The goal of most companies is to grow and make a profit, and this does not usually happen without customers. As a result, most firms never stop searching for new clients who will buy their products and services, taking advantage of multiple courses, thousands of publications and ongoing conferences on how to succeed at business development.

This “business development mantra” is a favorite of most companies’ marketing and sales departments, but usually doesn’t extend beyond that to become a full team effort. Instead, business development should be a company-wide team effort and not only the responsibility of the marketing and sales department.

Sharing isn’t just caring – it’s profitable

One of the most effective ways to enact this is through greater information sharing between company departments. While it is human nature for departments to be protective of their input to the company, sharing information for the benefit of all should be encouraged by upper management.

Many division managers and their staff subconsciously believe that their particular department is the only vital activity to the ongoing success of their company. For example, Manufacturing believes that without the products they produce the company simply would not exist and Sales boasts that without the clients they bring in, nothing at all would happen.

However, all departments should think of themselves as part of a large team rather than compete with each other.

Manufacturing could be looking for production technology to better produce their products and pass this information to upper management. Salespeople, who are active in the marketplace, often pick up information on market trends to pass to marketing. HR could hire multilingual staff to better serve foreign clients.  Accounting and Finance could search for better billing systems to streamline their invoicing process, and so on.

One person’s (or department’s) trash can be another’s treasure

Here’s one example of how this can have major benefits: a recent graduate was hired to work in a large bank’s telemarketing centre to find new clients. He was given lists of new company registrations to contact and told that the basic reason for a bank’s success was its ability to find new clients to whom it could offer competitive loans.

One morning a phone call was routed to his desk from a former client. The client recounted that 3 years previously the company had negotiated and successfully repaid a loan, but the firm was expanding and now was in need for more capital. The young man passed the lead on to the bank’s closest branch and recorded his first “new business” success.

He then reasoned that reactivating former clients (who were already known and approved) would bring better results than trying to convince brand new contacts to do business with his new employer. He searched the bank’s “dead files” department and found detailed records of several thousand former clients who had successfully repaid their loans, but whose files had been closed. Apparently nobody had ever followed up nor checked if the companies required other services from the bank. A further search found that half were no longer in business, but the other half were still active and had often grown considerably.

He had found a gold mine of potential “new” clients who already knew his bank and would presumably be happy to renew a relationship and hopefully do more business.

This mindset applies in the public sector too

Governments are also in the business development game, and many have active programs designed to attract foreign investment (FDI) and trade to their territory.

One such administration had appointed representatives abroad whose responsibility was to increase international business by finding potential foreign investors, interested business partners and importers. Details of these potential overseas business opportunities were publicized in a bulletin regularly mailed to many thousands of domestic manufacturers. The concept was that companies would jump on these leads, but unfortunately most executives were too busy running their domestic businesses to consider international relationships. The result was that consequent successful deals were minimal.

Tired of poor results, an entrepreneurial department manager decided to turn the system around. He found that 250 bulletin recipients had regularly inquired about some of the foreign opportunities. While few had gone further than an initial request for information, the companies’ apparent curiosity in the foreign opportunities was encouraging.

The outcome was the creation of a list of domestic manufacturers whose specific interests were then described and distributed to the overseas-based representatives. The profiles provided details of what each company was potentially interested in – foreign technology related to their business, an international partner, a possible import-export opportunity, a joint venture or licensing agreement. The number of completed partnerships increased exponentially.

The government department finally had the chance to successfully encourage domestic businesses to expand internationally by providing real opportunities. Simultaneously, the entrepreneurial manager was head-hunted and went on to a successful career in the private sector.

A team effort can make something old new and profitable again

The expression “business development” describes a vital activity that should not be contained to a few employees, but instead must be consciously done by all departments in a company or organization.

A business development mindset suggests a proactive management style, confirms a commitment by top executives to find new clients, and feeds into companies’ visceral need to always seek ways to prospect for business – be it “new” or old.

Traditional efforts to seek out new customers are important, and must be continued. But when paired with new methods to work with other departments to find new information, make processes more efficient or enact new ideas, the growth possibilities for your business become nearly endless.

The human cost of outsourcing

There is no better reason for a corporation to exist than to make a profit, and most small businesses have similar mindsets. Whatever helps to achieve this goal is considered good business, and completely justified to shareholders, boards of directors and business owners.

