International growth is a vital horizon for serious ecommerce merchants. Selling to shoppers cross border is an obvious way to grow sales and margins but the mixed fortunes of sterling since the Brexit vote in June 2016 also make it a challenge. How have your cross-border sales been faring? Are currency fluctuations hampering your plans to look overseas and sell abroad?
It is widely known that sterling has experienced significant volatility and weakness in the past 18 months or so. But what are the various pressures on sterling of late, aside from Brexit uncertainty? The Currencies Direct blog is a vital source of expertise. And as is reported there:
The UK economy iced up in March, suffering the weakest increase in business activity since the Brexit vote amid widespread disruptions caused by some of the heaviest snowfall in years. As a result, first quarter economic growth will likely have been adversely affected. The PMI surveys collectively signal a quarterly GDP growth rate of just under 0.3%, down from 0.4% in the fourth quarter, albeit with the rate of growth sliding to just 0.15% in March alone.
– Markit economist Chris Williamson
It’s no mean feat to keep abreast of currency of fluctuations: it could be USD, euros, yen or sterling. But you can access expertise. That’s one reason why Tamebay produced the white paper called Harnessing volatility: maximising profitability on international ecommerce sales.
The download looks specifically at how ecommerce merchants can make the best of these troubled times. There is very little point in sitting on your hands and avoiding the possibilities and awaiting certainty that will likely never present itself. Ambitious businesses must be looking for international growth, even within the EU ahead of final Brexit in December 2020.
And they mustn’t neglect the horizons beyond the EU either: post-Brexit markets like the US and China will continue to offer sales growth way beyond the exit date. Now is the time to embrace global trade. Check out our download about the possibilities.
