This was adopted by businesses that remained productive and profitable during that time of economic disruption.

Subsequently, during the Covid-19 pandemic, we noticed, businesses that maintained a global productivity mindset were able to innovate and tweak their processes rapidly to tap into new market opportunities. This resulted in resiliency and growth.

New packaging to serve a new demand

An example of resilience and innovation involved a restaurant that modified the method of serving food. This restaurant identified an opportunity to support truck drivers making deliveries across the Canada and United States border. During the Covid-19 pandemic period, many food outlets along trucking routes were either closed or limited services to drive-through.

Most trucks could not use the drive-through services. The restaurant modified their food packaging to individual serving portions of ready to eat meals. These meals were offered both as freshly cooked and frozen sealed packs. These individual portions were ideal for truckers on their long drives across the border and back. The frozen meal packs were convenient as these could be heated up in the trucks. This enabled truckers to continue deliveries in a timely manner.

The restaurant’s business has grown into a specialty supplier of meals for the trucking industry. An additional benefit was the popularity of these meal packs with students. The restaurant flourished and maintained its take-out unit even after the pandemic. There were no layoffs as servers were re-trained and deployed as packers.

Reaching a wider audience through online services

We ourselves, pivoted to providing lectures at the university using online video platforms. This enabled more rural and out of province students to register and attend classes.

Fellow lecturers at institutions across the country contributed ideas on how to make online teaching more effective. This experience has created opportunities to provide consulting and training services online to clients across a wider geographical reach.

Modifying products to take advantage of near-shore supplies

A local chef who had trained at a Canadian culinary college was able to modify Hong Kong comfort food recipes to the taste of his customers. He utilized ingredients readily available in abundant supply. By doing this he avoided supply chain disruptions in delivery of exotic ingredients from Asia.

Applying a global productivity mindset, he sourced for local ingredients through near-shoring for supplies. He retrained his staff on how to prepare these new menu items. With a more resilient supply of ingredients secured, this enterprising chef was able to grow his customer base and open a branch across the city.

A global productivity mindset helps businesses to stay focused on producing more with existing resources.

Many businesses responded rapidly to the pandemic restrictions by tweaking processes to ensure health and safety of both customers and staff. They limited number of customers entering the stores at any one time and provided hygiene training to staff.

To secure a steady supply, some stores consolidated the range of fresh produce and processed products to items having secured local and international suppliers. A productivity mindset encouraged initiative to ensure resiliency in the supply chain which resulted in continued profitability.

An international café chain has established a network of near-shoring suppliers to ensure timely delivery of fresh coffee beans to their café branches across continents. For their café branches in North America, coffee beans are sourced from growers in South America. Coffee beans for the café branches in Southeast Asia are sourced from growers within the region.Having multiple suppliers within local regions ensures reliability and resilience in their supply chains

Businesses can now pivot towards serving the growing population of middleclass consumers worldwide. This can be achieved through a combination of friend-shoring, near-shoring and re-shoring with businesses along the supply chain adopting a global productivity mindset.

Applying such a mindset to decision making on raw material sourcing or location of manufacturing can result in greater resiliency in the supply chain.

What makes a business able to pivot while others can’t?

We investigated as to why some businesses were able to adapt while others found it difficult to do so. One factor that stood out with those able to adapt was in the fact that prior to the pandemic lockdown the more agile businesses had business owners with a productivity mindset focused on maintaining cash-flow and customer satisfaction.

There was a steep learning curve for many businesses and those focused on productivity and innovation, were able to learn and adapt to the unfamiliar environment.

The successful businesses illustrated in this article all had a global productivity mindset whether they were aware or not. They remained focused on their vision and mission.

This resulted in innovations that helped maintain customer satisfaction while preserving cash flow. This combination improved productivity and promoted business growth.

Stay faithful to your long-term vision and use your mission statement to drive innovation that maintains competitiveness even when market conditions change.

This is the essence of a global productivity mindset, a critical asset that enables business leaders to achieve and maintain success.

Avoid cutting expenses that will cost more in the long run

We are now experiencing potentially disruptive economic conditions that include supply chain challenges, inflation and the introduction of artificial intelligence, all happening simultaneously across industries worldwide. In this environment, it is the most agile leaders with a mindset focused on productivity who will be the ones to succeed.

Some organizations have taken the decision to cut expenses by laying off employees in the higher pay bracket. This can result in a double loss:

1. The morale among the remaining employees can go down, thereby reducing their productivity; and,
2. When the economic situation improves, the organization will have to spend more on training new employees.

Adopting a global productivity mindset can help organizations retain their premium employees in adverse conditions.

3 ways to apply a global productivity mindset

To acquire a global productivity mindset, make sure your work processes are aligned to a long-term vision that shapes a mission driven productive work culture.

To inspire and drive productive performance:

1. Encourage team members to seek out fresh perspectives, training, and flexibility in work practices.
2. Match talent to job requirements, and challenge team members to innovate and adapt to change.
3. Utilize the feel-good factor of achievement to encourage sustainable productive output.

Why not try tapping into the global productivity mindset to see how your business can utilize your existing resources more innovatively?

 “Vision and mission statements must come off the boardroom walls and be instilled into the workforce as a global productivity mindset driving the organization” – Quote from Page 12

Since many of us transitioned from the office to remote work during the pandemic, it seems here to stay, at least for a significant portion of the workforce. According to Forbes,  “25% of all professional jobs in North America will be remote by the end of 2022, and remote opportunities will continue to increase through 2023.”

With the transition to remote work comes the switch to largely “virtual” business meetings, and that means online negotiation is becoming a new normal that we need to study as a separate method of negotiation.

Obviously, online and face-to-face negotiations have a lot of similarities, but there are some crucial differences between them which require negotiators to adjust their processes and consider some additional strategies. For example, shifting from in-person to online meetings lowers costs significantly by removing the expenses of international travel.

However, the low cost of online negotiations shouldn’t stop experts from taking these virtual negotiations seriously.

The same amount of preparation and attention to detail should be taken for all online negotiation sessions, and a good place to start is to consider these 10 tips for how to conduct effective online negotiations.

1. Optimize and troubleshoot hardware and IT systems in advance

Assign an IT expert to take care of hardware, software, internet connection and security. All negotiation teams need to provide suitable hardware for negotiations. You specifically need to select high-quality web cameras, large and high-resolution monitors, and headsets. Negotiation teams need to send and receive high quality video and audio to transmit understandable verbal and non-verbal messages.

Your desktop window should be clean, and no additional files should be open during the meeting. Furthermore, in order to avoid background noises and send and receive good quality audio, you might require professional microphones or headsets. Most recent laptops and computers are suitable for online negotiations, but as mentioned, the quality of camera, monitor and microphone should be high enough quality to handle online sessions effectively.

All needed software should be installed and set up on your system. You also need to check the quality of Internet connectivity and consider its speed and reliability to avoid interruptions in communication.

Cyber security is an important consideration these days, and all negotiation teams need to take care of communication and systems’ security.

Select a suitable background for your screen and make any modifications needed to have a professional environment for anything that will appear on screen during your meeting. You can add some organizational and personal certificates, use your company’s  colours, logos and slogans. Your brand and company identity can be demonstrated well in your background.

Double-check all of the above the day before the negotiation session.

2. Prepare your digital documents and presentations

Take your time and prepare professional presentations for the meeting. All files which will be shared, demonstrated, or played in the meeting must be complete, polished and “presentation-ready”, as appropriate for communications outside of your organization. Slides, videos and online catalogues must be ready on the screen that you are going to share. Make sure that you are using the latest version of each file.

3. Consider time zones and time management

There are two main aspects related to time management in online negotiations. First, consider time zones and choose the right time slot that works for everyone. In many of my online negotiations we are meeting with multiple time zones between the teams and even in some situations, different members of the same team.

All attendees are expected to be flexible and accept early morning or late afternoon meetings if there is no other option. I keep a wide window open for meetings with international clients, from at least 7 am to 8 pm.

Second, it’s important to prepare a well-thought out agenda, agreed upon at the beginning of the meeting. Ensure you’ve planned enough time to cover all subjects, in an order that makes sense. I usually prefer to cover technical, commercial, financial, and legal issues in sequential order. This will help me save time and avoid doubling back to already-discussed topics.

