Your 2019 Export Plan
UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) is spearheading a five-year campaign designed by the government to increase opportunities and knowledge about the benefits of exporting your goods. They hope it will encourage 100,000 companies to take the plunge by 2020. The campaign is called Exporting is GREAT. When you consider the size of the populations in places like China and South American countries, along with the spending power of the average consumer and the relative ease with which you can enter the market, you can understand why they chose to name the campaign as they did.
The idea of exporting excites many businesses, but it’s often perceived as too risky, scary, or costly for them to make the leap. While it’s important to ensure you make the right decisions for your business and your future, exporting brings a whole host of benefits and there has never been a better time to expand into new foreign markets.
Why you should export
Improvements in communication, infrastructure, technology and tracking have made the world a much smaller place to trade. Expanding your current share of the national market can be challenging and costly in comparison to entering a completely new market. Operating in different markets also helps to insulate your business against fluctuations in the economy of any single territory.
Below are a couple of points you should consider to help you take advantage of new markets.
Do your homework
While you may already have an abundance of marketing material, every culture is different. Simply running your adverts, instructions and brochures through Google Translate isn’t good enough for goods from a country associated with quality all over the world.
You will also be entering a market where the cultural norms may be different to your native market. Therefore, it’s recommended that you get help from a company that understands the native culture of your target market. Gather all the information about regulations and local laws to ensure you’re compliant with everything you need to be.
Make alliances
There are several ways you can test the water in a new market. You may want to rent your own premises and employ staff, or you might prefer to use a local fulfilment agency or sell directly to wholesalers. Whatever you decide it’s a wise move to have people on the ground that can deal with any potential problems.
The sort of contacts you need will depend on your plan for entering the market and your trade. However, a legal contact that speaks the native language is always good to know. If you use a professional translation company to help with your marketing, they will be happy to help with other tasks, such as translating official documents. In a short space of time, you will end up with plenty of contacts all willing to help when required.
However you decide to proceed, exporting to new markets will help your company to grow and remain stable in the future. There is a wealth of untapped markets waiting to be discovered. For the brave and savvy business person, the opportunities are endless.