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www.bizstrat.com 
10
www.bizstrat.com 
PROPELLING YOUR BUSINESS INTO THE GLOBAL MARKETPLACE
Going global is no longer an either/or proposition. Propelling your business globally could beas simple as setting up a Website to market your goods and services.In the ever-changing and ever-attening world, in order to compete with your neighbors and competitors going global is no longer an option but a necessity. The world—of both informationand goods—moves at a higher speed than it did even ve years ago.
By Robbi Hess
 
Business Strategies Magazine 
|
May 2006 
11
Delaney UrgesBusiness Owners to
Take These Factors Into ConsiderationBefore Going Global:
• GET COMPANY COMMITMENT.• DEFINE YOUR BUSINESS PLAN FOR ACCESSINGGLOBAL MARKETS.• DETERMINE HOW MUCH YOU CAN AFFORD TO INVEST.• PLAN AT LEAST A TWO-YEAR LEAD-TIME FOR WORLDMARKET PENETRATION.• BUILD A WEBSITE AND IMPLEMENT YOUR INTERNATIONALPLAN SENSIBLY.• PICK A PRODUCT OR SERVICE TO TAKE OVERSEAS.• CONDUCT MARKET RESEARCH TO IDENTIFY YOUR PRIMETARGET MARKETS.• SEARCH OUT THE DATA YOU NEED TO PREDICT HOW YOURPRODUCT WILL FARE.• PREPARE YOUR PRODUCT FOR EXPORT.• FIND CROSS-BORDER CUSTOMERS.• ESTABLISH A DIRECT OR INDIRECT METHOD OF EXPORT.• HIRE A GOOD LAWYER, SAVVY BANKER, KNOWLEDGEABLE ACCOUNTING, AND SEASONED TRANSPORT SPECIALIST.• PREPARE PRICING AND DETERMINE LANDED COSTS.• SET UP TERMS, CONDITIONS, AND OTHER FINANCINGOPTIONS.• BRUSH UP ON DOCUMENTATION AND EXPORT LICENSINGPROCEDURES.• IMPLEMENT AN EXTRAORDINARY AFTER-SALESSERVICE PLAN.• MAKE PERSONAL CONTACT WITH YOUR NEW TARGETS.• INVESTIGATE INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS TRAVEL TIPS.• EXPLORE CROSS-BORDER ALLIANCES AND PARTNERSHIPS.• ENJOY THE JOURNEY.
Why Go Global?
n er manesto “ang ngs Up. Making ThingsHappen,” Chicago-based Laurel Delaney, founder and CEO of 
GlobeTrade.com 
writes, “In the future, there will be two kinds of enterprises: those that go global and those that die.”Companies should be going global, Bill Graff, director of the Rochester Business Alliance’s International Business Councilsays. “It makes sense to look at the international opportunitiesthat are out there. If 95 percent of your customers live outsideof the United States and if youaren’t catering to them, you aretossing away a large potentialcustomer base.”Delaney says, “Afterhomas Friedman’s
World Is Fla 
book came out, it was therst time we’ve really had main-stream America understandingthe ramications of globaliza-tion. It’s almost as if you don’t consider reaching out andooking at the world as yourarketplace, you won’t becompetitive. It’s a radically different world now. TheInternet has exploded andexpanded the opportunitiesnd you should be out thereard-charging to gain a foot-old.” As someone who has beenin international trade for 13 years, Laurie Ritter, export anager at Newtex Industries—as well as owner of Export Compliance Council—explains that acompany may be content with the market share it has in theUnited States and associated revenues.“But once a product becomes mature in the U.S. market,going global allows a company to either reposition its product orintroduce the same product into new geographical areas. Globaltrade opens business opportunities, new product development,and new customers.”“Unless you offer a unique, niche product, it’s a necessity tolook beyond your own backyard in order to remain competitive,”Ritter adds. At some point someone involved in the same industry as youare will nd out how to compete in the global marketplace and will start snatching up your customers, according Delaney.“Today, companies in the U.S. nd themselves competing withcompanies outside of this country for business.”
