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International e-Commerce Solution
Currency conversion can be a somewhat confusing topic when it comes to international
e-Commerce solutions.
You may be one of the many online merchants who sell internationally but believe all transactions are created equal as long as you use the mighty dollar and only the mighty dollar. This sounds good, but it isn’t always true. There can be a lot of hidden fees for both you and your customers if you are not doing business in their native currency. If you don’t accept local currency you may also be missing out on a great international
e-Commerce solution that provides an additional marketing opportunity for your online business.
To understand the benefits of doing business in multiple currencies, let’s explore exactly how the purchasing process works for your international customers. First, they find your product on the web and decide to make a purchase. They then use their credit card to buy the product in dollars. As soon as they put in their credit card number and hit enter, they are hit with surcharges and conversion fees from their credit card company or bank. When they get their credit card bill, they will see exactly how much extra it costs them to do business with you in your native currency rather than theirs.
You may be thinking at this moment, “This is not really my problem. There is always a fee for money conversion so what’s the issue?”
Let’s expand our scenario a little to let you know what this international
e-Commerce solution offers your business:
A consumer in another country makes regular book purchases online. One month he buys from your bookstore, which deals only in dollars, and another bookstore that deals with him in his native currency. All things seem equal so far. But when this customer gets his credit card bill at the end of the month, your sales will be accompanied by extra charges, and the sales from the other store will come across as local sales with no additional fees. All other things being equal, who do you think this customer will buy from next time?
Another part of this international e-Commerce solution of using native currency is that there is a certain comfort level a person can get from using the currency they have used all of their lives as opposed to having to deal with conversion rates. If you offer only dollar transactions you may miss out on the chance to provide your international customers with this added comfort of doing business with you.
The best part about this international e-Commerce solution is that there are credit card processing services available that will help you provide your customers the option to use their own currency. They update the exchange rates daily, and incorporate any fees in when making the conversions. What this results in is a customer who pays the exact amount shown on the screen with no extra costs added in later. And you will receive your payments in dollars, so the conversion is transparent to you. Most of these credit card processing services add the currency conversion into the rates you are already paying, so there is no added cost on your end.
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