4. Determine on-camera and “behind the scenes” roles

Determine the role of people in front and behind the camera. Some active members of the team, like analyzers and translators, might not be in front of the camera. Before the meeting, determine which members will be in front of the camera and what are the expectations from each person. There must be some arrangements between the people who have their cameras on for sending and receiving intra-group messages.

For those who are offering “behind the scenes” support and won’t be on camera, the role should be clear, and they should be trained to do their assigned job automatically.

For example, if an Internet search needs to be done during the session, these experts should know to initiate the search and deliver the results fast.

5. Wear appropriate business attire

You might think that it is not necessary to dress professionally when you are negotiating from the comfort of your home, or you might decide to just wear a formal shirt. I strongly recommend that you dress professionally from head to toe, even if you are negotiating from home.

Your entire outfit should be appropriately formal, even the aspects that you believe won’t be visible on camera.

Psychologically, it helps you to take the session seriously, focus on the job, and will avoid any unexpected embarrassment.

6. Join the meeting professionally

Punctuality is an important quality for any professional. Joining the meeting on time is a crucial part of making a good first-impression online or otherwise. All kinds of confusion and inconvenience can occur when someone is late to join. A late arrival also sends the message that you do not respect the other parties’ time. If you will be late for any unforeseen reason, advise the other parties as soon as possible.

The joining process on most platforms can take a minute or so, therefore, start the process a couple of minutes ahead of the set time. This is especially important for the organizer, who is expected to join the meeting first and admit other participants into the virtual meeting room. You don’t want to keep your colleagues waiting in the lobby. All members should ensure that their complete first and last name when joining the meeting.

It’s a good idea to pay attention to the background and environment of the other party at the beginning of the meeting and say something positive about it. This behavior shows that you pay attention to details, and can also be an effective ice breaking strategy.

7. Convey the correct body language

Correct posture is important, especially when you start the meeting. Sitting up straight and maintaining sufficient distance from the camera is another key element. This demonstrates experience and confidence and also provides the other party with a good view of your body language, including your hand movements. Keep the camera on and make any necessary adjustments during the meeting.

Make eye contact in all communications, and look at the camera instead of looking at your own image on the screen. Pay attention to non-verbal messages in your virtual negotiation environment. A practical application of body language is to show agreement or disagreement gestures while the other party is talking. In this way, you send your messages without interrupting the other party. And of course, mute the microphone when you are not talking, and ensure you have turned it back on when it’s your turn to speak.

8. Communicate effectively – both with your internal team and external parties

If your organization’s team members aren’t in the same place, prepare a side communication network for transmitting confidential messages. For example, you might want to create a group on an application such as WhatsApp. This will help you simultaneously send and receive confidential messages while being in the main online meeting.

Connect with one system if your team members are in the same room, or use a head set so that the sound doesn’t echo. The audio quality is critical in online negotiations and anything that compromises that must be avoided. Just as in an in-person meeting, it’s important to keep up a professional tone to all communication, being direct and to the point, and keep up energy levels and clarity throughout.

Negotiation is a difficult activity and requires a lot of physical energy and mental ability. It is highly recommended to build in a  15-minute break for every 90 minutes of continuous negotiation.

Multitasking is also difficult to manage during business negotiations, so be careful not to get distracted. Ensure you have supporting staff present to take care of any tasks during the meeting, such as conduct searches, bring up information, or send emails or other communications.

9. Keep detailed minutes

Negotiation teams need to take notes for future records and reporting purposes. As mentioned, multitasking is hard, therefore each team may want to assign someone as note-keeper in online negotiations. This person might not be in front of the camera but can view the meeting and support you with written memos and keep notes of the meeting.

During online communication there are a lot of opportunities for misunderstandings, from technical snafus to misread body language. To combat these potential miscommunications, it’s a good idea to regularly summarize and capture crucial items that have been agreed upon in writing.

10. Avoid screen sharing snafus

To reiterate from tips 1 and 2, while sharing the screen, avoid having confidential information open on the computer. You might make a mistake for a moment and share the wrong window. One strategy might be to have two screens and always share screen number two and keep all confidential windows on screen number one. There might be some people on the other party’s team who know your local language, so avoid expressing any confidential intra-team messages in your native language in a way that is audible to the other party. Conversely, it might also be advantageous for your team to have someone present who understands the other party’s language.

At the end of the meeting, briefly express appreciation to everyone and send the minutes of the meeting to the other party immediately.

Remember to treat each online negotiation with the same  high importance you give in-person negotiations, and paying attention to technology, team support, time, and communication styles are critical to your success.

One of the most important skills to learn in business is negotiating. It’s an art that you must master to gain partnerships and clients, and conduct business well. However, when it comes to doing business with companies in other countries, or international negotiation, you’ll have to take your negotiation skills to a whole new level.

International negotiation can feel daunting and uncomfortable at times. One small, innocent mistake or misunderstanding due to cultural differences can jeopardize an entire deal. Fortunately, there are specific ways you can avoid these mistakes and prepare for international negotiations, so you can successfully close your business deal.

Educate yourself on the culture

Before you step into the meeting room to start negotiating with an international client or company, educate yourself on their culture. This world is beautifully diverse with different people and customs, and it’s important to be aware and considerate of them. Not only does this broaden your mindset, but it also shows that you respect others when you acknowledge their culture.

The first things you should learn are their traditions, etiquette, mealtime rituals and customs, greetings, and overall mannerisms. This is especially important when enjoying a business meal or hopping on a Zoom call with an international client, as some things that may be traditional in your culture are seen as offensive in others. Knowing this essential information will put you far ahead of other businesses dealing with international relations.

Learn more about conducting business in international markets with the online FITTskills course Feasibility of International Trade.

Body language does most of the talking

Have you ever noticed that you can tell when two people are arguing or upset with each other even if they do not understand what they’re saying? This is because we can read their body language and understand the emotions they’re feeling.

You may be surprised to learn that most of our communication is done through body language. How we hold our hands, the expressions on our faces, and even how far we stand apart from someone can hint at how we are feeling.

According to Dr. Albert Mehrabian at UCLA, 7% of our communication is done through spoken word, 38% is through tone of voice, and 55% is through body language. Studies have also shown that people who are more animated when they speak, such as those who use their hands or put up their fingers when talking about numbers, retain people’s attention longer.

Since body language is our main form of communication, it’s essential to learn about certain gestures and mannerisms of the culture you’re going into international negotiations with. A simple gesture in your culture may mean something completely different to other cultures.

Mastering microexpressions

Microexpressions are a universal way of communicating through body language. Darwin first noticed these involuntarily facial expressions and across different cultures. It was Dr. Paul Ekman who then proved Darwin’s theory and found the display of emotions such as anger, fear, disgust, happiness, sadness, surprise, and contempt were the same for most people.

Understanding and identifying these microexpressions can make international negotiating much easier because of their universality. Pay attention to your counterpart’s face and keep an eye out for these microexpressions while negotiating for insight as to how they’re feeling.

Handshakes 

In most cultures, handshakes are used when first meeting someone or at the start of a business meeting. However, the type of handshake and the rules around them differ.

A firm handshake is preferred in the US, Canada, and Brazil, while in Europe and Asia, a looser handshake is often used. In Turkey, firm handshakes are actually considered rude.

It’s also important to note that women in Australia generally do not shake hands with other women, and women and men generally do not shake hands in Islamic cultures [1].

Personal space

The distance between two people is also different depending on the culture.

North America, Northern Europe, and Asia tend to keep a further distance and have less contact with people. Those in Southern Europe, the Middle East, and South American prefer standing closer together and having more contact.

Eye contact

If you’re a seasoned negotiator, you know just how important eye contact is when speaking with someone and know you must balance just enough eye contact. In fact, some cultures in the Caribbean view too much eye contact as aggressive.

A good rule of thumb is to maintain eye contact 50% of the time when you’re speaking and 70% when someone else is speaking.

Politely probe for more information

While body language greatly contributes to communication, speaking is just as important. Even just the tone of our voice is important to consider when negotiating with international clients. Some cultures tend to speak softly and maintain calmer conversations, while others, such as Italians, tend to talk at a higher volume and interrupt each other.