In today’s business world, corporations and companies often restructure and change activities for many valid reasons including changing market trends, a weak economy, budgetary constraints or offshore competition. The result, while possibly improving the bottom line, often means that some employees are expendable.

For example, a friend of mine was recently told that his department of 22 people would be outsourced to an outside contractor. The multinational was restructuring and he and his colleagues were forced to seek other employment.

He was shattered. When we met, he said: “I admit that over the years I wrongly concluded that I was indispensable to the company. I innocently believed that my work would count for something and that my professional life would never be subject to change”.

Think like an athlete and become a free agent

Although individuals cannot hope to change a corporate decision, they can change their own reaction to entering the job market.

Most of us want to live a happy life, earn a good living, pay our rent or mortgage, have a family and be able to support it without stress. We want to enjoy regular vacations, be loved and love others in return, feel safe and stay healthy, have some money in the bank and afford to treat ourselves once in a while. While wanting all this, most of us instinctively believe that we can only do this if we work for someone else.

In response to this mindset, author Daniel Pink said in his book The Free Agent Nation that, as business becomes more and more subject to uncontrollable market forces, individuals need to become more independent and self-managed.

The Free Agent concept (based on the sports world) has since become a movement of more than 30 million people throughout the U.S.

Individuals should think of themselves as persons with unique assets and abilities, with very specific knowledge and personal experience, the owners of an exclusive circle of relationships and contacts, and a mixture of expertise and education that nobody else has. We need to think of ourselves as independent individuals who “temporarily lend their unique expertise and knowledge to an employer” in the job market in exchange for a salary and other benefits.

To know what we can offer, we must first know ourselves

Rudyard Kipling, the famous author of The Jungle Book and The Elephant’s Child, wrote about the six essential questions that, when answered, will always help us in every facet of our lives:

I Keep six honest serving-men:
(they taught me all I know …)
their names are What and Where and When
and How and Why and Who

As part of an honest self-assessment, asking ourselves these timeless questions can help to better change our self-image and improve our attitude.

Even if we are not in danger of being sidelined, the mere fact of accepting that we are unique and independent can be liberating and subtly change the way we look at our work.

Amazingly, it has been proven that exuding this new attitude also changes the way we are evaluated by others.

Follow my friend’s 5 steps towards practical results

My friend Fred decided to change his self-image by redefining his abilities and talents. He also followed these 5 steps, which can help you in a similar situation as well.

1. Review your transferable skills
2. Update your CV
3. Start networking in organizations in your field
4. Register with job search agencies
5. Sign up to obtain certification in your field

Two weeks ago, he was called to a third interview with a new company and is now convinced that his success is entirely due to the new self-assured attitude he now exudes.

With the same mindset and these steps in mind, I hope you’ll have the same results if you’re in a similar situation.

The independent consultant knows that the first image a potential buyer experiences is vital to the credibility of the pitch that follows. Research shows that trustworthiness is established in the first 8 seconds of a meeting.

In that short time, the potential client makes a subconscious decision: they will either listen politely and then dismiss the proposal, or trust what they have seen in those first seconds. What they feel and hear in those few seconds will be the basis of a future relationship with the consultant.

So how can consultants make sure they create an excellent first impression to potential clients?

Work backwards to understand how to first attract a client’s attention

We all know that a product is used, impersonal and tangible, but a service is experienced, personal and intangible.

So what does it take to sell and get acceptance for an intangible concept in a foreign market?

Ultimately, you need to create an image in a foreign contact’s mind that will appeal to them and lead to being hired to provide that intangible service.

Explaining the first step to selling an intangible idea internationally comes down to how that relationship is built. In the world of relationship-based sales, there is an adage that says one must seduce first and sell afterwards.

You can’t sell until you persuade, you can’t persuade someone until you have their interest, and you can’t have someone’s interest until you’ve attracted their attention.

With so much riding on catching attention early on, the initial visual image is vital to the success of the steps that follow.

When the eye buys an image of credibility, the mind and heart follow

Clients will usually only pay for a consultant’s expertise if others have reported positive experiences with that service. Independent consultants who seek new clients therefore need to first create an image of confidence, competence and success. The next step is then to transmit that perception of their services, promising to fulfill the future client’s needs.

When making a sales pitch, large companies usually calm a potential client’s concerns simply with their size and their brand recognition. A well-established presence in a market creates the professional image that helps large companies obtain new business in their chosen field.

