Every year during the CrossBorder Event, organized by Twinkle Magazine and Dexport, the prestigious CrossBorder Top 30 is announced. This list contains the thirty fastest-growing cross-border e-commerce companies in the Netherlands. For the 2023 edition, Dexport conducted an in-depth research, gaining interesting insights into the localization strategies and performance of these companies.
The survey shows that 57% of Dutch e-commerce companies get their largest sales from Germany, followed by Belgium (33%) and France (5%). The appeal of the German market lies in its high demand and relatively easy access from the Netherlands.
A significant 67% of the companies surveyed indicate that their own online store is the main driver of revenue growth. The remaining 33% primarily obtain growth from international marketplaces such as Amazon, eBay and Zalando. Within webshop marketing, 76.2% invest primarily in performance marketing campaigns such as PPC, SEO and social media, with a portion of companies (33%) willing to accept a lower ROAS for international growth. In addition, 61% of companies are betting on brand awareness campaigns, with local influencers proving effective for 24%.
The research shows that a direct copy of the success formula is often insufficient for success abroad. Successful companies employ various localization strategies:
Note: Multiple answers were possible for this question.
In terms of logistics, 52% of companies ship their products from the Netherlands, while 38% use foreign fulfillment centers or Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA). In addition, 71% of the companies have customer service employees who speak the local language, which contributes to a better customer experience.
Despite success, companies face challenges such as finding qualified staff (48%), logistics issues (33%) and lack of local market knowledge (24%). Still, many companies remain optimistic about their future growth. Plans for further expansion include increasing marketing efforts (81%), investing in product innovation (57%) and expanding to multiple countries (52%).
The new CrossBorder Top 30 will be announced at the CrossBorder Event on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. Companies that have achieved more than €100,000 in sales abroad in 2022 and have grown by more than 20% in 2023 can apply for this prestigious list.
The event provides a unique opportunity for companies to share knowledge and experiences and develop new strategies for further international expansion. Marketers and e-commerce specialists can take advantage of an early bird discount on tickets now.
More information and tickets can be found at CrossBorder Event. Do you want to grow in the German market? Then check out our services.