While how you probe depends on where you are and to whom you are speaking, asking questions is an essential phase of negotiating as it is the most impactful way to gain insightful information from your counterpart. It will help you discern their needs and thoughts. Not to mention, doing so gives the other side a platform to speak, which is a great way to build relationships.

Prepare your questions ahead of time and be sure your questions are appropriate to ask in their culture. A quick rule of thumb is to start broad, flush out all the key aspects of importance to the other side before you dig into a specific issue, and try to use open-ended questions whenever possible.

Concluding your negotiation

The end goal of any negotiation, international or domestic, is to reach an agreement that benefits both parties. Before entering the negotiation, have an idea of what your end goal is; what will be the outcome if your negotiation is successful or not?

Be strategic when you propose your offer. A quick tip is to be specific with your numbers as that indicates to the other side that your offer is well thought through. And, avoid ranges, as the other side always hears the side of the range that is most advantageous to them.

Become successful at international negotiation

International negotiations aren’t easy, but you will be more successful if you prepare for them. Ultimately, in any situation, the best negotiators are those who are well-prepared; they ask insightful questions and propose solutions that maximize their share but still satisfy the other side. In international negotiations, you just need to add an additional step of preparation to demonstrate respect for the other party. Do this, and you will find negotiation success.

Learn how to accurately determine if your business is prepared to venture into new markets with the online FITTskills workshop Situational Analysis.

[1] Lares, Cochran, and Digan (2021). Persuade: The 4-Step Process to Influence People and Decisions, Wiley, 161.

Question 1: What languages do my customers speak?

If you’re writing in a Western European language and translating into another similar language (French into Italian or German into English, etc.), there are plenty of translators to choose from. However, if you need to enter Asian markets such as Japan, China, or Thailand, it is best to make sure your texts are firstly written in English. This is because the pool of translators working in certain language pairs (Spanish into Korean, for example) is much smaller, and consequently prices climb.

You should also avoid what is called relay translation. This is when a translation is translated again, into a third language—for example, German to English to Japanese. As in the childhood chain-whispers game, messaging can quickly become garbled and your carefully crafted text loses all meaning.

Question 2: How much humour and creativity does it actually need?

Translators excel at research, so checking technical terms is relatively easy. However, it is far more difficult—and time-consuming—to convey wordplay, sayings, proverbs, and metaphors in translation.

Here’s an example from the English-speaking world. We know copywriters like to play with words and create amusing lines like “Orange you glad to see me?” When read aloud, it sounds like “Aren’t you glad to see me?” Combine it with a picture of an orange and you have created a humorous ad.

However, other countries are less used to this sort of wordplay. There is a danger your audience won’t understand it, even if the translator manages to find something similar.

If you base a campaign on this sort of linguistic joke, the translation becomes difficult. After all, in our example, the word and picture work together. What is a German translator going to do with a picture of an orange with the German word for orange: “Apfelsine”?

As you can see, something like this would be unlikely to turn into a consistent international campaign. So, when you’re designing your campaign, think about how creative you want it to be.

Learn how to create a strong international brand and develop effective sales and marketing strategies in international markets with the online FITTskills International Sales & Marketing course.

Question 3: Could it be clearer, sharper, and more consistent?

When you write your copy, keep the KISS principle in mind: “Keep it short and simple.” Consider for a moment that French translations are often 20% longer than German texts, and up to 40% longer than English. How will that work with your design? Or will this longer copy take up too much space in your ad?

Even within the English language, you need to be precise. If you use an American copywriter, they usually write out the dates in full, but for readers from other countries, something like 03/02/2021  can mean the 3^rd of February or the 2^nd of March. You should also consider how you want to handle prices and currency. Are the prices all incorporated into the text? Does your $ sign refer to a US, Canadian or Australian dollar? Perhaps you could insert a table at the end containing the relevant currencies. Translators or graphic designers can then simply swap the prices out according to the market—but if you forget to do so, customers may feel misled.

Be consistent with terminology. Always use the same words for terms that are especially important for your company and your industry. One translation per term is enough. If you are writing about a blog, then call it that every time. Not blog the first time, then post, then article.

Question 4: Are you active or passive?

Understanding the active versus the passive voice is almost instinctive in most people. You know it when you see it, even if you don’t really know the rule. If you read the line “The ball is kicked by John,” something just doesn’t feel right. That’s because it’s a passive statement. However, “John kicked the ball” simply sounds more dynamic and natural.

So, ensure you plan your ideas and messages as directly as possible. Instead of “this is where you get help,” try “we’re happy to help.” Similarly, instead of “this is why the product has sold so well,” try “this is why our product is a bestseller.”

And a bonus tip for all you graphic designers out there. Avoid hard line breaks. Although they help the content to flow better within your layout, they make it difficult for translation agencies to export your text. They can also cause a lot of post-processing and unnecessary additional costs. The cleaner your layout, the faster and cheaper your agency can complete your typesetting.

Other tips to consider when creating content for international markets

Many translation agencies offer copywriting as an additional service. Consider briefing them directly to write your copy, thus removing a step from the process and saving you time and money.

Here’s a useful checklist for any copywriter who is creating content for international markets:

• Keep it short and sweet. French translations can be up to 40% longer than English source texts. Plan for this extra space in your layout.
• Make the content simple and clear so everyone can understand.
• Think about how you want dates or currencies to be written out.
• Don’t use puns or wordplay. Humour isn’t just difficult to translate, it’s also easily misunderstood, especially when your audience is international.
• Be consistent with terminology. One translation per term is enough. Are you writing about a blog? Then that’s what you call it every time.
• Use active language. Not only is it easier to translate, but it is also better stylistically and easier to understand than passive language.

From my more than 20 years in Asia Pacific experience, I believe the 3 key parts of an effective ASEAN entry strategy are as follows:

1) Strategic planning

2) A sales and marketing strategy

3) A channel design process.

1. Strategic planning

Strategic planning is about identifying and deciding where and how to compete and, more importantly, determining how to win based on keen analytics, facts and logical thought processes. We want to minimize assumptions and biases as best we can to reduce risk exposure.

This all starts with marketplace research and analytics derived from both secondary and primary data. This needs to go well beyond basic and generalized economic data such as GDP. The GDP formulation is simply Consumption + Investment + Government Spending + Net Exports. It doesn’t peel back the onion layers of a market, nor does it tell us where we fit in the GDP formulation.

Companies should include a comprehensive macro-analysis, including social, legal, economic, political and technological factors (known in the marketing world as the SLEPT factors).

In brief summary

Social and cultural factors shape consumer and customer behaviours.

Legal encompasses compliance and IP related issues—obviously, we need to make sure we meet product compliance standards and properly register our trademarks and copyrights.

Politics drive Economic as well as trade and investment policies (which should influence business decisions).

Technology refers to market sophistication, technology adoption and the competitive landscape.

The strategic planning process must also include micro-analysis to help select the best markets based on economic opportunity, the probability of success and ease of entry. Things to consider are market size and addressable market (your target customers), segments, key competitors and potential customers.

I cannot emphasize strongly enough how important it is to vet the SLEPT factors. For example, Singapore and Malaysia are bordering nations and members of ASEAN, but they’re very different in the context of SLEPT factors. What works in Singapore might not work in Malaysia.

Secondary data sources

Regarding secondary data sources, there’s lots of free stuff available online, but paid subscriptions are better. In any event, companies need to review samples and select the best resources for their unique purpose and business needs. Personally, I use multiple sources and cross-reference them to ensure accuracy. Moreover, we need to be able to convert raw data into meaningful information—otherwise, it’s just useless data without direction.

Primary data sources

With regards to primary data sources, at some point, you need to validate secondary data via a reconnaissance mission. You need to be in the marketplace to feel the pulse and vibe of the people you want to sell to.

Trade shows rule in Asia and are restarting. But rather than participating in a mega Asia-Pacific tradeshow in Singapore, consider participating in a country and industry-specific trade show.

For example, if your target country is Vietnam, and you’re selling building materials and supplies, participate in a Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City construction trade show. The reason being that 100% of the participants will be from the market you want to develop. Plus, intraregional travel to attend trade shows will be somewhat hampered due to the COVID-19 situation.

• As I mentioned, trade shows in Asia are restarting and I’m sure trade show costs will be favourable, as will travel expenses as the markets restart and recover later in the year.