In contrast, the individual consultant who does not have a large corporate identity faces daunting challenges when trying to develop new business. They have to work much harder to create the image that future clients will consider.

What’s important to remember, however, is that before reaching any professional level of notoriety, every large company inevitably grew from one individual who then created a small company, just like an individual running their own consulting company. If successful, this grew into a mid-sized firm and eventually even became a multinational giant. Good examples are Henry Ford and Steve Jobs, whose companies were once simply an idea in their minds. So what can you learn from their examples?

Even large service providers who may serve as your competition all started with the same basic approach.

To compete with other consultants or businesses of any size, you just need to develop a strong, positive image, preferably one that’s original or stands out in some creative manner, and then deliver on the promise of that idea.

Whether it’s expertise, innovation, originality or something else, find your strength, emphasize why it makes you stand out in that market, and go from there.

What qualities will help you adapt your first impression for success in international markets?

The consultant selling their services at home is likely to know the general requirements of potential clients and how best to shape their image for new clients. As a result, they are usually able to adjust to territorial, economic and cultural challenges.

The challenge of selling consulting services overseas is more difficult because the consultant is working in a market whose standards will be different than those of their domestic clients. Whatever they do at home to develop business may not apply to the international market chosen, and you may need to adjust how you project your image accordingly.

Selling and promoting consulting services internationally thus requires a much broader set of transferable skills. These include:

• Understanding the target culture and adjusting to it seamlessly;
• Linguistic talents to learn some basic phrases, if not fluency;
• Adjusting to other cultures’ views on time and punctuality;
• A thick skin to NOT take things personally;
• Tenacity to overcome unexpected hurdles;
• Changing and adjusting one’s presentation to fit into the new market’s parameters;
• The ability to move forward in the face of rejection;
• Flexibility and imagination to overcome preconceived cultural or national ideas or misconceptions;
• Recognition of one’s “foreignness” in the target market and the ability to turn it into an asset;

Canadians can also capitalize on their national brand

There is no doubt that Canadian consultants are as able as others to provide competitive professional services internationally. However, current world events are affecting potential relationships and it is often difficult to establish credibility, trust and professionalism, particularly when one is new to a market.

Fortunately, during those vital first seconds of a pitch, Canadian consultants can rely on Canada’s excellent global reputation to get the initial attention required. While the Canadian brand will not guarantee success, it adds undeniable credibility to a consultant’s promise to deliver a professional service to a prospective client.

The Canadian consultant can then focus on matching that positive initial image with a convincing presentation that will develop the interest needed to successfully move the discussion forward.

For consultants from other countries around the world, find your strength, emphasize it in a unique way that captures attention, and then use that attention to explain how you can deliver on your promises. Once you master these steps, you’ll make a great impression that will get the conversation started and lead to more clients.

Imagine this situation: You are an exporter driving southwards on your favourite highway and ahead you see red traffic cones and barriers in the way. You are forced to slow down and notice that some of the barriers have the words “NAFTA debate”, “Soft-wood lumber disputes”, “Dairy regulations” and “Other competitors’ products” on them. You instinctively reach for your GPS to recalibrate, but your fellow passengers tell you “keep going, let’s see what happens”.

Don’t just stand around – do something!

Many Canadian exporters are hoping that the current phase of U.S. protectionism will not be too serious and that given time, cooler heads will prevail. However, apart from any potential changes to NAFTA, there are other important changes taking place in world markets that could affect Canadian exports.

For example, foreign government elections could affect our trading partnerships; many world leaders are changing their attitudes towards international relationships (e.g. Brexit); major environmental changes are affecting people throughout the world; electronic hacking is changing global communications, etc. All these changes make it increasingly difficult for Canada to rely on traditional alliances to plan for our trading future.

Instead of a passive “wait and see” attitude, perhaps it is time to look more aggressively for alternative export markets and recalibrate the Canadian exporters’ Global Positioning System towards other directions.

There is a wealth of up-to-date data, detailed reports and real-time market intelligence available through federal and provincial government sources. This practical, current and timely information is collected by hundreds of locally-engaged sector specialists, who have been hired from local industries by almost 260 offices in 150 countries around the world. They have been hired for their experience and contacts in specific business sectors and their job is to search for export opportunities for Canadian businesses.

