Our 5-Step Plan for Going International

Hey there, and welcome back for another bite to chew on

This week we're talking about a topic that very few DTC brands talk about

… and you know how we feel about less-talked-about topics ;)

So today, we'll be talking about internationalization.

A fancy word for: How to start selling to countries outside the US

We're currently testing out a handful of new countries with Obvi.

And we want to share our strategy and learnings (thus far) with you.

Let's dive into it.

Step 1: Getting international shipping in order

When starting to sell internationally, there are a few things you should consider when choosing your shipping company.

1) Can they ship to the countries you want to sell to? Do they have other clients where they ship to that country (Pretty self-explanatory)

2) How fast is their shipping time?

3) What is the cost?

Pretty straightforward.

As with any other external partner:

Remember to speak with old and current clients of theirs to hear their experiences.

If you want a shipping partner who we’ve already vetted and who has fair rates, then we can recommend talking to OpenBorder.

That’s who we are using for all international shipments

Step 2: Localizing the experience to each country

Similar to how each country has its own taste in food, they also have their own taste in things such as

- website design

- ad design

- marketing aggressiveness

- etc.

… and we almost forgot: every country doesn't speak English as their first language.

Which means there's a few things you have to do:

1) Get a local copywriter to translate your page

2) Adapt your designs to match the taste of the country.

For example, Scandinavian countries are very minimalistic

So we'd have to change a few things in our web design.

For markets that are similar to the US, like Canada and UK - we might not have to

Besides the design, you also need to cater the structure of your website and ads to the specific market you're targeting.

For example, Germans are more conservative than Americans.

So we'd need to include even more trust signals and social proof when selling in Germany.

3) Last but not least: Your ads.

You can't speak and write to everyone the same way.

In some markets, your copy can be more aggressive (think, big words and claims), whereas, in others, that'll turn people off.

For everything copy-related, it's a good idea to consult or work with someone who's native in that given language.

Step 3: Adapt your product

Again, the taste is different from country to country.

In India, their definition of "spicy" is different from the definition in the US.

In Europe, their definition of "sweet" is different from the definition in the US.

Anyway, you have to figure out if the taste of your product is generally liked or disliked in the country you're trying to sell to.

To do this:

- Run a few taste tests and surveys

- Figure out if it's worth the hassle to adapt your product to their taste buds

** This example is for consumables - but it also applies to things such as size, shape, etc.

Step 4: Legal

Nobody wants to read about legal and tax-related stuff around selling to foreign markets.

Neither do we really want to write about it, lol

Anyway, just know that some countries may have certain restrictions with certain products - and you need to be aware of it.

Don't dismiss it. Consult with someone who can help you

Step 5: Payment provider localization + localized BNPL options

Last but not least,

Payment providers and BNPL options.

Believe it or not, this is NOT the same everywhere either (surpriseeee)

Some countries use Klarna a lot, whereas other countries don't really use it much.

Some countries have their own version of PayPal, which 90% of people pay with - and if you don't have it, you're screwed

Again, just a FYI.

Research this before you start selling internationally.

… and if you don't

Then don't be surprised by your low conversion rate ;)

Tool of the week

You know how we said we don't want to talk or think about anything that rhymes with tax or legal.

Wanna know the reason why?

Because it's super boring (no disrespect to people working in those fields)

… And it's also very complicated.

Hence why these people get paid big bucks

Anyway, we found this tool called Numeral a few weeks ago. It's a white-glove service that handles everything related to sales tax filing for you.

If you've been in the eCommerce game long enough, you know how complicated sales tax filling is - and therefore, it's quite nice to NOT have to worry about that.

Before, we used Avalara, which is also supposed to be an automated tool. But they screwed something up, and we had to pay a big fine.

So it's also quite nice to know that it's an actual accountant that fills in your taxes and not just an algorithm.

Meaning - you get the benefits of both human service + SaaS

Thanks for reading along

If you read this far, then just know that we appreciate you.

And we look forward to seeing you again on Su