• Participating in the right tradeshow leads to channel partnerships and accesses potential customers. I would suggest you stay a week after the trade show to follow up on gleaned opportunities, and take the time to visit potential and competing distributors.

• Survey the voice of potential customers (VOPC) and determine whether there is there a gap in the market and a market in the gap.  This is a crucial step to aligning product mix, positioning, pricing and your sales and marketing strategy.

• After completing your analysis, you may very well decide to enter one or two markets to start with—but that’s okay. It’s important not to overextend by allowing your ambitions to exceed your capabilities.

2. Sales and marketing strategy

Ultimately, you need to define your differentiated and unique value proposition and execute your strategic plan through an effective sales and marketing strategy.

I recently wrote a Forum for International Trade Training (FITT) article about selling in the ASEAN region. I felt that there were lots of international trade, strategy and marketing articles on how to successfully enter and develop new markets. But there were very few about B2B selling. I think we need to realize that eventually someone, somewhere in a faraway land actually needs to sell something to make it all happen. So selling is important.

Selling in an international marketplace is very different and involves cross-cultural or multicultural selling. What works in a domestic home market is usually very difficult to replicate in an international setting. A marketplace like the ASEAN region is highly fragmented, hyper-competitive and contains many multinationals and a myriad of local producers all competing at varying levels of quality and price points. Companies need to establish themselves as a partner of value and rise above the crowd of competition.

As such, companies should not underestimate the importance of high-calibre salespeople and should invest in the right people, the right selling methodology and process, and also the supporting Customer Relationship Management or CRM technologies. The article I referenced earlier can explain different selling methodologies that you may want to consider. But, speaking from experience, how your salespeople—agents and intermediaries— sell will make the difference between exceptional or mediocre results. Some of the things to keep in mind include the following:

• The ASEAN marketplace is not just about products and price points, it’s about buyers and relationships founded on symbiotic trust, confidence and collaborative partnerships.

• As an example, in the West, salespeople can build relationships as they’re selling. In Asia, relationships come first and usually before the business. Establishing trust, confidence and credibility is important.

• Companies should not take a blanket approach to a trade region like the ASEAN. Each one of the ten countries has its own unique nuances and cultural norms, perceptions of value and buying behaviours.

• When you set-up a distribution, don’t just train them on product knowledge. Support them with training on how to effectively and efficiently sell your products using your sales methodology and process. Then, co-develop the biggest and best customer opportunities.

• Selling cycles are usually longer, especially in complex, high-value B2B selling. They generally involve multiple stakeholders, a hierarchical decision-making process, with decisions being reached by consensus and usually approved at a senior level. So be patient.

Example of a selling methodology and process

With respect to marketing, it can be challenging for any company to unify marketing and sales teams that are operating in different continents. Companies must clearly define individual and shared responsibilities and accountabilities. Marketing and sales, together, should establish and execute the best practices to reach and connect with target prospects, and sales should qualify and convert these prospects into customers. Companies must avoid siloing and misalignments and establish collaboration to rally around a unified and focused goal—which is to sell and help sell.

Technology is playing a huge role in international sales and marketing. The globalization of technology and the ease of connectivity and accessing information has created a global marketplace of sophisticated, tech-savvy and discerning customers. A marketplace like ASEAN is digitally engaged and technology proficient, so integrating digital marketing into your overall marketing strategy is crucial.

Use social media wisely; it’s a valuable tool. But instead of posting a cut and paste product image and call-me-if-you-need-me advert, consider posting a customer experience that mattered and how you made the difference. Then direct that to a landing page featuring the customer gain story, and allow that to evidence how you can help others leading to new conversations.

3. Channel design process 

If you’re selling B2B internationally, you’ll need channel partners to help sell your products. Designing a channel or distribution network is about building an effective integrated multi-channel network that accesses target segments, optimizes customer reach and accelerates market penetration and growth. Channels should be appointed before pursuing customers. It’s also important to recognize that channels own the end-customer relationships, and companies need to tap into these established relationships in order to scale.

Your channel partners should be selected based on their ability to access your target segments and customers, their financial resources to support market entry and growth, and their sales and marketing competencies and learnability to proactively sell your products.

Partnering is reciprocal; channel partners seek products that are innovative and saleable and provide an equitable return on effort and investment. Moreover, they seek partners who are willing to participate and adapt to their unique marketplace and support their needs. From a distributor’s perspective, they’re sharing their treasure trove of customers, and they’re very cautious about doing this. So, building trust is crucial—and this can take some time. With careful planning and use of these methodologies, success with them and within the region is certainly attainable—and lucrative.

At this point in human history, you probably already know that your business should be online. Whether you are a micro SME, or a multinational corporation, an online presence is no longer optional. But just in case you aren’t quite sure, allow me to convince you.

In 2011, the United Nations declared access to the Internet as a basic human right. More than half of the people on Earth (59%) are active Internet users and 600,000 more are getting online every day.

The global penetration rate of social media is about 51%. There are approximately 5.15 billion mobile device users worldwide. In fact, back in 2014 the number of mobile device users worldwide overtook the number of desktop users.

Ok, so we’ve safely established why you should be online – it’s where your customers are. Now, there are many options available for online promotional tools, so to select the best promotional tools for the situation, organizations need to first consider what is available and appropriate to the brand, market entry strategy and target market.

Want to learn more about planning and implementing marketing strategies? Check out the FITTskills Marketing Products and Services online workshop!

Online tools at your fingertips

With virtually unlimited access to a global market, the Internet—and the many online platforms that have emerged—has revolutionized the advertising industry. Using social media, pop-up ads on search engine websites, mass marketing email campaigns and vertically integrated multimedia powerhouses, organizations have a new arsenal of advertising tools at their disposal.

Marketers do not have to spend a lot of money on advertising and public relations campaigns. Less expensive options are available. For example, market segments can be reached by email. Online marketing with its referrals and networking opportunities is a powerful yet inexpensive way of reaching target markets.

Content is everything, everything is content

Content is the cornerstone of online marketing. It involves creating and sharing relevant and engaging information with the target audience through articles, blog posts, videos, podcasts, webinars, and other formats. The goal is to support business and marketing objectives by influencing the customer’s opinions before they are faced with a buying decision. It is important that content is offered in places where customers and potential customers spend their time, such as social media or search engines. A balance between content that is educational and content that generates leads is ideal.

With a daily onslaught of information, people often scan it quickly to find the good content and weed out the bad.

Content must provide something of value to consumers in order to keep their attention. People are no longer passive recipients of information.

They seek, consume and respond to content and promotions online and expect rapid responses to their enquiries and feedback.

For international initiatives, an organization must consider how content will be created and adapted to suit the needs and interests of the local target markets. There are various ways to approach this. For instance, corporate headquarters could create the content and share it with the local offices for adaptation, or the staff from headquarters and the local offices could collaborate on content.

SAP Content Audit Results in New Content Development

As part of their content evaluation activities, the application software company SAP conducted an audit of their content. The audit revealed that the majority of SAP’s content was tailored to late-stage buyers. Data gathered about online audience behaviour indicated that only half the content was being used—the other

50 % prompted no downloads, no page views and no digital feedback. They also found that local teams only used about 20 percent of the content that was provided by headquarters, even when it was translated into local languages.

Based on these results, SAP decided to stop creating content at the corporate office. Instead, they would help the local teams create their own content.

Your audience won’t find your content without good SEO

To achieve Search Engine Optimization (SEO), content must include keywords and phrases that the target market uses. Marketers can check Google AdWords to see the number of people using specific phrases related to their brand.

Successful marketers connect with international markets on the customer’s terms. That means using their preferred digital channels and communicating in their preferred language.

That also means translating content or creating entirely new content for a particular market. These efforts encourage market driven distribution of the organization’s content.

It may be the case that little or no budget is specifically allocated to content creation. When this occurs, organizations can use less expensive approaches, such as co-creating content with a partner organization and using the skills of existing team members. There are other creative options such as repurposing existing content or using content generated by customers—perhaps a testimonial video about their positive experience with a product or service—and posting it on the organization’s website or blog.

Pam Didner, author of Global Content Marketing, recommends creating content based on personas.