These talented professionals have a great deal of real-time information on current on-the-ground marketing trends, and intimate knowledge of what specific products are sought by local importers abroad. Unfortunately, this knowledge is often denigrated by “blood-and-guts” exporters who wrongly claim that civil servants know little about the day-to-day realities of exporting.

Taking a practical look at the available options for Canadian exporters

In view of our unsettled exporting future, this writer decided to look for potential export markets which do NOT fall into Canada’s established and traditional markets. The top 28 destinations for Canadian exports, according to Global Affairs Canada, include the U.S., China, UK, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, Germany and India. But this list fails to include many other smaller and lesser-known, but still worthwhile markets like countries in North Africa, Brunei, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago and others.

At random I chose “Consumer Products” and “Transportation” as export sectors and searched for information on the Trade Commissioners Service (TCS) website. I sought data on the top foreign markets which the trade commissioners abroad reported as the best opportunities for export.

Consumer Products

1. The TCS identified the top potential markets for Canadian consumer products as Bangladesh, Finland and Germany.
2. I picked Finland and searched for Finnish importers. Several company profiles, data on 2017 consumer trade shows taking place in Helsinki, and directions on how to export to Finland and Scandinavia were listed.

Transportation

1. At random I picked Kenya and found a list of 25 importers of transportation-related products with full contact information and the territory they cover.
2. These 25 companies are seeking auto parts, engine parts, automotive electrical equipment, engines, pumps, tractors, electric motors and other equipment.

While the TCS website was encouraging, I decided to take the opposite approach and (again at random) picked Thailand as a target country. I Googled  “Thailand Importers”, which provided a link with 18 names and addresses of importers, distributors and trading houses, all seeking to buy a wide range of foreign products including softwood lumber, woodworking machinery, furniture and garden products. In addition, when I Googled “Thailand Import Agents”, there were listings of commission agents seeking to represent foreign exporters of various products including food, paint, medical devices and chemicals.

A great reputation and hard work will open doors

While the above are mere examples, and many variables would affect successful export contracts (including competitive pricing, transportation costs, import tariffs, etc), successful exporting to new markets is based on the following facts:

1. Our Brand. That all-important first contact with potential international customers is easier because we have the greatest door opener in the world: the Canadian brand. Our reputation immediately opens doors all over the world, giving any Canadian exporter a salesman’s vital “foot in the door”.
2. The 200-20-2 rule: Anyone who has worked in a call centre or made “cold” calls knows these numbers. They work in any business development activity, in any country, and in any product sector. The concept relies on percentages: if you make about 200 calls you will develop approximately 20 new contacts, and they will invariably produce 2 export deals.
3. Knocking on doors. There is an inescapable logic that states that “if you don’t knock on the door, nobody will open it”.

Let’s knock on new doors by recalibrating our exporters’ GPS (after all, it IS global) and look for other destinations for our exports. They may not be as easy and accessible as our traditional U.S. market has been, but with a little effort and imagination Canada does not have to “wait and see” but can take proactive steps to becoming a truly global exporter.

Regardless of whether or you support the Trump administration, it is obvious that Mr. Trump has re-written the global rules of marketing.

Marketing was traditionally based on careful research, forecasting of trends, evaluation of current economic growth and feedback from the market itself. But today’s successful marketing seems to be based on the concept of “perception equals reality”.

Non-stop self-promotion backed by constant imagery of the name TRUMP, a continuous media presence, bizarre hairstyle, and references to billion dollar real estate deals, all create a self-fulfilling prophecy that few want to disagree with.

Canadian business executives have typically been cautious when it comes to blowing their own horn, and this has been part of Canada’s success internationally – people like us because we are low-key. Close to 75% of our population lives within 100 miles of the U.S. border, and internationally we are seen as North Americans – but not Americans, a subtle difference that often works in our favour.

Numbers work in the States

The senior partner of an international business services firm told me the other day that his company was thinking of changing its U.S. advertising to include results – “numbers work!” He was thinking of informing visitors to his website that the firm had helped eight of their many clients to sign strategic alliances in 15 countries, resulting in agreements worth $145 million.

Another contact, a manufacturer of office furniture, has asked his Linkedin network for recommendations about his products, asking permission to include some of their comments in his U.S. advertising copy. Both of these canny executives are aware that it is impossible to know what will hook a potential American client, but one said: “In the current U.S. market, my best chance of being noticed and getting new business is to rely on a perception of success. I don’t want to be cynical, but in the States we have just seen proof on the adage that perception equals reality!”

