Competing Internationally

E-commerce is buying and selling goods or services over the internet. A business can sell through its own website or through an online marketplace. For example, Amazon enables businesses to sell online and reach international markets, while ASOS uses online selling to serve customers across many countries.

An online shop allows overseas customers to browse and order without visiting a physical store. This gives a business access to a much larger potential customer base than a shop serving only its surrounding area. If this wider reach attracts additional customers, sales and revenue can increase.

Online selling can also reduce the need to open shops in each overseas market. Avoiding these premises can reduce overhead costs and make international expansion more affordable. However, selling physical goods online does not remove the need to store, pack and deliver them.

The internet has uses beyond completing sales. Social media can introduce a brand to overseas audiences, while email and other digital communications can answer enquiries and maintain customer relationships. Promotion brings customers to the online shop; e-commerce then gives them a way to buy.

These benefits involve trade-offs. Websites and payment systems require investment and maintenance, staff may need training, and digital security must be managed. For physical goods, delivery and returns also affect both costs and customer satisfaction. A business may reach more people but fail to gain a competitive advantage if its service is unreliable or its total costs are too high.

Why the marketing mix may need to change

The marketing mix is the combination of four decisions: product, price, place and promotion. These decisions work together to meet customer needs and encourage purchases.

A successful mix in the home market may not work overseas. Customer tastes, incomes, languages, cultural expectations and available shopping channels can differ. Businesses therefore need to understand the target market rather than simply copy their existing approach.

Product: offering something customers want

Product decisions concern what the business sells, including its features, range and packaging. Adapting a product can make it more relevant to local customers and increase the likelihood of a purchase.

Food businesses provide a clear example. Religious beliefs influence dietary choices among customers in India. McDonald’s does not offer beef or pork there, adapting its menu rather than assuming its Western range will suit the market. The important connection is between customer requirements, the product offered and potential demand—not an assumption that every customer in a country has identical preferences.

Adaptation can increase sales, but developing different products or packaging raises costs. A business must judge whether the extra demand is likely to justify those costs.

Price: balancing affordability and costs

A price that customers accept in one country may be unsuitable in another. Businesses need to consider local customer incomes as well as the costs and taxes associated with serving that market.

Lowering a price may make a product affordable to more customers, but it can reduce the profit earned on each sale. Conversely, charging more to cover additional costs may make the product less attractive. International pricing must balance customer willingness to pay with the business’s need to cover costs and earn profit.

Place: making the product accessible

Place means how and where customers can buy the product—not simply where the business is based. A business needs a suitable distribution channel for each market.

Direct online selling may be convenient where customers have internet access and are comfortable ordering online. In another market, selling through local retailers may offer better access to customers. For physical products, a website alone is not enough: the distribution arrangements must get orders to customers reliably.

Promotion: communicating appropriately

Promotion must communicate a clear, appealing message in the target market. Businesses may need to change the language, images or promotional channels they use.

Accurate translation involves preserving the intended meaning, not just replacing individual words. Cultural associations also matter: white can suggest purity in some Western settings but is associated with mourning in some Asian cultures. Businesses should research their particular audience rather than assume a symbol has one universal meaning.

The choice of channel matters too. Social media may reach a target audience effectively in one market, while other promotional methods may be more suitable elsewhere.

Choosing changes that work together

Imagine a business selling clothes online in a new overseas market. Advertising in the local language could attract visitors, but sales may remain low if the prices are unaffordable or delivery is inconvenient. Improving promotion alone would not solve those problems.

The strongest approach combines suitable online technology with a coordinated marketing mix. Changes do not need to be made for their own sake: a business can retain elements that already meet customer needs and adapt those that do not. Success depends on whether the resulting gains in demand and competitiveness outweigh the additional costs.

Overall judgement

Online access does not guarantee demand. A coordinated mix can improve competitiveness, but research and adaptation add costs. Retain what works; change what local customer needs require.