Persona development is about understanding the perspectives of buyers and describing their needs, concerns and interests to help with product and service design and marketing.

A well-crafted persona provides insights into appropriate wording, images and concepts for a particular market segment. The types of details that could be included in a persona are:

• Demographics
• Behaviours
• Attributes
• Budget range
• Device usage
• Communication preferences
• Job description
• Recommended key words
• Pain points and challenges
• Needs and desires

Personas tend to be based on market segments. For example, Intel, a multinational corporation and technology company based in the United States, has six global personas for its consumer promotions and two for business promotions. The key goal is to identify the interests and challenges that a particular segment shares. On their website, Intel provides a sample persona for a consumer they call. The profile has a photo of John and describes him as being a 28-year-old programmer who loves tropical fish, works long hours, eats out five times per week and uses technology to simplify his life.

Content created for sales training—sometimes referred to as sales enablement content—is particularly important for business-to-business relationships as knowledge about products and services needs to be transferred to sales partners. 

Websites, Blogs and Newsletters

One of the most effective and critical online promotional tools is the organization’s own website. Many marketing experts recommend an online marketing strategy that begins with optimizing the organization’s site, including search engine results. A spider, or bot, is a program which analyzes website content and then indexes it so the website can be easily found by a search engine. The higher a site is ranked by the search engine, the more likely it is to appear on the first page of search results and therefore, more likely to be visited by the person performing the search.

Organizations are encouraged to launch a newsletter, email distribution and a blog from their website and encourage viewers to sign up for them in order to gain lead information.

Newsletters, emails and blogs are inexpensive ways to keep in touch with customers and are effective as a way of maintaining their loyalty and interest in an organization’s products and services.

More about Search Engine Optimization

Search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo are the primary method of navigation for Internet users. The purpose of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is to make it easier for an organization’s target audience to find its website. This is achieved by making it clear to search engines where to send users to find the information they are seeking. Website masters can achieve SEO by following best practices such as those described here:

• Create unique titles for each page on website.
• Summarize each page’s content.
• Create Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) that contain short, relevant words that users recognize.
• Use a simple directory structure that helps visitors track their location on the site and go from general content to more specific content.
• Have a 404, or Not Found, error message that provides users with links back to the site’s home page and other most popular pages.

Use key words and phrases that both new and experienced visitors will use in search queries to find the organization’s site or its products and services. Longer keyword phrases often convert better, because they catch people later in the buying cycle. A person searching for “shoes” is probably browsing, and not ready to buy. On the other hand, someone searching for “best price on Air Jordan size 12” knows what they want and is ready to make a purchase.

• Create quality content that is unique and easy to read.
• Construct site so mobile users are sent to mobile version rather than the desktop version.
• Use webmaster tools to identify site performance issues

As many businesses begin their recovery efforts, a cascade of questions are top of mind. This is new territory for everyone. Where are the opportunities for growth and expansion? How do you approach business development? What should my recovery to growth plan look like?

To answer these questions we turned to a team of diverse experts in last week’s #TradeElite Twitter chat. Their insights were informative, practical and inspiring. Read through their responses below.

Topics covered:

• New global business landscape: changes in policy, market access, disruption
• Today’s opportunities for global growth
• Latest digital tools for global business 
• Global business recovery -> growth action plan
• Restarting business development efforts
• Biggest lessons learned that businesses can use to protect their futures
• Future global growth opportunities

Panelists:

Rad Dockery @Rad_Dockery Chief Innovation Officer, Unifai Solutions

Amy Karam @AmyKaram Founder, Global Competitive Strategy Consultant, Karam Consulting, and China Trade Expert

Craig Atkinson, CITP @CraigAAtkinson Trade, Technology and Sustainable Development Specialist, Founder of Lexmerca International Trade

Paula Greene, CITP @PaulaIntlMkt President & CEO at BEYOND Ventures Group Inc., Export Entrepreneur and Business Developer

Bernadette Fernandes @On_the_Varanda Global Connector – International Trade & Development, Founder & CEO of the Varanda Network

What is the “new global business landscape” we are looking at today? What has changed in terms of policy, market access, and disruption?

Q1. EDC forecasts global growth at 1.6% in 2020—the worst performance since 2008, they expect a substantial increase to 5.3% in 2021. We need to be in the forefront. #TradeElite

— Paula (Lunn) Greene (@PaulaIntlMkt) June 25, 2020

A1: Much has changed on the #policy front. @WTO #TFA came into effect over 2 years ago. #Tech for #trade is proliferating. Cost-effective and rapid movement of goods can have as much to do with a product’s #data as with a product itself. #TradeElitehttps://t.co/HsNwhsAwGT

— Craig Atkinson (@craigaatkinson) June 25, 2020

Clearly, #COVID19 has altered the global landscape significantly. As the level of infections varies across our major trading partners. And in emerging markets. #TradeElite

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A1: it’s the new old… not the recent but the very old, where travel was a tool for international trade. All has changed but not all bad. Policy is being adjusted; market access is now based more on existing relationships/networks; disruption is everybody’s business #TradeElite https://t.co/VTVGwkY3z0

— bernadette fernandes (@on_the_varanda) June 25, 2020

Trade diversification is being highlighted as a necessity not a novelty. #geopolitics rule and companies cannot afford to be dependent on the cheapest or low hanging fruit option #tradeelite https://t.co/1Px5iAC6Ft

— Amy Karam (@AmyKaram) June 25, 2020

We are also seeing more nations become more nationalist when it comes to procurement. The global Supply Chain is being questioned. As we see in Japan, where they put away substantial amt of funds for Japanese firms to diversify away from Chinese based Supply Chains #TradeElite https://t.co/2LM8XnrCCL

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A1: Disruption caused by the pandemic is forcing the digitalization of #trade faster than expected. Non-evidence based policy / protectionism is hurting some of former leading nations. Fragmentation and convergence are norm. Tariffs in the media, but NTBs are problem. #TradeElite

— Craig Atkinson (@craigaatkinson) June 25, 2020

Market access has also changed. For instance, we had to cancel a couple of trips to @ASEAN due to Covid19. And to adjust the service delivery model for a project. Remote work plus remote access to critical data infrastructure is new for many emerging markets. #TradeElite # https://t.co/2LM8XnrCCL

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

…and that impacts the trust factor that is very important for #emergingmarkets customers #tradeelite https://t.co/5MCAeBKLsr

— Amy Karam (@AmyKaram) June 25, 2020

Lots of interesting insights coming in already. We’re hearing that:
Policy has been changing a lot over last few years
Tech and data are huge for supply chain efficiency
Diversify, as political climate is changing
Disruption everywhere#tradeelite

— FITT (@FITTNews) June 25, 2020

Very broadly, for businesses that may be in recovery mode, where are the opportunities for growth today?

A2: opportunities are where you create them 1) develop a growth plan as you may have to abandon recovery; 2) implement the plan… slowly and wisely; 3) have check-points often to ensure the opportunities are still in your line of sight… you may have to shift/pivot #TradeElite https://t.co/Ao9Sy8YSj6

— bernadette fernandes (@on_the_varanda) June 25, 2020

There are many opportunities. But first, organizations have to ask themselves are they truly ready? Do you have not only the technical/business but the CULTURAL ability to perform in a Global Market. #tradeelite #BussinessGrowth #globalbiz #cdnbiz @CanadaTrade https://t.co/ccO6RcbxeH

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A2: Opportunities are in the #knowledge based industries #tradeelite https://t.co/9XGBLnGoGy

— Amy Karam (@AmyKaram) June 25, 2020

A2: The opportunities for growth are in new markets. Diversification must also be top of mind when considering lack of response in some countries to pandemic/natural disasters. Canadian ?? business needs to think about non-traditional #markets and #trade partners. #TradeElite

— Craig Atkinson (@craigaatkinson) June 25, 2020

#DigitalTransformation which has been mainly an overly used term, is now being taken more seriously. And it has many elements! From Skills, culture, management, politics, finance and obviously Technology #TradeElite #businessgrowth #Globalbiz #cdnbiz https://t.co/ccO6RcbxeH

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A2: If you are looking to export markets, look at where they are in flattening the curve, those experiencing high incidences may not be receptive. Where they are recovering , an opportunity #TradeElite

— Paula (Lunn) Greene (@PaulaIntlMkt) June 25, 2020

We also have found that Supply Chain visibility has become a huge issue. This applies domestically and globally. If one offers products/services that can improve #SCM visibility, there are opportunities. #TradeElite #businessgrowth #globalbiz #cdnbiz https://t.co/ccO6RcbxeH

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

Looking at innovative ways to deal with #inequality is also an opportunity. #Covid19 has underlined how many global citizens are on the edge. We have received calls from West / East Africa on this topic since we won our deal in Indonesia #TradeElite #businessgrowth #globalbiz https://t.co/ccO6RcbxeH

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

Forrester’s analyst Joana de Quintanilha said that companies should be measuring the customer journey to listen to their needs all along the buying process, and she mentioned Customer Effort Score for that purpose, for example, and constant micro-surveys. #TradeElite #globaltrade

— Sandra Cravero | 4/5 replies from ? marketing (@sandracravero) June 25, 2020

Where are the opportunities for global growth? We’re hearing:
?Knowledge-based industries
?Collaboration
?Digital tools/transformation
?New markets who are flattening the curve #COVID19 #TradeElite
Are we missing any?