The other way: relationships

That being said, it is worth noting that experienced exporters with clients in other countries are not changing their traditional promotional activities to boast of their prowess. Instead, they prefer to rely on long-lasting relationships with suppliers and clients abroad.

In most countries, the effort of establishing a personal bond with local contacts pays off in the long run.

A Canadian sportswear exporter to Latin America told me that, “… my Brazilian importer has become part of my extended family, and his son is now living with us in Canada. You can’t beat the kinds of relationships that can develop over time!”

Another Ontario-based franchise consultant made a concerted effort to learn Spanish, and now has a network of associates in Latin America and Southern Europe that he visits regularly. Without developing these contacts, his business would have remained a small domestic operation.

The Canadian way

Experience shows that every market must be served individually. While marketing methods may be successful in one market, it may not bring the hoped for results in another. There are no quick fixes in international trade – maintaining a steady focused effort to be the best in what you do will always succeed in the end.

The Canadian way still works:

1. adjust to your target market’s needs
2. rely on investing in personal relationships… and
3. avoid excessive bragging.

The way that newer generations are communicating, however, is changing worldwide. We now live in a world where the current generation’s attention span has dropped to 8 seconds and people increasingly communicate with emojis and 140-character tweets.

Within the next four years, almost 3 billion people worldwide will be on social media, simultaneously multi-tasking on up to 5 different devices. Many of them no longer have the time (or inclination) to stop and look up at the person they are interacting with.

Given these circumstances, how will these future executives interact in foreign markets, where meaningful exchanges with other cultures are still based on careful development of face-to-face personal relationships?

Technology can’t replace the “live” experience

Many will argue that seeing someone on a screen is just as effective as face-to-face interaction. They would argue that foreign executives have their own electronic identities and websites with the ability to communicate virtually around the world.  But it is also a fact that anyone who wants to succeed internationally cannot simply refer their new contacts to a Facebook or LinkedIn profile.

Any seasoned international executive knows that meaningful exchanges with other cultures will always be based on the careful development of a personal relationship.

In many international cultures, the decision to trust another person can only be done “live”, meaning developed in-person. Communicating via blogs, forums, business networks, photo-sharing platforms, chat apps, “selfies”, Twitter Feeds, etc, can be useful, but is not enough to build a trusting business relationship.

While videoconferencing, webinars and Skype are excellent methods of communication, nothing replaces a warm handshake, a respectful bow, the verbal exchange of personal confidences, or a spontaneous hug.

Cultures around the world are comparably proficient at communicating electronically, but in order to succeed in foreign markets, North American executives will have to remember the way of doing business on a one-on-one basis. To do that, they’re going to have to dig deep into their subconscious memory-banks and once again add this forgotten skill to their business quiver.

Remembering the basics of international business relationships

1. It takes two to tango.

It is not enough to hope that someone will read and reply to a text or email, or even react positively to viewing a website. To obtain (and evaluate) an answer, nothing replaces face-to-face communication composed of verbal and nonverbal messages.

Millenials and Generation Zers will have to re-learn this ability by joining and participating in networking groups such as BNI (Business Network International) –or even practicing one-on-one communication skills by talking to strangers.

An executive I know likes to strike up conversations in office tower elevators, asking people what they do and exchanging business cards (the 30 second elevator pitch). He even goes so far as complimenting someone for their choice of tie in order to find common ground.

Fifty percent of the time he succeeds, and an interesting conversation ensues, while at other times he is simply ignored. Imagine if you did this just twice a day – that’s one new business contact every day.

2. Learning about other cultures.

It is natural that those interested in other cultures will go online to learn the basics of interacting abroad and follow social media related to one’s country of interest.

However, all this secondary data is never as valuable as one’s own primary research, resulting from personally interacting with individuals from that culture. Chambers of Commerce and business clubs representing foreign countries exist in most major cities and their websites publish cultural and business events open to the public.

A businesswoman I know was planning a trip to Japan. As part of her research she visited the Japanese Consulate and chatted with the Trade Commissioner, attended a function at a local Japanese Cultural Center, and met with visiting Japanese executives who were part of an incoming delegation.

