Making the decision that the time is right to export and sell internationally can be a very exciting time for any business owner/company.   For most, the decision comes after an amount of domestic trading.  As part of our work in Product2Market, we help companies take the leap to export in the some of the most cost/time-effective ways possible.

Firstly,  I think it’s worth a mention, that being an Irish company in itself is something worth trying to capitalise on.   From my own experience in exporting to the UK, US and Middle East, Irish companies and business people have a very strong International reputation.  So many around the world claim Irish descent so when possible it’s worth trying to develop good will using the “Irish Card”.

The most common consideration when contemplating export is, the cost of market entry. For that reason a large percentage of Irish companies opt to export first into our nearest neighbour the UK. Some of the benefits of firstly exporting into the UK are:

·         No langue  / Culture difference

·         Easy to investigate the market from Ireland

·         Cost effective to travel to

·         Relative markets, meaning that domestic traction can be transferred.

Successful Export Strategy can be broken into Direct and In-Direct Routes to Market in the Export Territory.

Direct Route to Market
Most Business to Business focused companies employ a Direct Sales Model to win an amount of New Customers in the targeted Export Market allowing them to build new market credibility.   As the cost of new client acquisition in an Export Market can be quite high in an early/direct-sales stage,   most companies look at using indirect channels as soon as possible.   This is easier to achieve after securing a number of Marketplace referenceable Direct Customers.

In-Direct Route to Market

Using Sales Channels in an Export Market can reduce acquisition costs and can sometimes expedite market penetration.  If you recruit a reseller/partner with an existing customer base that fits your own customer profile you can scale through the synergy between your own offering and the offering of a potential partnership.  The challenge many face with finding/attracting partners is, that unless your product/service has some direct customers in the target market it can be hard to be attractive to potential partners.

In either model (Direct / In-Direct) it is important to give the target market the impression that your organisation has some operation on the ground and that you are not just a far away, faceless and unreachable company. In the past I have used a couple of services to give the impression that I had a slightly stronger local presence to reduce the perceived risk of dealing with an “overseas” company to my own export clients.  Here are a couple of practical things I would strongly recommend.

Engage with a provider of a local contact number.

With VOIP being more widespread there are a number of telephone providers that can offer a local contact number which can be routed to your domestic office at low cost.
 

Look like a local

Research to find providers of a forwarding address.  Most serviced office companies provide a mailbox, registered address service using a local address on business cards and marketing materials can give the impression your organisation has a local presence.
 

Localise Marketing Message / Collateral

Its worth investing in localising your marketing collateral, the use of local images and references can give a subtle suggestion that you’re just an overseas organisations.  
 

Conclusion

When entering a new export market it’s my position that its best to give the impression that your organisation has some presence on the ground – but be upfront about you being a new entrant into the local market.  This can take address some of the concerns your prospect customer might have about dealing with an ‘overseas’ supplier.  But consider the possible consequences of the over suggestion/exaggeration that you are more established that you really are – this might result in your export customers requesting/demanding a service level you made not be able to deliver.