LOGISTICS
Alternate delivery locations are most
popular in Asia compared to other regions
with 71% of consumers interested in
shipping packages to these locations with
extended hours for reduced fees.
a more diverse set of retailers — ranging
from major marketplaces to boutique
shops, from domestic to foreign stores.
Importantly, what this tells us is that
there is a viable opportunity and
customer base for small businesses in
Asia to expand internationally and it is
only set to grow larger,” said Van den
Kerkhof.
The research found that 55% of
online shoppers in Asia are embracing
international retailers. Among those,
49% of buyers ventured to overseas
retailers because the brand or product
was not available domestically or the
quality (39%) or price (38%) was better
internationally.
Noteworthy for Asian businesses
is that there is a strong preference
for buying from retailers within
Asia as 77% of those who made an
international purchase made one from
a retailer within the region, while 31%
have ordered from retailers in the US.
Hong Kong had the highest percentage
of online shoppers making international
purchases at 82%, followed by China at
64%. Meanwhile, only 21% of Japanese
shoppers did so, indicating their strong
preference for domestic goods.
EMERGERS: Newer areas of retail that
may play a bigger role in the future.
Alternate delivery locations are
most popular in Asia, c ompared to
other regions with 71% of consumers,
particularly millennials and urban
shoppers, interested in shipping packages
to these locations with extended hours
for reduced fees. Shoppers’ preference
for alternate delivery locations has grown
considerably from 46% in 2015 to 59%
of orders this year.
Asian shoppers also love their
marketplaces with 98% having
purchased from one and more than a
third saying they will use them even
more in the next year. Better prices
(64%) and free or discounted shipping
(42%) are the top reasons for buying
from a marketplace instead of direct
from a retailer.
“The UPS Pulse of the Online
Shopper research shows time and again
that as online shoppers gain the benefit
of greater choice, they are increasingly
dictating the terms of their buying
experience — and it is vital that retailers
know how to cater to and adapt to their
changing needs,” Van den Kerkhof
added. ra
Easyship details the current and
future trends in shipping
CROSS-BORDER e-commerce
continues to be favourable, according to
shipping platform for global e-commerce
Easyship. Its State of Shipping report
studied last year’s data on its platform
and noticed that merchants’ attitudes
towards cross-border e-commerce have
become more positive, with 50% of
respondents agreeing and 31% strongly
agreeing that cross-border e-commerce is
profitable.
In fact, over half of the shipments
it processed last year (54%) were
international shipments shipped to a
foreign destination. In less than five
years, Easyship foresees that 20% of
e-commerce business will be cross-border
and one out of five e-commerce dollars
will be generated from cross-border sales
in 2020.
Easyship also noted a huge increase
in dutiable shipments, as shoppers
around the world are willing to buy
valuable items above the tax threshold
and willingly participate in cross-border
trading. The number of Delivered Duty
Paid (DDP) shipments processed last
year increased threefold from 2016, and
there are six times more Delivered Duty
Unpaid (DDU) shipments processed last
year compared to the year before.
Easyship predicts DDP shipments
will be more prevalent and more sellers
will choose to send their shipments with
DDP to lessen the chances of issues at
customs and to offer a better customer
experience.
It also seems like e-commerce sellers
understand the importance of tracking
to maintain customer trust as 95% of
them used couriers that offer tracking.
Easyship suggested retailers must be able
to provide regular tracking updates to
prove they are trustworthy.
Sellers were also not afraid to work
with multiple couriers. In fact, small
sellers processing under 1,000 shipments
used three couriers on average, while
bigger businesses that processed over
1,000 shipments per month used
between 11 and 15 couriers.
Easyship’s State of Shipping report
opined that exploring international
markets is the way to go in future: “As
cross-border e-commerce continues to
see strong growth and profits, we believe
The number
of Delivered
Duty Paid
(DDP) shipments
processed last year
increased threefold
from 2016.
e-commerce sellers who have not
started selling internationally need to
do so in order to remain competitive.
While domestic e-commerce remains
strong in developed markets, sellers
have to offer free shipping to attract
customers, losing margin. By targeting
markets overseas, they can attract
customers who are willing to spend
more and pay for shipping, allowing
them to maintain better margins.”
Technology company Easyship
offers shipping solutions to any
e-commerce seller looking to expand
their business worldwide. ra
Retail Asia May 2018
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