To export your product to the EU you must comply with the EU legal requirements before shipping it. If not, your product will be stopped at the EU border. Besides, to increase your possibilities to sell your product in the EU, you can comply with other voluntary standards.
These voluntary standards increase your opportunities to find a buyer and get a good price for your product.
So, the steps to sell your product in Europe are:
1.musts, requirements you must meet in order to enter the market, such as legal requirements
2.common standards, which are those most of your competitors have already implemented, in other words, the ones you need to comply with in order to keep up with the market
3.niche market standards for specific segments.
Sometimes you might need a licence for exporting goods to the EU. For example, agricultural goods or valuable antiques often 3 need one.
Source: (https://ec.europa.eu/trade/)