Buying from a brand you already know is easy. Buying from a merchant you’ve never heard of in another country, operating under different rules, time zones, and expectations, is a very different experience.
Shoppers start asking practical (and very human) questions: Will the product match the photos? Will shipping take longer than promised? What happens if something goes wrong? And how will my data be used once I hand it over?
Those questions don’t go away because a product is well-priced or trending on social media. If anything, they become more important the further away a seller feels.
That’s why trust, not novelty or discounts, is what really drives conversion in cross-border ecommerce.
The data backs this up. Shoppers today are selective, research-heavy, and increasingly cautious when buying online. Most review multiple channels before purchasing, and trust signals play a central role in whether they move forward at all.
Cross-border ecommerce is selling products online to consumers in a different country or economic region. For example, a U.K. shopper buying from a German retailer, or a French customer ordering from a U.S.-based brand.
Though this phenomenon used to feel quite niche, it’s now firmly mainstream, which is driven by:
Better logistics;
Wider product availability; and
Shoppers who are more comfortable with buying beyond their borders.
In fact, global ecommerce continues to grow as a share of retail. According to eMarketer, online sales are expected to account for around 21% of global retail sales in 2026.
Shoppers are looking internationally for better prices or brands they can’t find locally, making cross-border ecommerce a core growth channel: 37% of shoppers reported doing so in response to global trade policies, according to Salsify’s “2026 Consumer Research” report.
Where Europe stands out is in how confidently consumers approach these purchases. EU shoppers benefit from some of the strongest consumer protections in the world, and they know it.
Regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) give consumers clear rights over how their data is collected, stored, and used, while the Consumer Rights Directive guarantees transparency around pricing and delivery, a 14-day cooling-off period, and the right to refunds when something goes wrong. The new digital product passports coming soon will also change how things work.
These protections matter because they remove a lot of the unknowns that typically make cross-border shopping feel risky. Shoppers aren’t as worried about fraud, data misuse, or being left out of pocket if a product doesn’t meet expectations.
The payoff for brands that meet those expectations is real. Trust doesn’t just influence whether shoppers buy. It affects how much they’re willing to spend, too.
According to Salsify’s latest report, at least 68% of shoppers have paid more for a product in the past year simply because they trusted the brand (with even more saying so previously).
Yes, the EU is a highly regulated market, but it’s also a blueprint for how strong customer protections and strong commercial outcomes can coexist.
Thanks to strong consumer protections and years of ecommerce maturity, there’s a clear baseline for what a credible seller should provide, no matter where they’re based.
At a minimum, EU shoppers expect upfront pricing that includes taxes and shipping, realistic delivery timelines, and easy-to-read return and refund policies.
Just as importantly, they expect product information to be accurate and consistent wherever they encounter it, whether that’s on a brand’s own site, a marketplace listing, or a third-party retailer.
Shoppers are quick to notice when those basics aren’t met. Inconsistent product information is a major red flag, with 38% of shoppers abandoning purchases because details don’t match across sites, and 45% saying they’ve returned an item due to incorrect product content.
Beyond these fundamentals, purchase decisions are shaped by a clear set of trust-driven factors:
Product quality and value matter the most (67%);
Brand reputation follows closely (63%); and
Then customer service and experience (54%).
But social proof plays a powerful role too: 48% of shoppers cite positive customer ratings and reviews as a key trust factor, while 43% point to high-quality product content as essential for confidence.
Taken together, these signals form a mental checklist EU consumers use to decide whether a seller feels credible and worth their money.
Reviews stand in for the experiences shoppers can’t have themselves when they buy across borders. They can’t pick up the product, speak to a sales associate, or rely on brand familiarity.
So shoppers look to the next best thing: other customers who’ve already taken the leap.
In this context, reviews function as powerful third-party validation. They help shoppers gauge whether a product lives up to its promises, whether descriptions are accurate, and whether a seller is reliable with delivery, packaging, and post-purchase support.
That influence clearly shows in purchase behavior. According to Salsify’s “2026 Consumer Research” report, 57% of shoppers say customer ratings, reviews, and user-generated content (UGC) are among the most important product detail page elements for completing a purchase.
Reviews rank just behind images and videos and pricing (and ahead of product descriptions alone), underscoring how much shoppers value real-world proof over brand-written copy, especially when buying from a seller they don’t already trust.
Just as importantly, reviews play a defensive role in cross-border ecommerce: 42% of shoppers say they’ve abandoned a purchase because a product had no reviews, low ratings, or negative feedback.
In other words, when trust is fragile, as it often is in cross-border transactions, a lack of social proof can be enough to stop someone from buying.
While reviews matter almost everywhere, how shoppers use them and how heavily they weigh them vary by market.
Across the U.S. and Canada, consumers consistently cite customer ratings and reviews as influential in their purchase decisions. But in the U.K. and EU-adjacent markets, trust signals tend to carry extra weight. Greater awareness of consumer rights and stronger expectations around transparency mean shoppers are quicker to question sellers that don’t clearly demonstrate credibility through social proof.
That doesn’t mean shoppers in these markets are blindly trusting reviews, though. If anything, they’re more thorough. Reviews are often treated as a way to sense-check whether a brand’s claims align with real customer experiences. This is especially true when buying from international or unfamiliar sellers.
Younger shoppers add another layer of complexity. Gen Z and millennials still care deeply about reviews, but they rarely rely on a single source. Instead, they cross-check feedback across marketplaces, social platforms, online forums, and increasingly, AI-assisted research tools.
This behavior reflects a broader shift toward multi-channel research. Salsify’s latest consumer report found that most shoppers now review two to six different channels before making a purchase, particularly for mid-range and big-ticket items
The takeaway is clear: Reviews can’t live in isolation. They need to be visible wherever shoppers go to validate their decision.
Reviews might be the loudest trust signal in cross-border ecommerce, but they’re not the only ones, and they’re rarely enough on their own.
Transparent policies around delivery, returns, and refunds are less flashy, but they’re just as influential. They reduce post-purchase anxiety, reassuring shoppers that if something goes wrong, they won’t be left hanging.
Trust doesn’t stop at checkout. A poor return or refund experience can undo all the goodwill created by strong reviews and polished product pages. In fact, 71% of consumers say they’re less likely to shop with a retailer again after a poor return experience, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF).
EU shoppers, in particular, are highly attuned to a brand’s policies. They don’t want to dig around for delivery timelines and refund processes in dense legal copy.
Transparent policies paired with strong reviews compound. Reviews reassure shoppers that others have had good experiences; clear policies reassure them that they’ll be protected if they don’t.
Getting the fundamentals consistently right is incredibly important for global brands. The good news is that the actions that build confidence are largely within your control.
Actively gathering, syndicating, and surfacing reviews across marketplaces, brand sites, and retail partners helps reinforce credibility wherever shoppers do their research.
Fresh, high-volume reviews matter even more in cross-border contexts, where shoppers are often looking for recent proof that a brand consistently delivers on its promises.
Centralizing product data (including specs, imagery, sizing, materials, and usage details) ensures your listings are accurate on every platform.
Make a point of having clear, consumer-first delivery, return, and refund policies that are easy to find.
To benefit from cross-border ecommerce, you need to do more than race to the lowest price. You need to earn trust. When shoppers feel confident in a brand, they’re more willing to buy, more willing to spend, and far more likely to come back.
Reviews, third-party validation, and transparent policies are what make international shopping feel familiar and safe, even when a brand is thousands of miles away. For global brands, the EU sets a high standard for consumer confidence. But meeting that bar does so much more than unlock European markets. It raises your performance everywhere you sell.