Ecommerce marketplaces have witnessed rapid growth and are becoming increasingly influential. As the saying goes, “Go where your customers are,” nowadays, customers are flocking to popular marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, Alibaba, Walmart, and Rakuten for their shopping needs.
The previous year, global ecommerce sales reached a staggering $5.7 trillion worldwide. Experts predict that sales will continue to rise, surpassing $6.31 trillion by 2023.
Selling your products or services on a marketplace offers numerous advantages, including brand building, convenient shopping experiences for consumers, and the potential for increased profits. However, venturing into global markets through these platforms can present unique challenges.
This comprehensive guide aims to provide insights into the intricacies of global ecommerce marketplaces and an overview of the most popular marketplaces across different regions around the globe.
Grab the toolkit to sell on eCommerce hotspots. Claim your copy here.
eCommerce marketplaces Vs. eCommerce store.
eCommerce Marketplace:
An ecommerce marketplace is a digital platform where multiple sellers can list and sell their products to a wide range of customers. These marketplaces act as intermediaries, connecting buyers and sellers and facilitating transactions. Popular examples of ecommerce marketplaces include Amazon, eBay, Alibaba, and Etsy.
Key Features of eCommerce Marketplaces:
- Diverse Product Range: Ecommerce marketplaces offer various products across various categories, allowing customers to explore and compare options from different sellers.
- Multi-Seller Environment: Multiple sellers can operate within the same marketplace, creating healthy competition and providing customers with more choices.
- Established Customer Base: Marketplaces attract a large customer base, offering sellers immediate access to a ready-made audience, which can significantly enhance product visibility and sales potential.
- Infrastructure and Support: Marketplaces typically provide infrastructure for secure transactions, customer support, and logistics services such as order fulfillment and shipping.
eCommerce Store:
An ecommerce store, online store or web store, is an individual website owned and operated by a single business. It is a dedicated platform for the business to showcase and sell its products or services directly to customers. Examples of ecommerce store platforms include Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, and BigCommerce.
Key Features of eCommerce Stores:
- Brand Identity: Ecommerce stores allow businesses to establish and reinforce their unique brand identity. The store’s design, layout, and content can be customized to align with the business’s branding strategy.
- Complete Control: Unlike marketplaces, ecommerce stores offer businesses complete control over their online presence, including product assortment, pricing, promotions, and customer experience.
- Direct Customer Relationships: With an ecommerce store, businesses can establish direct relationships with customers, enabling personalized communication, targeted marketing, and the ability to build long-term customer loyalty.
- Flexibility and Scalability: Ecommerce stores allow businesses to adapt and scale their operations according to their needs and growth trajectory. They can integrate various tools, plugins, and extensions to enhance functionality and cater to evolving customer demands.
Types of eCommerce marketplaces.
There are four primary categories of marketplaces:
- Product-focused marketplaces enable shoppers to purchase physical goods from multiple sellers. Prominent examples include Amazon and AliExpress.
- Service-oriented marketplaces: Through these platforms, clients can discover and engage service providers, such as freelancers or independent contractors. Notable examples include Upwork and TaskRabbit.
- Peer-to-peer marketplaces: Individuals can engage in buying and selling activities with one another, whether it be products or services. Prominent examples include Etsy, Facebook Marketplace, and eBay.
- B2B (Business-to-Business) marketplaces: These platforms facilitate business transactions between companies, allowing them to buy and sell products and services from one another. Prominent examples include Alibaba and Thomasnet.
Looking to set up a Shopify or WooCommerce store? Tap and connect with our experts.
Top 10 global marketplaces.
Amazon.
Image Source: Amazon
- Monthly visits: 2.4 billion.
- Selling Fees: Varies by category but averages 15% per sale.
- Covered regions: United States, Germany, United Kingdom, Japan.
- Top product categories: Home and kitchen; beauty and personal care; toys and games; clothing, shoes, and jewelry; health, household, and baby.