— FITT (@FITTNews) June 25, 2020

We are hearing a lot about technology applications. What are some of the most relevant digital tools that can give global businesses a competitive edge?

A3: technology applications are a dime a dozen, too many to mention with #DigitalTransformation; it’s no longer about the tools but about how quickly and effectively you can adopt, integrate and transform for competitive differentiation #TradeElite https://t.co/ZUXB8xFuwe

— bernadette fernandes (@on_the_varanda) June 25, 2020

A3: The most relevant digital tools that can give global businesses a competitive edge – the tools easily used by your customers and the target market. #TradeElite

— Paula (Lunn) Greene (@PaulaIntlMkt) June 25, 2020

A3: On the research front, can’t beat @ITC_MktAnalysis tools. Otherwise, #singlewindow platforms req. under @WTO #TFA is helping traders to more efficiently comply with rules of different ministries (eg #customs + #ag). #Paperless #trade #TradeElite https://t.co/NIQDtKfQXn https://t.co/zijlsptwwl

— Craig Atkinson (@craigaatkinson) June 25, 2020

A3. Familiarize yourself with multiple platforms, make it easy for your prospective client. #TradeElite

— Paula (Lunn) Greene (@PaulaIntlMkt) June 25, 2020

An internal data strategy is key. What your sweet spots? Where have you and where can you deliver the most value. Internal data analytics here is crucial. Don’t guess at what you are good at. KNOW IT! #DataAnalytics is CRITICAL! #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz https://t.co/vDk6XLF0Mj

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A3: that’s bang on @PaulaIntlMkt , can’t go wrong being customer centric even when it comes to digital and especially our own competitive edge! #TradeElite https://t.co/JFbphEBu3s

— bernadette fernandes (@on_the_varanda) June 25, 2020

Building secure 2/3 way platforms will also allow more seamless interaction vs. only email. This is where technologies like #smartcontracts may finally take off. #digital #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz https://t.co/vDk6XLF0Mj

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

What are the best digital tools for global growth?
We’re hearing:
?No specific tools effective adoption
?Internal data analytics
?Tools that help your customers
?Agile inventory management
?3BL framework
?@ITC_MktAnalysis tools
?#singlewindow platforms #tradeelite

— FITT (@FITTNews) June 25, 2020

What should be included in every global business’ recovery -> growth action plan?

A4: top of my list to include is a new business mentality, an attitude shift to recovery, from survive mode to thrive mode; but also a coming to terms with the fact that you may not be recovering but rather pivoting, developing a completely new action plan for growth. #TradeElite https://t.co/Lz0qzxOMPo

— bernadette fernandes (@on_the_varanda) June 25, 2020

A4. Research, vet and validate your prior business plan either confirm information pre #COVID19 or plot a new direction. #TradeElite

— Paula (Lunn) Greene (@PaulaIntlMkt) June 25, 2020

BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLANNING!!! You can’t grow if you can not demonstrate how you will handle an unexpected event. Our own internal process here has become part of the narrative we share with clients! #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz https://t.co/29BUsmirnz

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A4: Incorporation of #contingency plans, regardless of potential added costs. e.g. #supplychain #diversification, #economic security by widening reach of #customerbase. Long-term #growth plans and investments vs. short-term wins #TradeElite https://t.co/pURFXji7a8

— Amy Karam (@AmyKaram) June 25, 2020

Cultural awareness and sensitivity. At first I bought a N. American attitude to trade. and failed badly! Respecting culture is critical for growth planning. Because that builds trust and personal relationships! #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz https://t.co/29BUsmirnz

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A4: How to ensure the safety of employees as they move forward. #TradeElite

— Craig Atkinson (@craigaatkinson) June 25, 2020

It is critical to team up with External Experts. We have some on this thread who can help you grow your global business! This can save you time and money. And help you really focus on your sweet spots! #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz https://t.co/29BUsmirnz

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A4. Analyze what is happening in your sector, some sectors have been continuing to work as before and are struggling to procure supply. #TradeElite

— Paula (Lunn) Greene (@PaulaIntlMkt) June 25, 2020

A4: Remember when we all had disaster recovery plans? Wait, you’re not as old as me but either way, now it’s not even a #hashtag bring back #DisasterRecovery #TradeElite https://t.co/sSSlUDDmQX

— bernadette fernandes (@on_the_varanda) June 25, 2020

What advice do you have for global businesses looking at restarting their business development efforts?

1) Don’t be afraid to ask for help! We have failed and slipped up many times. Ask for help from @TCS_SDC and engage your team. Also get your news from sources outside of our home base. #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz https://t.co/ZQQ3Og5k3t

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A5: start at the beginning, before you went global, because everything, even where you go & grow is different now. If you’re restarting you have a head start, & lots of tweaks; If you’re pivoting/starting fresh, then go back in your mental archives to how you started #TradeElite https://t.co/7RIiMcKLKv

— bernadette fernandes (@on_the_varanda) June 25, 2020

2) Be honest.. If you can’t hire someone who will be honest for you :-)… What are you really good at? What does firms actually need? Can you offer it at a good price and be profitable. U have to be brutal honest! #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz https://t.co/ZQQ3Og5k3t

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

A5: Diversification is key for businesses that are already global and looking to restart their business development efforts. #TradeElite https://t.co/2FWOLRnijQ

— Craig Atkinson (@craigaatkinson) June 25, 2020

A5. Don’t stop! Reach out now. Look for alternate paths, channels, or contact information due to offices that may be closed. #TradeElite

— Paula (Lunn) Greene (@PaulaIntlMkt) June 25, 2020

What are some big lessons from this crisis that businesses can act on now to protect themselves in the future?

A6: my biggest lesson was to expect the unexpected, and by expect I mean prepare for the worst: build a business continuity plan for the worst crisis that you CAN’T even imagine; then put in mitigating measures with several checkpoints to ensure you’re still protected #TradeElite https://t.co/KZ3tPMUIcR

— bernadette fernandes (@on_the_varanda) June 25, 2020

A6: I’d say #digital is key. Administration can be simplified, but transferring and storing #data has consequences now. Be familiar with your market’s rules (e.g. #EU member countries). #TradeElite

— Craig Atkinson (@craigaatkinson) June 25, 2020

A6: Rethink your #strategy to be more long term focused and incorporate #geopolitical #risk considerations in your business plans. #TradeElite #globaltrade https://t.co/xjdgZZCcO1

— Amy Karam (@AmyKaram) June 25, 2020

A6. Look for avenues, how competitive are you to customers in countries seeking to diversify import dependence, Stabilize their supply chains, seeking substitutions for current supply.#TradeElite

— Paula (Lunn) Greene (@PaulaIntlMkt) June 25, 2020

1) Business Continuity Planning is a MUST!
2) #DigitalTransformation must start NOW!!!!
3) Businesses must be able to deliver anytime/anyplace
4) Economic and Social Inequality is even a larger problem than many of us realized. #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz #SDGs https://t.co/0J2fTjovvi

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

With #DigitalTransformation – you can turn Data into information!!! #Digital… #Digital.. #digital.. with respect for culture.. And Canada should absolutely kick you know what on this topic! #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz https://t.co/0J2fTjovvi

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

Lastly, businesses need to re-evaluate every single vendor/partner. What are they doing to become more digital? Do they engage diverse voices in a global economy.. Or are they still operating as if nothing changed. #tradeelite #globalbusiness #cdnbiz https://t.co/0J2fTjovvi

— Rad Dockery ??? (@Rad_Dockery) June 25, 2020

Crystal ball time! Where do you see more growth opportunities in the near future?

