general, if you're not selling anvils or SUVs, the U.S. Postal Service is the cheapest way to ship overseas. For instance, items weighing four pounds or less that can be safely stuffed into an 8-by-11 flat-rate Global Priority airmail envelope can be sent to more than 50 countries around the globe for $9.50. A smaller size is available for $5.50 and both generally reach their destinations within a week. Larger items must go parcel post — either air or "surface." Air parcel post tends to be expensive, surface, the original 'slow boat to China,' takes between two to six weeks but is considerably cheaper. EBay offers a worldwide shipping calculator page on the site to help when deciding what route to take.
Packing "bullet proof" is a good idea no matter where the destination. (Just watching postal or UPS workers fling boxes around the station or truck should convince you of that.) It's doubly true for shipping overseas. Pack so that the item can survive a drop from a third-floor window (which may be the case,) and your reward will be two fold: the item will arrive in one piece and you will earn the buyer's gratitude and respect.
Don't Be Afraid of Customs Forms Most overseas shipments require customs forms. The standard green and white customs form (PS Form 2976, available online) needlessly scares away a great deal of potential international sellers. The form is pretty straight-forward. The green left side affixes to the package. Here the sender checks either "gift" or "other," gives a brief description of what's being sent ("two books" will do, if that's what your sending,) the value of the item in dollars and a signature and date on the bottom. The right side of the form is kept by the post office and simply requires the name and address of the sender and recipient, as well as a date and signature on the bottom. Several minutes at most is all it takes for the entire process.
Some buyers will ask the seller to check 'gift' instead of 'other,' or to round-down the value of the item to avoid customs duties. The problem is that the form must be signed and deceit can come back to bite you. Again, it's important to know what can be legally sent to any specific destination. Altering the customs form to hide restricted goods promises trouble if the package is opened for inspection. The best policy is to know what cannot be shipped to any specific destination, and to obey the law.
Not only are international eBayers ready, willing and able to buy, they are, in this seller's experience, more reliable than domestic eBayers. In my case, far fewer cross-border buyers renege or have to be chased to collect payments than their stateside counterparts. Just as it takes extra effort to market overseas, it takes energy to buy from a foreign source. For this reason, overseas buyers mean business when they bid. By exercising a bit of effort and care, you can take advantage of this growing international sales trend.
Frank Fortunato is a regular contributor to ECommerce-Guide.com.
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