Sell from Shopify.
Sell from WooCommerce.
eBay.
Image Source: eBay
- Monthly visits: 665.8 million.
- Selling Fees: Final value fee of the sold item. It can be up to 14.35% of the sale price plus a 30¢ processing fee.
- Covered regions: United States, United Kingdom, Germany, China, and Australia.
- Top product categories: Electronics and accessories; automotive; jewelry and watches; collectibles.
Sell from Shopify.
Sel from WooCommerce.
Walmart.
Image Source: Walmart.
- Monthly visits: 511.5 million.
- Selling Fees: Commission fees vary between 6% and 15%.
- Covered regions: United States, Canada, and India.
- Top product categories: Electronics, toys, fashion.
Sell from Shopify.
Sell from WooCommerce.
Etsy.
Image Source: Etsy.
- Monthly visits: 566.4 million.
- Selling Fees: 6.5% transaction fee of the price displayed.
- Covered regions: United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, France.
- Top product categories: Jewelry; wedding items; party supplies; vintage items; clothing; home, and living.
Sell from Shopify.
Sell from WooCommerce.
AliExpress.
Image Source: AliExpress.
- Monthly visits: 435 million.
- Selling Fees: Commissions vary between 5% and 8%.
- Covered regions: China, Brazil, Spain, United States, France, Korea.
- Top product categories: Consumer electronics; health and beauty; home and garden; women’s clothing; mom and kids.
Sell from Shopify.
Sell from WooCommerce.
Taobao.
Image Source: Taobao.
- Monthly visits: 300.1 million.
- Selling Fees: None.
- Covered regions: China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, United States, Singapore.
- Top product categories: Women’s clothing, cosmetics, jewelry, and home furnishing.
Sell from WooCommerce.
Rakuten.
Image Source: Rakuten.
- Monthly visits: 102.1 million.
- Selling Fees: Monthly fee, 99¢ listing fee per item, commission charge between 8% and 20%.
- Covered regions: United States, Japan, France, Canada, Taiwan.
- Top product categories: Electronics; home and outdoor; clothes and shoes; sports and fitness; bags and luggage; pet supplies.
Sell from WooCommerce.
Mercado Libre.
Image Source: Mercardo Libre.
- Monthly visits: 27.7 million.
- Selling Fees: Varies between country and category but can be upward of 16% per order.
- Covered regions: Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay.
- Top product categories: Smartphones; home and garden; sporting goods; fashion; and electronics and accessories.
Sell from WooCommerce.
Sell from BigCommerce.
Advantages of selling on global marketplaces.
- Access to millions of customers: Marketplaces like eBay, Walmart, and Amazon have large customer bases, providing you with a vast potential audience.
- Increased visibility and brand awareness: Listing your items on marketplaces allows you to reach new audiences who may not have discovered your products otherwise. Therefore, transitioning customers to your website can also be a stepping stone.
- Enhanced trust: Selling on a marketplace grants you the advantage of leveraging the platform’s established reputation and brand trust, which can boost credibility for your online business.
- Testing opportunities: Utilizing a marketplace enables you to gauge customer interest and pricing for your products, test out new offerings, and manage surplus inventory more effectively.
- Global expansion: Most marketplaces operate globally, making expanding your reach to other countries easier without significant additional effort.
- Selling on ecommerce marketplaces offers customer access, increased visibility, trust, testing opportunities, and global expansion.
Start selling globally with CedCommerce:
As you can see, there are a number of niche and global marketplaces available for expansion. All you need is a trusted business partner to help you scale in the right direction.
CedCommerce, with its expertise in platforms like Magento, Shopify, WooCommerce, and more, is helping businesses create and optimize their online stores, drive traffic, and increase conversions. The high-end solutions include multi-channel integration, marketplace integrations, mobile app development, SEO optimization, and more.
Visit here to explore more or connect with our experts.