EUROPE ONLINE SHOP CASE SUMMARY

 

       Case Summary

1. Germany

2 Netherlands

3. Romania

I. Douglas is a perfume shop that has branches in many European countries. Go to their European Website (www.Douglas.eu) and choose a country. Now choose a perfume and look at the online Douglas shops in other European countries. Is there a price difference? Would you buy your perfume in an online shop in another country? What problems might you experience?

II.  You are thinking of opening an online shop in the Netherlands. Would you include iDEAL as a payment option? What factors would you take into consideration before taking a decision?

The European Union's statistical agency released some data on Internet use and online purchasing in January 2020, with one of the results saying that the European Union's behavior is highly diverse. According to the study, online purchasing has been continuously increasing, particularly among younger consumers in the age groups between 16-24 and 25-54. In addition, Clothes and sporting goods were the most popular items purchased online, followed by travel and vacation rentals.One serious issue is that some companies just do not want to sell their goods to customers in other EU countries. A good example is the travel industry. Companies that sell flight tickets like to segment their markets by country. The reason is commercial. A Dutch consumer organization, for instance, found that flight tickets are cheaper in Germany than in the Netherlands even if the passenger flies through Schiphol Airport.The most important element influencing price disparities across bookings was the location of the IP address. Consumer websites frequently provide users with specific recommendations to ensure that travel businesses do not raise fee rates. Customer service is another issue for prospective cross-border buyers. For example, a Bulgarian online store may wish to offer goods to customers in the United Kingdom, but if there is a problem, they will require people who can answer inquiries in English.In that way, Customers could also be hesitant to buy things from other EU countries for another reason: if they don't like the product, they can return it, but they must pay for the shipping charges. Then there's the matter of fraud. Customers in many nations must pay for their purchases with their credit cards, and sometimes more money is debited from the account than was agreed upon. In that case, Many banks urge customers to open separate accounts to prevent such exploitation.Another thing is that customers in the Netherlands have the option of using iDEAL while making online purchases. They can select their bank by clicking on it, and then they will be sent to the bank's website. If they accept payment, they must confirm it on the website with a code delivered to their phone. When this code is validated, the bank deducts the amount from the customer's checking account and notifies the online store that the payment has been completed.The iDEAL system was developed for a variety of reasons. One reason was that Dutch consumers are cautious, and online retailers and banks believed that they would only shop online if a secure and convenient payment solution was available. Another issue was that, in contrast to the United States, people in the Netherlands do not frequently use credit cards. Instead, they use debit cards, with which iDEAL is associated. The huge number of banks in the Netherlands is a third reason for the system's establishment; if each bank had its payment system, online shopping would have been extremely difficult.So first thing first we need to go to its website. As we already know Douglas is a European online shop and has a variety of branches in European countries. Which results in this online shop being famous in Europe. Next to it we need to select countries in douglas branches, among the branches of Douglas online Shop i choose three of them and these are Germany, Netherlands and Romania.After that, we needed to choose a perfume and the perfume I chose was named, Miss Dior Blooming Bouquet. I chose this perfume because I am a fan of the Essence of Mandarin Italian, Peony, and White musk. As we go on to the Douglas webpage we visit the page and its features and composition. We also check its availability functions which are functioning and which are not. And we will tackle the problems that we might encounter in visiting the page in the latter part.After that, I went to the different branches of Douglas's online shop. I compared the prices of every branch. I observed that they have differences in every country in which the perfume is located. They have the same platform of payment method, we have here the availability of bank cards, cash on delivery, and payment order. The shipping fee is free and can return the product if ever the product will seize defection.

POSSIBLE PROBLEMS that we MIGHT to consider in visiting the page.

1. Payment Preferences Aren't Extensive

- Unsure how to pay if debit cards aren't an option.

- Payment failures have occurred as a result of a server problem on the website; payment failures have also occurred as a result of a server error, One-Time Password problems or gateway errors (OTP).

- Payments are frequently deducted from the buyer's account or card due to technical issues, but the website is not notified.

2. Uncertainty about website policies

- Many shopping websites do not even offer a clear and straightforward return and refund policies.

- When the policies section isn't properly defined, sellers will refuse a transaction.

Consumers claim to be able to return or receive a refund.

- The majority of websites have ambiguous return policies, leaving you with a low-quality item and no method to return it.

- Taxes, additional shipping, and handling charges are hidden from customers until the purchase is completed.

3. Problems with logistics

- During transit, products are frequently lost or damaged, and order tracking systems are unable to precisely find the product.

- These products are frequently not delivered within the specified time frame, and customers must wait days before receiving their order.

iDEAL is an online payment system that circumvents the need for the Dutch to have credit cards. Instead of inputting your card information, paying with iDEAL takes you directly to your personal online banking website where you transfer the money directly to the business owner.The main security advantage of iDEAL is that you’re not sending your credit card or banking information to random websites. Because it opens through the iDEAL platform, businesses only know if you’ve paid or not: they don’t receive any of your sensitive information. iDEAL also uses two-factor authentication, as well as any of your own bank’s security features.

Would you include iDEAL as a payment option?

Yes, since I am opening an online shop in the Netherlands I would consider iDEAL as a payment option since iDEAL service is only intended for the United Kingdom and I am confident that this payment method would work for both sides. The buyer and the seller.When using iDEAL you don’t have the right to initiate a chargeback if something goes wrong with the transaction.A chargeback is when a transaction is forcibly reversed by your bank. For example, say you purchased an item online with your credit card. The seller sends you the item, but it’s counterfeit, broken, or never arrives. The merchant refuses to refund you, so you call your bank and initiate a chargeback. If the bank deems that you, as the consumer, were wronged they will forcibly take the money from the merchant’s bank account and return it to your own. It’s a way of getting a refund via the bank, instead of directly via the merchant, and acts as a way of keeping merchants honest and protecting the consumer.

FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHILE CHOOSING IDEAL AS A PAYMENT OPTION OR NOT

1) A proper payment flow is essential.

Payment flow.

The payment flow should be a one-time payment with no in-app purchases or recurring billing. For the sake of simplicity, the app should allow for one-time in-app purchase and not let the user upgrade or purchase any other items.

2) A proper payment flow is essential.

The proper payment flow is essential to the protection of your customers, as well as your own business.

Payment fraud is one of the most significant challenges facing the payments industry today.

The Payment Card Industry (PCI) Council found that merchants are liable for over $3.5 billion in fraud-related losses in 2015.

3) Security and safety

4) The expense of the payment system

5) Business transaction

A secure online payment solution means that the shop is open round the clock, which means your customers can shop whenever they want. While there are countless benefits associated with online payment solutions and gateways, choosing the right payment solution provider may not be as easy as you might think. It is mainly because of the fact that so many providers are now offering payment gateway and online merchant solutions and finding the best one requires a fair amount of research and knowledge about the available options.

REFERENCES:

E-Commerce System Flow Chart Ecommerce shopping cart structure (entertop.com.my