How to accept international payments

If you want to expand your business and increase your customer base, you may be tempted to reach out to an international audience. Selling overseas allows you to reach an even larger number of potential customers, and when done correctly, it can be a real boon to your business.

However, selling internationally is not without complications and challenges. In addition to shipping and communication logistics, you must figure out how to accept international payments through an online payment gateway. Before expanding your business to an international market, you'll need to ensure that you can address all of the critical details, from understanding exchange rates to providing secure payment options.

What to consider before selling overseas

Expansion of your business and selling products or services overseas may appear daunting at first, but it is a hurdle that many companies have successfully overcome.

Still, before you take on this task, make sure you understand everything involved and decide if it's the best move for your company. You'll be investing significant time and some financial resources in this decision, so think about the advantages it will provide your company.

The following are some of the most important factors to consider when making your decision and planning.

Determine your market and the demand

You may know who your target customers are in the United States, but when you expand your business internationally, your target market may shift. Cultures, values, and purchasing habits differ from country to country, necessitating some market research on your part.

When you expand your business overseas, your competition will shift as well. When determining your target market, consider whether there is a demand for your products or services. Look for your competitors if there is a demand.

If you sell physical goods, you will most likely be competing with local vendors. You'll need to have a product that is valuable enough for buyers to choose you over similar products available from local sellers. That can be difficult.

Consider your product's unique selling proposition as well. This may differ for an international audience, and it may be necessary to be stronger. If you're marketing to a different audience with different values and pain points, your marketing strategy may need to change to remain effective.

Learn about shipping and tax requirements

Shipping options differ depending on the country to which you are shipping. Investigate the available shipping options, rates, and restrictions. Don't forget to account for exchange rates as you conduct this research; they'll help you get an accurate idea of what your actual shipping costs would be.

Customers dislike paying high shipping costs, so consider incorporating some of those costs into your product prices if possible. Duties and taxes vary by country, so it's critical to understand these requirements and factor them into your costs.

Customers who order products and are then surprised by additional taxes they must pay in order to receive them may not buy from you again. Indeed, underestimating duties and taxes can eat into profits and make it impractical to sell your products at specific prices.

Customs is another issue to consider when shipping products internationally. Familiarize yourself with customs forms and ensure that they are accurate and attached to any international package you ship.

To comprehend these elements, you must first research the requirements of any country into which you intend to expand.

Make a spreadsheet of these requirements, including tax rates and any other extra fees you'll need to account for. Being able to compare all of this information at a glance can help you decide which countries to prioritize first — and which, if any, to avoid for the time being.

Consider your return policy

Accepting international returns is far more difficult than dealing with domestic returns. Consider your return policy carefully, and keep in mind that it must comply with local laws.

Outline key information, such as restocking fees and what condition items must be in for you to accept them, as you develop your return policy. You might want to emphasize that international shipping takes longer than domestic shipping, which means customers will have to wait longer for their returns to be processed.

Invest in translation

If you plan to sell in countries where the majority of the population speaks a language other than English, you should consider making your website available in multiple languages. While automated translation programs are a good place to start, they rarely read naturally and can confuse some key information, making it difficult for buyers to buy confidently from your store.

It is frequently worthwhile to pay for a professional translation. Your site's content and product descriptions will read better and be more accurate, which can help you build trust with potential customers. When you invest in a high-quality site translation, you may see an increase in sales and customer satisfaction.

Make your website compliant

You may also need to ensure that your website complies with certain regulations. The United Kingdom, for example, has stringent General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requirements to protect people's personal data, such as names, usernames, IP addresses, and cookie identifiers.

Businesses that fail to meet the GDPR requirements may face fines. Even if your company is based in the United States, if you want to reach customers in the United Kingdom, your website must be GDPR compliant.

Prepare your business analytics

When you make a significant change to your business, such as expanding internationally, you must be prepared to measure the effects of that change. If you haven't already, now is the time to put in place quality website analytics.

Establish your website analytics well in advance of entering a new market so that you have baseline numbers that reflect your current traffic and sales. This information can then be compared to the new data from your expansion.

Make sure your analytics include not only your sales and return rates but also where your site traffic is coming from and how effective your social media marketing is. The more information you have about who is visiting your site and where they are coming from, the better you will be able to track the impact of your expansion.

If you haven't done anything with your site analytics yet, consider hiring a professional to help you better gather and understand them, and then put what you've learned into action.

This is especially useful as you begin to market to new audiences. You might discover that your target audience in other countries isn't using the same social media platforms as your domestic audience. Prepare to experiment with your marketing.

Consider fulfillment centers

Depending on your company and products, partnering with a fulfillment center may make more financial sense than shipping products overseas on a regular basis.

Fulfillment centers have the advantage of being close to your international audience, allowing them to ship quickly and efficiently. This is especially useful for customers who want or require their products quickly, and it may make your company the preferred brand over competitors with longer shipping times.

If you've been handling all of the shipping yourself, using a fulfillment center relieves you of some of the burden. However, the responsiveness and performance of the fulfillment center will have a direct impact on your business, so do your research and look for a fulfillment center that you can rely on.

It's a good idea to read a lot of reviews and ask a lot of questions so you know exactly what to expect when you work with the center. And, as always, carefully read any contracts.

Decide how to accept international payments

Accepting payments from a foreign country necessitates additional steps. While some payment gateways accept international payments, it is critical to select the payment method that works best for you. Conversion fees, processing fees, and even processing times are all important considerations when determining how to accept international payments through the best online payment gateway.

Choosing the right payment option for your business

When weighing different payment options, think about who will be paying you. Some of these options, such as wire transfers, are better suited to clients who make large payments on a regular basis. When working with e-commerce buyers, convenience and a platform that can be integrated into your existing website are critical.

It's also important to think about all of the fees you might incur, such as transfer fees, conversion fees, processing fees, and so on. These fees can quickly add up, and you'll need to factor them in alongside your product costs and shipping costs.

Customer service and overall platform speed are also important factors to consider.

Pay close attention to how quickly a service processes payments and deposits funds into your account. You don't want to be in a situation where you have to wait weeks to withdraw your money.

Quality customer service is also essential, especially when you first start out.

Making the decision to take your business international

Choosing to target an international audience is an exciting step for any business, and it could be the next stage in your company's growth. Keep in mind, however, that expanding your business internationally is not without risks and challenges. You'll need to consider these factors when deciding whether this is the best move for your company.

If you decide to accept international payments, make sure you thoroughly research all of the payment options you're considering.

When you put in the time and effort to thoroughly research your market, the payment method you'll use, and any other challenges you'll face, you increase the likelihood that your international expansion will be a success. It could be the best decision you ever make for your company's growth.