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Branching out of India, Part I: Selling to the US

Richard Clayton

May 14, 2017

It is no secret that the average American consumer is a savvy online shopper. The growth of the internet, alongside the convenience of efficient postal delivery systems have made it almost too easy to make purchases online.

Pew Research Center reported last December that an astonishing 80% of Americans shop online, with at least 15% making online purchases on a weekly basis. Other estimates put that number even higher, at over 90%. This trend has grown steadily since the mid 2000s, with Americans now opting to spend their money online rather than in stores.

This trend isn’t unique to the US in any way, however the US is definitively the leader in eCommerce growth in the Western World. In 2015, for example, it was estimated that the average online spend per American shopper was around $1,800 annually, nearly $200 more than the runner up, the UK.

Source: Statista

The market is ripe, active and willing in the US, and a spectacular opportunity for sellers all around the world to get involved in. There’s no time like the present; as the numbers are continuing to rise and the year’s biggest shopping season is a mere few months away.

Understanding the American shopper

Americans shop online year-round, for everything from diapers to jewelry. The two leading product categories for online shoppers are apparel and electronics. These two categories have dominated the top of the list for some time, with shoppers choosing to buy them both from online marketplaces or directly from retailers. A whopping 60% of American shoppers have purchased clothing, shoes and accessories online, and 43% have shopped for electronics online (including computers), according to BigCommerce.

Though Americans shop online regularly year-round, it should come as no surprise that the biggest shopping season stretches from September to December. Shoppers scour online stores for deals on small as well as big-ticket items during these months; aside from gifts for relatives and friends, shoppers take advantage of the massive Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales to replace everything from coffee makers to vehicles.

Don’t get caught unprepared for American shopping holidays! Download Payoneer’s FREE 2017 E-Sellers’ Calendar ≫

In 2016, Americans spent an estimated $12.8 billion online in “Cyber Week” – the week between Thanksgiving Day and Cyber Monday. As most US shoppers plan to complete their Christmas shopping during this time, it is one of the busiest weeks of the year for all product categories online.

Get familiar with the big players

The best way to get a piece of the pie is to sign up as a seller on marketplaces that focus on American consumers.

Amazon

Amazon US (Amazon.com), has played a substantial role in shaping the way Americans shop online. Amazon is a household name in the US, accounting for some 43% of US online retail sales in 2016, according to Business Insider. Net sales last year were estimated at $136 billion, with a YoY revenue growth of 27%. Amazon US currently hosts millions of sellers from all over the world, offering American shoppers access to a wide range of prices and a huge selection of items.
Amazon Prime and subscription services have increased buyer activity significantly in the US, and sellers who take part in Amazon’s drop shipping system (FBA) can participate in these programs as well. Amazon pays its sellers every 14 days, with a transfer to their bank account or credit card.
To learn more about getting set up as a seller on Amazon, receiving Amazon seller funds via Payoneer and Amazon drop shipping, look to the following resources:

Wish

Wish has charged into the US eCommerce market as a leading player, with an innovative, personalized mobile shopping app. Items are presented in image blocks, giving shoppers the sensation that they are window-shopping and giving increased visibility to sellers’ products.
Since launching in 2011, Wish has gained over 200 million users in the US and Europe shopping for apparel, accessories and electronics at extremely low prices. Total sales in the last year have been estimated at billions of dollars.

Though the majority of Wish sellers are located in China, sellers from around the globe can take part and gain access to Wish’s millions of users. Since the items on Wish are sold at significantly reduced prices (often 50-80% off the suggested retail price), selling on this platform is best suited to wholesalers and merchants who are able to compete within this price bracket.

Wish has a drop shipping system called FBW-CN (Fulfill by Wish – China), which is available to Wish merchants. Wish has strict fulfillment rules, intended to reduce shipping times and get products to buyers (who are often located on the other side of the world) as fast as possible.

To learn more about getting set up as a seller on Wish and receiving Wish seller funds via Payoneer, look to the following resources:

Tophatter

Tophatter is changing the way eSellers do business, with its revolutionary auction-based mobile platform. With a reported 2.5 million items sold each month, Tophatter’s unique method holds short, rapid auctions for apparel, jewelry, electronics and more at up to 80% off their ticket price. The shopper can watch the auctions in real-time, jump in on a bid and see who’s winning. That’s an advantage this marketplace has over other standard shopping sites – items sell fast and sellers can sell hundreds (if not thousands) of products a month with little effort. Similarly to Wish, these items sell for cheap, so this marketplace is suited for sellers who have the means to compete with these low prices.
The company takes a personal approach to managing the seller community, assigning each seller an account manager who can be contacted directly. Tophatter’s shipping system relies on items being scanned by the local postal carrier, to offer tracking information to buyers and stay on top of the fulfillment process. The carrier India Post (International) is the carrier supported by Tophatter in India. Tophatter pays sellers twice a month for purchases made by buyers, on the 1^st and on the 16^th (or the next business day if on a weekend).

To learn more about selling on Tophatter and how to receive your Tophatter funds through Payoneer, look to the following resources:

What about the rest of the world? To read about selling from India to SE Asia, Latin America and more, read Part II.

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