By interacting with and watching the visitors’ body language, she was able to round out the dry statistics she had read about during her research.

Naturally, these steps take time and effort. But in order to be successful in establishing international relationships, it will always be important to be able to look at foreign clients in the eye and create a personal bond.

It takes more than a well-written social media profile, offering a fist-bump or leaping to an exuberant high-five to succeed internationally.

Because today’s society does not have the time to delve further into each piece of information being fed to us, we listen, absorb and make decisions based on what we hear and see on CNN, “News at 6”, LinkedIn, daily newspapers, blogs and other handy sources of information.

These sources of instant information guide us through our daily lives. They provide us with hand-picked, often superficial opinions of what is happening at home and abroad, and we shape our business decisions accordingly.

A cry to action for international entrepreneurs

My “cri de guerre” to Canadian executives is to return to your entrepreneurial roots, where you made decisions based on a combination of gut-feel, self-belief and adventurous courage, rather than ONLY on measured facts and figures. (OMG!)

We know that the following situations will affect us all, but rather than wait and see how they turn out before reacting, I exhort business executives to make note of them and then make a move.

For example,

U.S. Election 2016

Americans will choose their next President in November 2016, and a leading candidate threatens the U.S.’ established trade agreements with other countries. With 80% of our exports going to NAFTA members, will the election affect our two-way trade figures? Should we wait for November 2016, or start seeking new markets to do business with now?

Instability in Brazil

Brazil, South America’s largest country and Canada’s leading trading partner in the region, is tottering under corruption and governmental changes. Will Canada’s $6 billion two-way trade in goods and services be affected? And if so, wouldn’t it be better to have other markets in the region already on our radar?

Brexit

Apparently copying Catalonia, Scotland and Quebec, the UK is now considering independence to leave the European Union in June 2016. Will this affect Canada’s most important trading relationship in Europe? And if it happens, wouldn’t it be wise for Canadians to start negotiating with other potential markets in case the UK leaves the EU?

Trade deal with China

Canada is forecasting 25,000 new jobs by 2030 resulting from a free trade agreement with China, our second largest trading partner. Will China’s current economic slowdown affect this optimistic plan? Should we follow in our new Prime Minister’s footsteps, creating the potential for new jobs by establishing ties with companies in Japan and Vietnam?

Here in Canada we read amusing business headlines such as “Bank of Canada uncertain about one thing: things are uncertain”. Nevertheless, if Canadian businesses just sit and wait, worried about events they cannot control, things will continue to be uncertain.

Businesses cannot postpone decisions – the time to act is now

Flustered and bewildered by the continuous changes and events happening around the world on a daily basis, many businesses are quietly postponing any decisive international move for fear of making a costly mistake.

While the IMF says that “Canada is solid, despite everything”, Canadian businesses must recognize that foreign markets will not automatically open up to their products; global economies will not easily become available to their service exports; world events will not “settle down” and allow Canadians the luxury of making decisions with calm, well-reasoned and precise forecasts.

Again I repeat my battle cry: make a move forward now! I urge Canadian executives to make a move now, and make an effort to look for new markets, instead of waiting for world events to tell us what to do.

Many executives know of the sales & marketing adage known as the Pareto Principle, which claims that about 20 percent of customers produce 80 percent of a company’s sales.

In fact, the 80/20 principle is also applied to disparate activities such as relationships, diets, exercise, distribution of wealth, quality control, software, economics and other interesting sectors of our day-to-day life.

However, in Canada’s case the reverse is true.  In addition, services-producing industries account for more than 70 percent of Canada’s GDP.

Making a case for services                   

In spite of the growing importance of the service sector, the government’s economic reports still concentrate their statistics on manufactured goods.

Statistics Canada describes Canada’s economy as one “divided into two sectors: the goods-producing sector which makes tangible products, and the services-producing sector which is essentially everything else”.

One of the reasons for the catch-all phrase “everything else” is that services are intangible and cannot be easily identified or tracked, therefore making them more difficult for statisticians to trace.

Manufactured goods such as medical and sporting equipment, metal products, petroleum/electronic/computer products, machinery, chemicals, transportation equipment, food, clothing and many other tangible products provide researchers with actual proof of manufacturing and export activity.

These very specific figures are then compared to the competition and become part of Canada’s official statistics.

