Business is going global and e-commerce is booming. It is crucial that your e-commerce business is able to keep up with international demand. Yet, making sure your e-commerce website appeals to the international audience is the first step. This is done through e-commerce website localisation, which means localising your website in order to make it more relevant to the local audiences.
Here are a few ways to go about it.
User Interface
It is easy to fall victim to the false idea that your user interface does not impact user behaviour as long as it is designed well. The truth is that the design of your user interface can influence how it is received among certain groups. For instance, factors such as character choice, word length and shopping icons tend to vary according to culture. Special attention should be paid to these details and necessary changes should be made.
Exchange Rates/Currency
Make sure you update prices to reflect current exchange rates and local pricing trends. There are also conversion norms such as size and weight that should be followed. For pricing elements such as VAT, make sure the necessary rules are built-in for whenever applicable. Conduct research and understand local preference is important to create a sense of familiarity.
Payment Processing
It is an established fact that online shoppers prefer shopping in their home currency. So, to ensure your e-commerce website localisation is ready, make sure your shopping cart is capable of carrying out these conversions in real time. Also, pay attention to the payment processing solutions used in each market. There can be location-based preferences with regard to this as well.
Legalities
One of the harsh realities of doing business across the globe is to comply with regulatory policies and legal requirements. As rules and laws vary from country to country, understanding and complying to them is indispensable. This will prevent you from having to deal with regulatory or compliance issues in the future. For instance, using copyrighted material for your local website can trigger legal problems. Elite Asia assigns experienced translators who are specifically trained in the field to translate your website in a grammatically and technically appropriate manner.
Conclusion
As business becomes more global, there is no doubt that your e-commerce website will soon have to adapt. Customers want businesses to truly cater to them in every way possible and this is where e-commerce website localisation steps in. So it is time to adapt and catch up with the trend before it is too late.
Let take a look together at some of the effects that globalisation has had on the e-commerce industry over the last few years.