A7: I think growth will occur in products and sectors that are “sustainable”. If anything, the pandemic and natural disasters have shown how fragile the whole system is. #TradeElite

— Craig Atkinson (@craigaatkinson) June 25, 2020

A7: One word; one continent… Africa! Personally, I see growth happening in markets that are unfortunately used to being resourceful, responding to crisis, before it happens. Africa gets growth; they’re ready for diversification; they’re ready for Trade & Investment #TradeElite https://t.co/k3bVi88R6w

— bernadette fernandes (@on_the_varanda) June 25, 2020

A7. Define the best approach, look at opportunities, adjust to adapt new practices, perhaps as part of your corporate social responsibility practice, pivot and optimize your efforts. #TradeElite

— Paula (Lunn) Greene (@PaulaIntlMkt) June 25, 2020

Read the rest of the chat and join future discussions by following the #TradeElite hashtag. And stay tuned for the next #TradeElite chat, coming up Thursday, July 23 at 2:00-3:00PM ET, and if you haven’t yet, join us on Twitter at @FITTNews.

Your business is up and running and things are going great. Now it is time to begin the process of internationalization, taking your business to new, untapped global markets. Everything looks great! And then you get hit by COVID-19 and the resultant global economic downturn.

How do you ensure that not only will your business survive, but ensure that it can maximize its gain during this (or the next) disastrous global crisis?

There is a lot that can be done, and it will take a great deal of work, but the results and returns are well worth the effort invested in ensuring your international business is both literally and figuratively virus-proof.

Rather than panic, the business owner whose company is properly positioned both domestically and internationally can thrive, even amidst these historic economic anomalies.

A major part of any international campaign revolves around language. This is just as true in the global fight against COVID-19 as it is in any global marketing campaign. Medical translators from around the world are working hand-in-hand with academic, scientific and medical institutions. Their role is indispensable. They are providing medical translation services day and night to ensure that all research and information about COVID-19 is translated quickly and accurately and made ready for immediate global distribution. The best part is, they can provide the same service for you and your business, even during a global pandemic.

Now’s the time to bring your business online

According to many sources, not only is the “Internet Economy” one of the largest, in various studies, the overall growth of the internet economy, most notably in terms of ecommerce, has outpaced other economic growth by a wide margin. According to Statista,“In 2019, retail e-commerce sales worldwide amounted to $3.53 trillion”. Online shopping is one of the most popular online activities worldwide. The chances are pretty good that if you are ready to take your business international, you have already established an online presence.

This is not always the case though, as some companies will always be springing up with innovative concepts, and moving directly onto the international stage. In such cases, there may be a good deal more work involved, but it is still possible to rapidly move online and establish a business designed to capture a large portion of the potential markets.

Ready to explore ecommerce? Learn how to set up and optimize each step of your e-commerce process to meet the ever-changing demands of customers

Live interpretations and even translation agency offices have suffered just as much as most brick and mortar businesses during the current global pandemic. Those that have been thriving have an established presence online. Most of them have already taken their online presence international, but for those companies who have not yet established an online presence, this may not be immediately possible.

Some businesses may be incapable of moving completely online, and as such, may suffer some during these times of global economic turmoil. That does not mean that they cannot move portions of their business online.

For those companies that do have an established online presence, there is a host of benefits and different ways to ensure that the company is on solid ground. The key to a successful international campaign is going to be in how well you can utilize your current marketing strategies and materials, and where you must tweak them and adjust them to reach a larger global audience.

Repurpose traditional marketing strategies

Once you know there is a demand in a new market, then it is the job of the marketing and advertising materials to create the desire to fulfill that demand with your products and/or services. You likely already have a website, some videos, maybe some podcasts and other marketing materials online, but now all of those have to be made anew so that they are ready for the new market, right? Wrong.

Your website can be converted into numerous languages using a number of different tools and methods. However, translating is not enough. Take some time while translating to look at all of the little personal cues that are in the website content, and replace them with cues that will be equally effective in the target language.

Certain analogies, and even some words, will not translate well into other languages, and these points should be taken into consideration as well. Replacing the details in order to meet the expectations of a new audience, speaking to them on their own terms, is known as “localization”, and it is all about creating the ultimate customer experience on a very personal level.

If you have a video marketing campaign already going, so much the better. While it may sound like a great idea to begin an entirely new video marketing campaign in your efforts to internationalize, it is not only unnecessary, but may prove to be more detrimental than actively working to adjust your existing video selections.

Posting all brand new materials in any online advertising campaign that ages is probably not a great idea, especially if there is already some finely aged and tuned marketing material already posted. Brand new videos with only a few hundred views will not be viewed from the same perspective as older videos with thousands or more views. Fortunately, there is a very simple solution that will help you to internationalize the videos without much effort at all. There are numerous benefits to using video translation services to create closed captioning for all of your videos.

On Facebook, 85% of videos are viewed without sound, so the first and most direct benefit is the ability for your potential customers to watch your videos without sound while still gaining all of the relevant information.

The SRT files for closed captioning are also indexed by the search engines, both on YouTube and on the individual search engines. The number of keywords will increase, the ranking on the search engine results page will increase, and so will the number of times your video makes the YouTube recommended list. It is also remarkably easy to include closed captioning in additional languages for all of your video campaigns online.

Now, your videos will also rank for the relevant keywords in any foreign languages that you are targeting in your internationalization efforts, replete with well-aged videos and the increased consumer confidence that comes along with it. These same principles can also apply to podcasting through the use of transcription and translation services.

Maximize your international marketing campaign with split testing

Once all of the preceding steps have been taken, there are two final steps that should be an ongoing part of your internationalization in terms of marketing and advertising. As mentioned, localization is all about creating the ultimate customer experience. It may be ensuring a smooth transition for the user as they begin their journey on their home computer, and continue it on their cell phone on the go. The continuity of connection is key to successfully engaging your customers in that regard.

Have you ever seen a grandchild out with their grandparent? The child, seeing something amazing, may shout out a current expression that the grandparents are absolutely clueless about.

Even in the same geographic regions, with the same accents and the same tendencies, each generation will have its own common phrases and expressions, idioms and vernacular.

What is the target demographic for your international campaign? Find and target that market, but continue using the process of split testing in order to ensure that all of your localization efforts are as effective as possible.

Split testing is all about setting up dual advertising campaigns and running them for a set length of time. After the time has expired, the results will be tallied up and the best campaign kept, while the poorer performing campaign is discarded and replaced by the better performing one. Ensure none of your discarded campaigns are lost, as some campaigns may still perform well, even if not as well as the winner. There may also be key factors that will help to indicate which portions of the marketing and localization campaigns are effective and which portions are not. Combining the more effective portions into one can also produce very positive results.

The safest investment of all at present, seems to be reinvesting in your company. The potential of the Internet Economy is endless and international. So why not put your resources to use online, and bring your business to a whole world of customers?

Quality customer service is the foundation of any business that wants to be successful. Technology such as e-commerce has given consumers access to more choice than ever before. So today, it’s absolutely essential to focus on providing excellent customer service.

If this isn’t a priority for your business you are at major risk of losing your clients to competitors who do prioritize customer satisfaction.

The meaning of customer service has changed over past years from one-on-one interactions in person or on the phone to include social media and other online approaches in front of a much larger audience. If you want to boost your customer service and therefore improve your sales, follow these tips to be more successful.

1. Understand your mission

What is the purpose of your business, and why does your product or service matter to your clients? It’s important to stop and think about this before even trying to modernize your customer service approach. Once you have discovered your mission, break it down into long- and short-term goals. These will help you measure your progress, so you can track the results and improve accordingly.

2. Seek feedback

Getting customer feedback is absolutely crucial to improve not just your customer service, but also your business as a whole. Find new ways to get feedback from your clients, such as sending surveys to them by email or text.