On the other hand, the “everything else” of the services sector represents intangible activities such as R&D, engineering, telecommunications, financial services, management consulting, insurance, tourism and many others, all of which are almost invisible, untouchable and often very personal.

The impact of services

Apart from the fact that 4 out of 5 Canadians are employed by the services sector, 60 percent of Canada’s fastest growing exports over the last decade were services.

Interestingly enough, un-sexy sectors like finance and insurance services represent Canada’s largest and fastest growing exports today, with management services close behind. Their commonality is that they are all hard to track.

Canada is excelling at selling services

Selling any kind of service is much more difficult than selling a manufactured product. Goods can be touched, tested and physically compared to the competition, while a service often cannot even be seen.

It is based almost totally on the perception or the promise created at first contact, and only later on the service delivered.

In addition, while selling services in one’s own home market can be difficult, the challenge of selling Canadian services in foreign markets is even greater.

In an international situation, the service is being sold by a Canadian to a potential foreign client who speaks another language and follows different business standards and traditions.

Convincing that potential client that a Canadian concept, idea or service would work better than what is readily available in the client’s home turf is often a major undertaking.

In spite of these hurdles however, Canada seems to excel at selling services internationally, since service exports now account for 44 percent of the nation’s international trade.

Furthermore, over the last decade, 3 of Canada’s 5 fastest growing exports were services exports.

Not the end of manufacturing

Manufactured goods represent only 30 percent of Canada’s economy, but this is not the end of Canadian manufacturing because services and products are deeply integrated with each other.

Activities like R&D, engineering, telecommunications and management consulting all help to make Canadian products more competitive abroad.

Economists worry about the competition that natural resources and manufactured products exports face internationally, but it is worth noting that with services comprising so many of the country’s fastest growing exports, Canada’s international economic future remains as bright as ever.

Give Canada’s service sector experts their due recognition

The success of the Canadian services sector has gone largely unnoticed, yet it represents Canada’s strongest recent trade growth, while simultaneously protecting businesses against negative economic cycles.

The 4 out of 5 Canadians working in the service sector are helping to keep Canada in the forefront of international trade, and are vital participants in Canada’s expanding global commerce.

They should be recognized for their importance in our economy.

Encouraged by his comments, I asked if he had always been a taxi driver and he laughed.

No, I was a construction engineer, and then the general manager of a chain of stores in Europe…. but when I came here I could not get a job and had to start all over again, so now I drive a taxi.

He laughed again and shrugged philosophically, adding “at least my kids will do better here, I hope.”

A couple of days later my wife’s Russian hairdresser told her she was taking some trade courses in order to re-qualify for, and hopefully return to, her original career as a freight forwarder that she enjoyed before emigrating to Canada.

A week after these exchanges, an article in the Canadian Press claimed that our post-secondary institutions are not producing enough graduates with the right skills to drive future economic growth.

The president of one of Canada’s leading banks, CIBC CEO Victor Dodig, said that we graduate students who are over-qualified but do not have the skills needed by industries.

He added that Canadian post-secondary education is not producing the types of skills needed by our industries, and that a lot of people are under-qualified for the jobs that need to be filled.

It’s a problem with an obvious solution

How can we complain that we do not have people with the skills to help our economy, while bringing in educated and qualified immigrants who are screened for their potential, who bring their innovative and entrepreneurial ideas, and yet have to do menial jobs because businesses won’t hire them?

It will take time for our educational institutions to listen and understand Dodig’s plea.

In the meantime we should be taking advantage of the expertise that is here now.

While we wait for any new educational programs to be put into effect (if Canada’s post-secondary institutions are to take heed of Dodig’s message), it is very likely that Canada’s economy will contract and global competition will affect us negatively.

The opportunities outweigh the challenges

As we read about the imminent arrival of yet more newcomers in the next few months, we are told that the screening process seeks to attract individuals with business skills and expertise.

But the Canadian life experience of people like the taxi driver and the hairdresser shows that once many former business people are here, they cannot find jobs that take advantage of the knowledge and experience they had before they came to Canada.

There is no doubt that integrating other cultures, foreign languages and different ways of doing business into our economy is not easy, but companies should be seeking ways to harness newcomers’ former business experience in real terms.

Canadian businesses cannot ignore that world competition is increasingly fierce, and that international markets are evolving continuously. We therefore need to take advantage of our new Canadians’ practical business expertise to help us compete globally in today’s markets, while waiting for our graduates to learn the business skills needed to succeed.

