In the past decade, UK e-commerce has expanded rapidly and more and more retailers started to invest in their online stores. Nowadays, online sales make it more convenient for international businesses and attract a great number of foreign customers to British companies, especially clients from China.
Chinese Market is Huge with Greater Potential
In 2019, global online retail sales reached nearly $3.56 trillion and Chinese e-commerce sales account for more than half of it, with more than 30% increasing. China’s 855 million digital consumers imply a huge current client base and great future potential. There is also an increasing demand for global online shopping from Chinese customers and it shows no sign of stopping. Currently, online shopping has become mainstream and more and more people are beginning to recognise and get used to it. Online shopping can not only save time and cost for customers but also enrich the selectivity of products. During the purchasing process, the online platform as a third party guarantees payment security and protects customer’s rights. Furthermore, it’s simple and easy for clients to get a change or refund if they are dissatisfied with the product.
Another reason that e-commerce is extremely appealing to the Chinese market is that it can reach the relatively inaccessible masses of global brands in China. 75% of the Chinese middle class live in ‘smaller cities’ that are almost unknown to foreigners and most of them don’t have offline stores for international brands. Therefore, online shopping offers them a convenient way to buy foreign products and it’s the easiest and most effective way for global brands to reach 200 cities with over one million people in China.
Online Sales Platform is Booming in China
Lots of online sales platforms are thriving in China, such as WeChat Mini-Program, Alipay Mini-Program, Tmall International, JD.com, etc. With the rise in popularity of social media, mini-programs are becoming increasingly important for e-commerce due to their smooth user experience and rich functions.
Using a mini-program, people only need to select and purchase the products inside the mini-program and there is no need to switch to other platforms. You can finish the whole purchasing process in the mini-program including the payment. Considering the convenience and efficiency of mini-program, an increasing amount of brands, retailers and e-commerce platforms are using WeChat and Alipay mini-program stores for online sales. These merchants can also design their user interfaces and monitor customer data through mini-programs. In general, mini-programs are gradually growing into significant channels to attract customers.
Integrating Chinese Payment Solutions with the Help of Globepay
As the official partner of WeChat Pay and Alipay in the UK, Globepay specialises in providing cross-border e-commerce payment solutions.
If you would like to develop your own mini-program to integrate Chinese payments and attract more Chinese customers, we are here to provide you with professional suggestions.