“If 95 percent of yourcustomers live outside ofthe United States and ifyou aren’t catering tothem, you are tossingaway a large potentialcustomer base.”
– Bill Graff, Director, RochesterBusiness Alliance’s InternationalBusiness Council
 
www.bizstrat.com 
12
Did YouKnow?
THERE ARE MORE THAN230,000 SMALL BUSINESSESEXPORTING IN THE UNITEDSTATES ALONE.THE NUMBER OF SMALLBUSINESS EXPORTERS ROSE250% FROM 1987 TO 2001. ABOUT ONE OF EVERY FIVEU.S. FACTORY JOBS DEPENDSON EXPORTS.EXPORTS MEAN NEWCUSTOMERS AND MORE THAN95% OF THE WORLD’SCONSUMERS LIVE OUTSIDETHE UNITED STATES.SMALL BUSINESSES WITHFEWER THAN 500 EMPLOYEESEXPORT ROUGHLY 182 USDBILLION ANNUALLY, OR 29%OF ALL EXPORTS.
From Hereto There
 While Delaney believes that compa-ies must go global, she also recognizesthat some companies may not lend them-selves to that level of production. “If youare a mom-and-pop organization making jams and jellies in your kitchen, you couldcertainly sell a jar or two globally but youight not have the resources, or desire,to compete on a larger scale,” sheexplains. She adds though, that withe-bay, many individuals are nding it uch easier to sell products—whetherone jar of jam, homemade items, or otherroducts—on a global scale. “I am a fanof eBay for a small-business person sellingtheir wares but I am not a fan of it beingused as a model of going global when it comes to talking about selling a singleitem to a single customer in a foreigncountry. True globalization means that anorganization is selling a large volume to a wide variety of customers across interna-tional borders.” A Website, Delaney says, is the rst step in moving a business out of the localarket to the international one. Afterthat she suggests checking out govern-ental resources such as
www.buyusa.gov 
 which offers myriad information and tips. You don’t have to do business in yourown backyard,” Delaney states. “The world is your new marketplace. And thetechnology that we have available to usow is the ramp to launch your businessto the next level.”Ritter adds that once Newtex had its Website operational, business “found”them.Before going international, Rittercautions businesses to research what’sinvolved and to know their own limita-tions and restrictions: U.S. export regula-tions; pricing differences in both cost andcurrency exchanges; units of measure(kilos vs. pounds, etc.); payment terms,atents, language barriers; customs when visiting or in marketing materials(e.g. the number 4 in China is bad luck);nd dealing with distributors, agents, anddirect salesmen are all issues that may haveto be addressed when exploring the globalrena.Filling a need or nding a niche may be the way to propel a business into theglobal arena, Graff explains, adding that  Web commerce makes sense if you areoffering goods or products that areindustry-specic.
Is It For
 Every
Business?
It’s a matter of products and attitude,Graff says. “We have companies that do atremendous amount of business over-seas—competing globally isn’t contingent on company size. It’s a matter of ndingout whether it makes sense for you. Duediligence must be undertaken to under-stand the potential markets, benets, andpitfalls before taking your goods tomarket.”he United States Department of Commerce’s export assistance center inRochester, Graff says, is an excellent starting point. “They have access to market data that can help you determine if youcan compete globally and make it nan-cially viable.”Sometimes people have a short-sighted view and think they can’t competeglobally. Graff says that likely isn’t true.It depends on where you fall on the valuechain of price versus cost. Companiesneed to provide not only low cost but abest value solution.” Are you going to blanket the globe with your products? Are you planning totarget specic international markets?hose are questions a business must research as it explores business beyond itsborders. “Look at your core competenciesnd go from there,” he advises.Businesses wanting to go global needto be open to new practices, says Ritter.Global trade is not textbook in university teaching. In my experience, businessescannot take for granted the importance of 
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