We need to change our mindset to change results

Newcomers’ willingness to come to a new country and live “the Canadian dream” should not be stymied by the temporary difficulties of integrating them once they are here.

Every newcomer makes an incredible personal and professional investment when leaving their country to come to Canada.

Businesses have to find ways to make a similar commitment, and accept (and take advantage of) new Canadians’ skills and willingness to work.

We want newcomers to adjust to us, but do not seem able to adjust to them by giving them a chance to work for us. As Dodig says, other countries like the UK and Germany, for example, help and support innovators and newcomers – why can’t Canada do the same?

It seems, however, that Canada is missing the opportunity of harnessing the real skills of hundreds of thousands of immigrants, while waiting for our graduates to get up to speed. And that’s something that cannot continue if Canada wants to remain competitive on a global scale.

In the case of Canadian exporters, this will often include using the services of Trade Commissioners abroad who can offer suggestions on local agents to contact, or potential new clients to pitch.

Professionals also frequently turn to online channels for international networking, including LinkedIn and Twitter, as a quick way to try to make new contacts.

However, business pressure will often blind a Canadian executive to other ways of developing international contacts and the following out-of-the-box methods can bring surprising results.

1. Get in touch with Canadians overseas

An unusual source of contacts abroad is the Canadian ExPat Association, an international organisation that provides access to Canadian clubs and business organisations around the world.

Membership totals 2.8 million Canadians living abroad, each one knowledgeable about the market s/he is living in and with a network that others would never have access to otherwise.

Hearing an unexpected Canadian voice on the phone asking for assistance will undoubtedly encourage an expatriate to help, and most will be delighted to provide insights on their market to the new exporter.

The saving in time and effort to develop new leads and learn about a new market is incalculable.

After retiring as a Trade Commissioner, I lived in Brussels for a year and once received a phone call from a Canadian exporter. He had taken the trouble to locate me and asked for information on the Benelux market.

Two years later he introduced himself to me at a Toronto seminar to tell me that my contacts had resulted in several lucrative deals for his company in the Dutch market.

2. Canadian Chambers of Commerce abroad

There are many Canadian Chambers and business clubs in foreign capitals created by individuals who want to establish ties with Canada. The Brazil-Canada Chamber of Commerce in Sao Paulo and the Chambre de Commerce France-Canada in Paris are good examples.

I was a member of both of those Chambers when I lived in those countries and Canadian business visitors were particularly welcome as they were able to provide members with current up-to-date information on what was happening in Canada at that very moment.

I remember a Toronto-based executive who, in spite of speaking atrocious French, was nevertheless able to partner with a company based in Lyons and start what would eventually result in a partnership to manufacture household appliances for the French market.

3. Local Chambers of Commerce abroad

A different approach is to become a Canada-based member of a Chamber in another country. For example, a Chamber of Commerce in a small town in Texas helps local business members to do business within the U.S.

Several years ago, as a Canadian businessman based in Toronto, I became an “international member” of such a Chamber and attended some of their meetings. The result was that my new network of local contacts started looking at Canada as a new source of products. And as an added benefit to the Chamber, it was then able to boast that their membership was now “international” – a win-win situation.

4. Foreign Chambers of Commerce and Clubs at home

Countless Chambers across Canada represent foreign countries, such as the Italian Chamber, the Japanese Chamber, the American Chamber, the Canada-Arab Chamber and others.

Apart from local cultural activities, members are also interested in business. Along with personal contacts, they can also provide the names of executives of their related Chambers in the foreign market being targeted.

When making contact abroad, mentioning that their Chamber counterpart in Canada had suggested the call will open many doors.

Held captive by electronic social media communication, it is easy to forget the magic of a personal relationship and the effect of a “live voice” over the phone, particularly when it comes from abroad.

Although telephoning a stranger in a foreign country is a gamble, the worst that can happen is that the other party is not interested – all one will have lost is a little time and a few dollars.

However, the magic of a live voice from another part of the world is sure to bring about a positive reaction, a new relationship … and often some unexpected results.

One such example was an initial phone call which led to the appointment of an Agent in Brazil. Two years later, the President of the Canadian exporting company married the Agent after successfully developing the Mercosur market together.

When was the last time you picked up the phone to build a new business relationship? Which of these channels could potentially be a big help for your business?