Language drives global e-commerce: Seize localization opportunities and win cross-border markets

As globalization deepens, companies are actively expanding into international markets and providing goods and services to consumers around the world. Here are the latest data on the rapid growth of cross-border e-commerce:

- According to data from iMedia Research, the import and export scale of China's cross-border e-commerce has shown an upward trend in the past five years, with rapid growth in 2019-2020. The growth rate has slowed down in the past two years, but the overall scale is still increasing year by year.

- In China, online shopping has become mainstream. According to data from iiMedia Research, in 2024, among the online shopping channels for Chinese consumers, 58.97% will choose comprehensive e-commerce platforms, 41.62% will choose short video platforms, and 39.64% will choose brand official websites.

Therefore, global retailers must have effective multilingual communication capabilities. Companies that excel in multilingual e-commerce will be expected to become the next generation of industry leaders. On the contrary, companies that fail to provide localized language services may lose overseas business opportunities.

In fact, most online retail customers around the world do not use English or prefer to shop in their native language. According to iMedia Research, in 2024, 42.41% of Chinese consumers chose online shopping because there were more product choices, 40.63% because there were more discounts, and 40.43% because shopping was more convenient.

In Canada, where French is one of the official languages, consumers in Quebec are more likely to use French-language shopping sites.

In fast-growing online retail markets, such as China, e-commerce is attracting a wider range of shoppers, many of whom are more comfortable speaking their native language. Therefore, a brand’s ability to communicate effectively with a global audience is closely linked to its commercial success in new markets. By reducing language and cultural barriers, customers feel valued and more comfortable, which improves conversion rates. Localized language services have moved from a secondary consideration to a fundamental requirement for a product or service to enter the market.

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