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Last year, UPS released what it called its “Pulse of the Shopper Study”, a comprehensive overview of the contemporary online shopper – what they value in the ecommerce experience, as well as emerging trends, habits and growth areas. Its findings bore two unequivocal messages important to any Canadian online business: 1) that, increasingly, shoppers are looking to international stores, and 2) that the price and ease of shipping remain the customer’s top considerations upon checkout.

What this means for Canadian businesses is that it’s the right time to start thinking globally, especially thinking about selling across the border to our American neighbours, who represent a wide market that, as noted above, are willing to shop internationally if the price is right. While it makes sense for small ecommerce businesses here in Canada to focus locally at first, spending time cultivating a Canadian base, perhaps now is the time to expand into an American market. Of course, in order to do that, you’re going to need an economy international shipping solution, which is where netParcel comes in.

Striving to provide the cheapest shipping price for every shipping route in North America, netParcel’s international shipping services offer Canadian businesses the rare opportunity to expand their offerings to US buyers without scaring them off with exorbitant shipping rates. We are also partnered with over 40 LTL (Less-than-truckload) carriers, so medium to large retailers and B2Bs also have cause to celebrate.

Cross border shipping was once an expensive prospect, and precluded many Canadian online businesses from being able to expand their offerings southward. Now, with our North American courier broker services, the process couldn’t be more streamlined. It works like this: you enter a “to” and “from” address according to where it’s coming and going in North America, along with your shipment details, and netParcel finds the cheapest rates, breaking things down according to carrier and service level. Not only does this mean you can offer customers the least expensive rate possible on shipping, but you also offer them convenience.

This cuts down greatly on shopping cart abandonment – that all-too-familiar ecommerce phenomenon of a consumer bailing on an order last-minute. This is good, because, according to that Pulse of the Shopper study, another common habit of the contemporary online shopper is what’s called “cross channel shopping”, where a consumer browses online, only to buy a product in-store. Why would they do this? Well, for one, if they go down to the store, they save on the cost of shipping. That’s why offering the cheapest possible shipping rate is so important – not only are you in competition with other online stores for convenience, but you’re in competition with brick and mortar stores for price.

In order to make the most out of your ecommerce business, you need a robust, efficient cross border shipping solution that allows you to sell to US consumers without scaring them off. At netParcel, we offer just such a solution, and you can learn more about us by checking out our website and reading up on our services. We’re all about helping Canadian businesses, one package at a time.