1.1.2 Types of Cross-Border E-Commerce

Types of cross-border e-commerce usually include：

（1）Business-to-Business（B2B）

B2B transaction is where one business is selling to another business，which can include bulk pricing，larger quantity orders，or specialty products that an average consumer would never need on a day-to-day basis.B2B transactions create powerful and long-lasting relationships between each side when orchestrated correctly.Typical products that are involved in B2B transactions include office supplies，gasoline and oil，medical equipment，airplanes，ships，and military equipment.These items are large in physical size or quantities needed which would be overwhelming for an average consumer to purchase on his or her own.

（2）Business-to-Consumer（B2C）

The most traditional transaction type from a consumer's point of view is the B2C model.This model mimics a purchase that made in-store at a brick-and-mortar location but occurs entirely online.Businesses sell goods straight to consumers through their website.Online stores are able to list multiple products and SKUs（stock keeping units）which give customers many options to pick and choose from during their buying experience.This allows for more options for a customer to research and find the perfect fit.Clothing，electronics，and outdoor recreational equipment are a few of the products effectively sold online in the B2C.The B2C transaction is not limited to products，but services are quite often distributed in this fashion as well.Businesses may offer services like financial advising，tutoring，subscription memberships，and others to grow their presence online.

（3）Consumer-to-Consumer（C2C）

With the rise of e-commerce，much innovation has taken place in many forms.Platforms like eBay，Craigslist，Grailed，and even parts of Amazon allow consumers to sell to consumers.This bridge allows men and women to sell goods without setting up a personalized store.This results in fast and easy individual transactions allowing for niche items and used goods to be sold online.

In the C2C model，the platform itself does not own or sell any products.Rather，it serves as the bridge between the consumer selling and consumer buying.Platforms act as a third party to oversee and authorize the transaction to ensure it goes smoothly.Popular platforms become successful due to a high amount of users and traffic while offering a solution to get rid of goods with little cost and overhead.Selling an item on these sites can be as simple as opening the app or site，creating an account，listing the item，and waiting for another consumers to purchase.No additional marketing is needed which leaves more profit in the listers' pockets.

This type of model is becoming increasingly prominent with the inception of different marketplaces looking to gain a share of the market opportunity.C2C models increase consumer buying power by eliminating many steps of the buying process.