The United Kingdom (UK) is one of the largest e-commerce markets in the world. While similar to the American market, there are some surprising differences. Our guide is going to show you how you can tap into this market and who your potential customers are.
As mentioned before, the UK is a huge e-commerce market. In fact, it’s the 3rd largest economy in Europe! E-commerce sales have increased over the last 5 years, with 2015 having a total of 496.2 billion to 2019 having 693 billion in sales.
The majority of purchases are made within the UK, with a small percentage coming outside of the UK. Shoppers like the idea of supporting local businesses while avoiding large international shipping costs. If you already have a store dedicated to one country, you can create another specifically for the UK to avoid people assuming you’ll have large international fees.
A 2019 survey showed that 61% of shoppers in the UK wouldn’t finish a purchase because the shipping costs were too high. 3 out of 4 UK shoppers say they will add more to their cart to get to the free shipping threshold. Other reasons for cart abandonment include slow delivery time, unpleasant experience with the store, and even loyalty to their favorite postal carriers.
While you may be eager to dive into this new market, it’s important to have a solid foundation of research before you do. You need to learn about your customers, what’s popular, and how people like to shop.
No one market is going to be the same after all.
UK customers are very precise with their needs and wants and that reflects in their purchasing. There are 3 things your store has to have to secure UK customers: good customer service, personalization, and a mobile-friendly site.
Customer service may become the biggest driving factor in deciding where to buy from. You need to make sure you can fulfill their needs quickly and securely to get their business. Many surveys have shown that if UK shoppers don’t give second chances to stores that offer a less than great experience.
Luckily for you, GearLaunch offers wonderful multi-channel customer service so this is one less thing you have to worry about. But, make sure you are aware of how your customers feel at all times.
Personalization is also key to their shopping experience. You can do things like show recently viewed items and product recommendations for returning customers while offering a special discount code for new ones.
The final thing is that you need to make sure your store is mobile-friendly. In 2020, consumers spent 82 billion hours on shopping apps. Many find using a smartphone to make purchases more comfortable due to dedicated apps and “Buy Now” buttons throughout social media platforms.
Once again, GearLaunch already has you covered. All of our stores are built to be mobile-friendly!
Some of the most popular products to buy online are clothing, kitchen accessories, and electronics. This means products like apparel, phone cases, and drinkware are excellent choices to use in your new store.
Popular Niches Include:
Important Things to Note When Setting Up a Store for the UK
As mentioned before, the UK’s currency is the pound sterling. People tend to like using their debit/credit card or a digital wallet, like PayPal, the most. PayPal was the most used form of payment in 2019, 49% of shoppers used it. Other popular forms are:
Also mentioned before, the languages in the UK are English (98%), Scottish Gaelic, Irish Gaelic, Welch, and Cornish. An important thing to note is that UK English is different from American English. This includes spelling like colour (UK) versus color (US) to different words for the same thing.
Examples
Make sure to research spelling and terms when using text in your designs. Not only would it be spelled wrong, but it will be obvious that you didn’t pay attention to your audience.
Social media ads will be your best friend while establishing yourself in the UK market. Because the population spends a lot of time on their phone, that means they spend a good amount of time on social media. Typically people in the UK have 7 different social media accounts.
Instagram is a great play to advertise your products. Around 83% of people use this platform to discover new products. 53% of people will follow brands if they like the content.
The average cost per click (CPC) for Facebook is $1.04 or 0.79 pounds. Since Instagram is owned by Facebook, it’s safe to say its CPC is similar.
The best time to post are:
Create some interesting product descriptions and CTAs to grab your audience’s attention. Make sure that the spelling and terminology are done correctly.
Unisex Lightweight Hoodie Sample Product Description:
Stay cozy no matter what the weather with this lightweight unisex hoodie. It features a crossover V at the neckline and a front pocket. It comes in sizes ranging from US small to US 2XL.
CTAs for Major Holidays
St. Patrick’s Day
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in style with our special holiday collection!
Get some lucky discounts off {products}!
Orangemen’s Day
Happy Orangemen’s Day! Use the discount code “Orange” to get {percentage} off our products!
Boxing Day
Boxing Day just got better! Shop {product} and get {discount} today.
Don’t miss out! Get {discount} off {product} for a limited time only.
Stay current with UK news and trends with trusted sites like The Guardian, The Independent, and Metro.
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