Earlier this month I was in Miami, one of many international hubs for businesses. And at almost every networking gathering I attended (I visited 3 plus a shark tank competition in South Beach) I connected with successful business owners or local businesses. After the usual greetings, and given my business planning/international business background, they would tell me they want to develop their business internationally…
But they always added an excuse. And I didn’t find most of the excuses I heard to be valid reasons to stop from developing internationally.

Here are the four excuses I hear the most often:

#1: Fear Of Unknown

“We’d love to develop our international business, but you know what, our business is fine as it is. We don’t know if our products will sell.”

Let’s face it to stay ahead of the game you need to do two things 1. Innovate 3. Market smarter. In order to get international clients you usually need to make changes in how you operate your business. And although the businessmen/women I meet have successfully built companies they seem to be afraid of change when it comes to international markets.

Tip: Model Success. The advantage to this is it will help you to model a successful business and save you from making mistakes along the way. Make a list of competitors that are doing business overseas and create your business map.

#2: We don’t have the mula…

“We’d love to develop our international business, but we don’t have the money for it.” This really depends on your particular business and the path you choose to take to get international clients. But don’t confuse things by making assumptions too quickly.
There are several ways to take your business international. You can sign a contract with an international sales distributor or open up shop in a foreign country and these options have different costs.
Research! Research! Research! Do your research first and don’t assume you know how much it’s going to cost.
Tip: International content marketing for a broad international audience combined with proactive social media networking might be easy to include in your budget today… specially if you are already marketing online. And this will help you find the best path to international sales for your business to take.

#3: Not Now!

“We’d love to develop our international business, but we are focusing on other projects, we’ll do it later.”

That’s fine. There’s a time to actively go after international clients. You’ll need the right resources and toolkit. But there is something you can do beyond simply watching what your competitors are doing abroad.
Tip: If you’ve got an online presence the chances are that you’ve communicated with people from other countries. What are you doing with this communication? What have you learned from these interactions?
So many businesses make the false assumption that a few international sales means they already have an international business and don’t need to do anything else. But that’s not true. You should be able to maintain the relationship and add as much value as possible to your clients. The bottom line is that you need to market and sell. And, creating relationships along the way makes the process so much more enjoyable!

#4: I don’t know the language! 

“I don’t know the language and don’t have anyone on my team who does”

You don’t need to know the language of the country your doing business in.

Tip: With technology thriving you can now download a phone app that helps with translations.  Google app translate. Chances are if you are doing business overseas English is the language of business.
According to David Graddol, of the London Birtish Council who wrote The Future of English?:

• English is spoken as a first language by around 375 million and as a second language by around 375 million speakers in the world.

• One out of four of the world’s population speaks English to some level of competence; demand from the other three-quarters is increasing.

Sixcia Devine is a Business Visionary. She connects businesses with resources, knowledge, and empowers them to take meaningful action. She is the host of Global Business Minds, a BlogTalk radio show. She is the founder of an international business consulting firm called SIXCIA Business Development, LLC. Sixcia is also the founder of Caritas Smile a children’s charity that inspires, educates, and empowers Women and Children worldwide!

SIXCIA: “Gerri, Translation is only part of your Hispanic marketing strategy. Put yourself in the shoes of your customers. As a consumer you want to receive the best possible service, attention, and product delivery. When customers have problems or questions successful companies have a bilingual team to help solve issues as quickly as possible in the language the speak. There is way too much competition for businesses to be cutting corners.

The key to successful sales overseas is clear communication, established expectations, and flexibility (time, negotiations, goals). According recent studies, Panama is regarded as high end consumer. However, pockets of other Latin American countries may be superior over others. My suggestions is to research your target countries at www.export.gov. You will find country reports and industry specific information on all Latin American markets. Next, begin to network with potential distributors. Once you’ve narrowed it down, connect with the Department of Commerce to help identify and make connections with distributors. You will need a Hispanic Business Plan too! Keep me posted with developments!” – SIXCIA

6 Hot Countries to Export to:
1. Brazil
2. Columbia
3. Dominican Republic
4. Chile
5. Mexico
6. Panama

The information is drawn from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), the U.S. Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration, the U.S. State Department and target countries in the government’s National Export Initiative.

6 Future Business Trends to help growing businesses stay ahead of the game.
1. Data Visualization
2. Gamification
3. Enterprise Social Networking
4. No More Office Space
5. Profit + Purpose
6. 3D Printing

1. Your business plan should is a vision or projection of what you hope to achieve. Make sure your message is clear in your executive summary.

2. Have a board of advisors. If you don’t have experience in the industry you would like to do business in you should have people on your team who do.

3. Be sure that your say how you will be using the funds requested and when you expect to earn funds back. ROI!

4. Whatever product or idea you have should be solving a problem in the current market. Use up to date data and statictis

5. Make sure your month to month cash flow statements makes sense.

6. Lastly, research your competition.

To get Business Plan Template Email sixcia@sixcia.com

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