3. Stay ahead of responses

Social media is extremely quick and it’s easy to use for just about anyone. Customers are also using these platforms to discuss their experience with a company, positive or negative, which is visible to their whole following. These customers typically expect a response within hours, so it’s helpful for brands to connect with them by responding to all types of feedback quickly on whatever platform their customers are using.

4. Cross-sell

You can increase your sales easily without running a whole new marketing campaign by making sure that your sales representatives are using every possible opportunity to cross-sell. Cross-selling is when you offer an additional product or service on top of those the client is currently considering, especially when they’re related. For example, if someone is trying to purchase a backpack, you could offer a rain cover to go along with it on their outdoor activity.

The more items you can add on to the initial purchase, the more sales you’ll get. This is a hugely important skill to teach sales reps and customer service agents because it’s a proven way to boost your sales and leave customers more satisfied.

5. Offer value-add services

Customer service representatives don’t only respond to issues and help clients. They should also be offering knowledge and information about the brand and services. Sharing knowledge is a great way to give your customers some value and be foremost in their mind when they need advice or information. Your social media platforms are the perfect tools to provide information to all your clients.

6. Create a referral program

It’s a good idea to create a referral program by offering incentives. People love free things, so the best way to make sure you’ll get lots of quality referrals is to ask your client to refer your company to their community in return for some form of incentive. Studies show that those who are referred to a company by existing customers are 18% more likely to remain loyal customers.

7. Train your representatives

Your customer service team is the heart of the operation, so you need to make sure they’re well trained on all of the above. Customer service representatives are often the only interaction point a client will have with a company; they’re truly the face of the business. When they’re trained properly, and empowered to make decisions to support client satisfaction, they will be your most valuable tool for your brand identity and products.

8. Be responsible

If you’re the head of the company, you’re ultimately responsible for everything that happens. You give support and direction to the team, so if you want a strong customer service team that will go above and beyond. You need to be a leader that takes the blame when things don’t go well and gives credit to others when things go right.

New exporters may be inclined to use the same sales channels in the international market as they use in the domestic market. However, the methods that successfully reach customers and sell products and services in the domestic market may not work in the foreign market because of different political, economic and cultural influences.

The selection of sales channels is a balance between market coverage and costs. The more sales channels that organizations use, the better the coverage—but the higher the costs. Each additional channel not only adds costs, it can also attract sales from other pre-existing channels.

When selecting the right combination of channels for the sales and distribution of products and services, international trade practitioners consider several factors.

1. Target market buying behaviours

It is vital that an organization knows where and how customers want to buy its products and services. Market research is the key to answering these questions. During market research, demographic, psychographic, geographic and behavioural characteristics are considered to answer questions such as: where do customers in the target market buy similar products and services? In stores? Online? From sales representatives? The exporter must also consider the international sales and marketing plan and what the organization wants to achieve in that specific market.

2. Product and service characteristics

The characteristics of products and services are primary considerations when making decisions about how to sell and distribute products to an international market. Is the product light and small or is it a single piece of industrial equipment weighing several tonnes? Is the product perishable or hazardous, requiring special shipping and handling conditions? Can the service be delivered online or does it require face-to-face interaction?

Consider the product or service life cycle. New and unknown products and services are better sold by staff with the required technical knowledge. As the technology gets more widespread and standardized along with the knowledge of how to use it, technical expertise becomes less important. At this stage, using distributors makes sense. In fact, at the maturity stage in the life cycle, delivery time and price become more important than the need for specialized knowledge.

As products and services increase in value, exclusivity or price, exporters may prefer to use personal forms of selling. This can include the use of agents that are familiar with the target market. This is a good strategy for selling products and services that require a considerable degree of cultural awareness. Alternatively, staff from headquarters may be sent abroad to direct the sales effort. This is often the case for products requiring specialized technical knowledge that may not be available locally. Custom-designed products such as industrial machine parts are not good candidates for distributors because of the level of specialized knowledge required to handle them properly and to advise users. In contrast, inexpensive products that are easily stocked and simple to service are good candidates for distributors.

3. Market location

The location of the target market, including proximity to the export location, will influence the sales channels selected. Is it a neighbouring country accessible via a well-established road system or is it on the other side of the globe? Can the market be accessed by established shipping, rail or trucking routes? How long will it take to reach the market and restock supplies? What types of sales channels are available in this location? The geography of the target market, the distances between customers and the availability of different types of sales channels in that location all affect sales channel decisions.

Want to learn more about how to select the best sales channels for your business based on considerations of coverage, cost, partner relationships and location? Check out the FITTskills Selling to International Markets online workshop!

4. Competition

The sales, marketing and pricing strategies used by competitors can help organizations choose the best sales channels for their own products and services. If it has worked for competitors with similar offerings, it can also work for the organization. No matter whether the organization uses similar or different channels, it will strive to deliver and distribute its products and services as well as, or better than, the competition. It can gain competitive advantage by making it easier for customers to access its products and services, and by providing timely deliveries and inexpensive shipping.

5. Local business practices

Local business practices are another factor to consider when selecting sales channels. For example, when retailers make frequent purchases in small volumes, organizations need to find ways to warehouse and distribute products in the local market in response to that practice.

Take the example of agents and distributors in Latin America. In Latin America, agents and distributors are independent businesspeople who tend to look out for themselves. This tendency can be countered by having the organization’s executives build relationships with Latin American industry association leaders. Exporters using this approach are likely to find that new opportunities arise. These are opportunities that a local distributor or agent may not have access to, given the importance of power and status in the Latin American business culture. Even when agents and distributors are successful in visiting prospects and closing sales, their efforts can produce better results when the company executives are simultaneously building relationships and getting involved with senior industry leaders.

6. Legislation

Organizations must consider how legislation influences the sale and distribution of products and services in domestic and international markets. For example, Scotland has restrictions on holding and using personal data. Japan has legal requirements concerning store size and the opening of new retail outlets. Until 2001, China prohibited the direct involvement of foreign companies in its distribution and retail sectors.

Countries may also have special packaging and labelling requirements. This may include determining a permissible number of units per package (single, in pairs, tens, dozens, etc.) as well as what materials can be used in the package—some jurisdictions specify that a certain type of material must be used or that a certain percentage of the packaging materials must come from recycled material. They may also specify what information must be included on product labels as well as the languages to be used.

Domestic governments also have requirements for goods and services being exported from their country. The requirements vary based on the nature of the products and services, but they likely include obtaining a business number, providing a detailed description of the goods including country of origin, and reporting the goods at a designated export office within the required time frame. In some cases, they require permits and export declarations as well.

7. Market coverage

The extent of market coverage—the percentage of the total market that may be reached through marketing or sales activities—is a crucial consideration for entering a market. This applies to both selling and distribution activities. If an agent or distributor only operates within a specific geographic jurisdiction within the market, the company must decide if that geographic market coverage is sufficient for its needs. In some cases, particularly when entering a large market for the first time, some companies may decide to limit market coverage due to supply concerns or as a way to test the market.

Market coverage also refers to the extent that selling and distribution activities will access the targeted customers or market segments. For example, an exporter of luxury products may not require their market coverage in a foreign country to extend beyond the major urban centres.

8. Customer support services

Regardless of the distance between headquarters and the international market, today’s communications systems enable parties to communicate almost instantaneously via telephone, instant messaging, text messaging and emails. Communication technology helps to avoid some of the constraints posed by earlier communication methods and allows agents, distributors and consumers to have their queries answered quickly.

International markets and customers may be several time zones removed from the source of the information or service. As a result, exporters find themselves under pressure from competitors to provide 24/7 services to international customers. Customers increasingly expect customer service agents and technicians to be available around the clock. The complexity and newness of products and services will determine whether exporters choose to have their own employees or intermediaries provide customer support services. If the exporter requires little to no customer service, they can use intermediaries such as agents or distributors. For complicated products, like computers and other equipment, exporters need to provide access to local technicians for repairs and maintenance.

9. Cost

An obvious consideration when developing a sales channel strategy is cost, particularly the cost-benefit analysis of one strategy versus another. Every link in the sales network implies a cost. The level of control and customer reach may be lower for certain distribution methods but could also be less expensive. Thereby offsetting loss in sales volumes.