The PYMNTS.com X-Border Payments Optimization IndexTM, powered by Digital River, is a product of in-depth research on more than 180 merchants based in 10 countries which quantifies the degree to which eCommerce companies are prepared to deliver a seamless experience to consumers in a country outside of their own borders.
Overview
In this edition, we found 9 different factors which the best sites deliver on to keep their customers happy – and returning – to drive cross-border sales.
Almost 60 attributes were evaluated for each and every site, covering details related to shopping, payment, relationship,and effort required to navigate the site.
The average site score was 56, indicating most merchants are not yet ready for cross-border business.
Why The Winners Won
Some of the key attributes of high scoring merchant websites included:
- Breadth of language and currency options
- Free shipping
- Country-specific address fields
- Rewards
Key Numbers
- The U.S. topped the list with an average score of 64, with China in second at 62.
- Cross-border sales are expected to be 15 percent of global eCommerce by 2018.
- 90 percent of all travel sites are mobile optimized.
