우리나라 중소기업의 전자상거래 수출확대방안에 관한 연구

A Literature Review of e-Commerce Exports of Korean SMEs

Purpose - This study was conducted to suggest government’s support measures for increasing e-commerce trade with the results of analyzing the difficulties and problems arising in relation to customs clearance and logistics when engaging in e-commerce exports. Design/methodology/approach - Based on a literature review, this study focused on overseas direct sales by e-commerce in which Korean companies sell products directly to local consumers in overseas online shopping malls (open markets). Findings - The recent spread of social media, such as Facebook and YouTube, has led to a significant increase in cross-border e-commerce through overseas open markets such as Amazon, eBay and Alibaba, which has drastically changed the paradigm of traditional trade. Despite the Korean SMEs’s recent surge in e-commerce exports, their share of the total exports still remains low. Currently, because e-commerce is used as an important conduit for advancing into overseas markets, the government’s active support efforts are required to drastically expand e-commerce exports. Research implications or Originality - The study found that expanding e-commerce exports requires various government support efforts, such as establishing a system to support e-commerce exports tailored to small businesses, building a system to provide high-quality overseas market and export statistical information, strengthening specialized education related to e-commerce exports, establishing an export customs system that is convenient to use, reducing logistics storage and delivery costs, simplifying tax refund and return procedures, and eliminating import customs clearance delays for importers.