According to public data, consumers in the US and Europe’s top five economies (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom) account for about one-third of global retail sales. As consumers are more open than ever to trying new brands, brand new doors are opening for businesses to win them over.

There are three fundamental elements that will convince customers to shop from your brand: Price, Product Trust, and Purchase Convenience.

Recent shopping insights show that businesses must use localized and properly targeted strategies to trigger purchases while meeting these universal expectations. Here’s how to adapt your year-end marketing and e-commerce strategies to different markets to boost your sales:

1. Make Consumers Trust Your Products

It’s a fact that price promotions are crucial. For 60% of US consumers and 55% of European consumers, discounts are the most important factor influencing their purchase decisions. However, consumers don’t just look for the cheapest product; they also want to be confident in quality.

How trust in products is built differs from market to market. Therefore, you should adopt an approach that considers nuances when building customer trust:

• For US consumers, user feedback and product reviews are critical when shopping online.

• European consumers place much greater importance on brand reputation and product durability.

• In Germany, consumers rely on expert advice (64%) and certifications from official institutions (53%) to trust international brands.

• In France, 52% of consumers prioritize transparency in the brand’s supply and production processes.

It’s not enough to just provide consumers with the right information; where this information appears also plays a vital role in trust building. Google Search is the #1 source where shoppers verify criteria like quality, durability, brand reputation, and good reviews. Moreover, 66% of consumers in Europe are much more open to ads on search engines like Google when in a buying mindset.

In addition, consumers including Gen Z and Millennials rank YouTube first for product reviews. Consumers trust YouTube creator recommendations 98% more (on average) than other social networks.

To build trust, you can use these AI-powered Google solutions:

• Capture existing demand directly with localized Search and Shopping campaigns.

• Expand your audience across all of Google’s inventory with Performance Max campaigns.

• Create brand new demand for your brand among high-intent audiences with Demand Gen campaigns.

• Highlight quality assurances that resonate with local consumers using relevant titles, tags, and descriptions in content like unboxing videos on YouTube.

2. Make the Purchase Process Smooth and Easy

To finalize sales, you need to meet consumers’ expectations of a seamless purchase journey. However, the definition of “convenience” varies by markets and channels.

• Visual Appeal for the US Market: US consumers want to see high-resolution product images and videos (71%) and clear, concise product descriptions (57%) before being ready to buy. You can meet this expectation by offering crisp, 360-degree product views. You can use Product Studio, the free AI tool in Merchant Center, to create and optimize product images at scale.

• Global Logistics Expectations: For both US and European shoppers, fast delivery, reasonable shipping costs, and transparent return policies are the most important factors in reducing cart abandonment rates.

Reach Omnichannel Customers

Even if your customers will buy the product from a physical store, they often do their initial research online. Therefore, you need to perfect the omnichannel experience:

• Use Google Merchant Center to synchronize inventory data between your online store and physical stores in real-time. This way customers can check if a product is in stock before going to the store.

• Keep your Google Business Profile complete so that your store hours, location, and in-stock products stay current across all Google platforms.

• Offer “Click-and-Collect” (BOPIS) options to provide consumers with more flexibility.

In summary, to boost your sales in US and European markets during the year-end shopping season, you must make consumers trust your brand and remove all barriers in the purchase journey. Localizing your e-commerce strategy using Google AI solutions will provide you with the highest return on investment (ROI).