If you have less money, you can do Amazon's non-supply model.
Amazon has no source of goods, that is, it collects domestic products and then moves to Amazon platform to sell them at a higher price. Because China is a big manufacturing country, many products are purchased at lower prices in China and then sold to consumers in developed countries and regions at higher prices. The general price increases from 5- 10 times. If it is an explosive product, the price can even be increased to 10-20 times, and its profit margin is very large. In addition, to be an Amazon online store without goods, the seller doesn't really need goods, and its goods are all on the Internet, because the seller doesn't need to stock up, rent or buy warehouses, which greatly reduces the cost of opening a store and saves manpower.
First, distinguish foreign trade from cross-border e-commerce.
① Now most foreign trade is communicated through the Internet, which can be understood as foreign trade e-commerce; However, the whole foreign trade transaction process has not changed much from traditional foreign trade, including inquiry, quotation, ordering, production, transportation, chartering and booking, customs declaration and commodity inspection, and verification of foreign exchange settlement. Foreign trade e-commerce transactions are all offline.
(2) cross-border electronic commerce refers to the commercial activities in which different customs transaction subjects reach a transaction, make payment and settlement through e-commerce platform, and deliver goods through cross-border logistics to complete the transaction. Its sales model can be compared to "international Taobao", but the difference is that cross-border e-commerce is done directly online with the help of foreign platforms (such as Amazon and ebay, and so is our Tobox) or domestic sales platforms to foreign countries (Alibaba and AliExpress). 2B and 2C also differ in the unit price of customers. 2C orders are mostly small batches or even single pieces, while 2B customers' unit price is generally higher.
2. What cross-border e-commerce platforms are there? What can an individual do?
Cross-border e-commerce platforms can be divided into B2B, B2C, C2C, M2C and other different types, but they can be summarized into 2B and 2C.
12B platform: The mainstream platforms include Alibaba International Station, Amazon Business, Dunhuang Network, TradeKey, China Manufacturing Network, EC2 1, global sources, etc. The buyers and sellers of these platforms are basically enterprises, and their main fields are also different. Please choose according to your own needs.
22C platform: 2C platform has the same characteristics that buyers are basically individuals, and orders are mostly small batches or even single pieces; There are many types of sellers, including large and medium-sized enterprises or brands, small and micro enterprises and individuals, so if you want to do it yourself, these are more suitable. I have been making several mainstream platforms about this. Please continue reading.
Third, market choice.
Look at the market before choosing a product. Each market has its own characteristics, and the popular product categories are also different. What we are doing now is the European, American and Southeast Asian markets. Of course, there are also many powerful sellers who will deploy multiple markets, channels and platforms at the same time.
Fourth, choose products to open a shop.
It is recommended to open a shop with a company, just like a trademark. If it is an individual partnership, you can also register a company. After all, the cost is not high. A few years later, perhaps the cross-border e-commerce platform will require the seller to be a company! Registration will be more troublesome then.
Opening a store: the ingenious combination of third-party platform and self-built shopping mall
For sellers who have just set foot in cross-border e-commerce, it is recommended to choose a third-party platform with a certain volume first. These platforms have mature rules, which are based on the platform's long-term experience accumulation. First, they can best protect the interests of buyers, and then maintain fair competition to the greatest extent.
In addition, third-party platforms have high traffic, and natural traffic does not cost money. Of course, if you want to promote drainage and increase traffic, you must pay. But the disadvantage of third-party platforms is that the more you play, the greater your strategic hidden trouble. It's hard to say that one day, if you make a casual mistake, the platform will close your store, just like the official account of WeChat is blocked by WeChat.
If conditions permit, you can also build your own shopping mall, then these hidden dangers will not exist. But then again, the self-built mall is not for traffic, but for brand endorsement. Its meaning can never be simply understood as sales, because online means being in a state of promotion and information dissemination, so the first function is information dissemination and the second function is trading.
How to open stores on various platforms and how to build their own shopping malls here will not be described in detail. At a shallow level, it is a question of platform rules. The deeper level is the problem of operational strategy. It's hard to say it in one or two sentences, so this needs to be explored by yourself.
Choosing a product, choosing a product is always the first step of marketing. Of course, marketing serves the final sales, so choosing a product is the top priority of cross-border e-commerce!
If you choose a product, you should first pay more attention to the hot-selling products on the platform and be familiar with the product selection rules on the platform. Of course, it is best to develop products according to local market demand and consumer preferences, combined with their own advantages. Finally, having the thinking of product development, a clear understanding of the market and the method of product selection are the basic requirements for every cross-border e-commerce practitioner.
Verb (abbreviation of verb) promotion: The foundation is to have good products.
There are five main ways to promote products:
Social media marketing
Paid traffic marketing
Industry community marketing
Opinion leader marketing
Coupon and transaction temptation marketing
6. logistics: 4. Choose the right logistics company.
Choose the logistics company that suits you at four points.
First look at the history of the company.
Secondly, look at whether the company's service channels are comprehensive. First, different goods need to choose different logistics methods, for example, there is a limit of two kilograms for small bags. Second, there are a wide range of channels for logistics companies, so sellers don't need to look for other logistics companies to make judgments. Third, the more deliveries in logistics companies, the more services you can enjoy.
Besides, look at the price. The logistics cost will erode the seller's profit, so the price is one of the most concerned factors for the seller. However, blindly lowering the price and only pursuing economic benefits will inevitably damage the customer experience.
Finally, look at the overall strength of the company. For example, whether the dot distribution is wide enough and whether there is a seamless upstream and downstream system.
Seven, collection: the last level.
The safety of funds is the first priority. If the security of funds is not guaranteed, the channel will not be easy to use. The more money you receive, the greater the risk. Just like PP, it is very convenient to use, but there is capital settlement risk, and the safety of funds is not guaranteed.
Secondly, the stability of the channel, channel problems every three days, will greatly affect the collection, especially during peak hours, not to mention the delay of one hour a day will lose a lot of orders.
Third, the success rate of the channel, because the success rate is directly related to the actual conversion rate of orders, the higher the success rate, the higher the actual conversion rate. Others, such as account opening fee and annual fee, are secondary. On the contrary, the more attractive those conditions are, the greater the risk. "
Don't limit yourself to one collection channel. For sellers, the security of capital turnover is of course important, and the online shopping experience of customers is even more important. Therefore, this issue should not be too entangled. At present, cross-border RMB collection is the choice of many foreign trade e-commerce. Because the payment page is fast, it also conforms to the shopping habits of foreign consumers. Cross-border e-commerce should always pay attention to these, and users can enhance their value experience, which is conducive to stabilizing foreign trade market share.
Note: 1. No matter what platform or independent station you make, you must have your own layout and planning, and set yourself goals, short-term goals and long-term goals, otherwise you will become more and more tired and may give up in the end.
You should do a good job in market research. Market research can tell you a lot of basic data and information about this market, such as how big the market is and how much purchasing power it is. How many competitors are there in this market? What's the best price in this market?
3, pay attention to niche products and vertical categories, you will do one more step than others, and you are more likely to win at the starting line!
4, pay attention to the buyer experience is the most important! Grasping the seller of the user can become a big seller.
You come up with questions, you do answers.