Where to start when you want to export ?

Method

International growth involves a structured and defined approach.

Goals seeting,
Budget approval,
Export skills (Recruitment if not in house),
Preparatory phase and plans,
Prospecting actions
Follow up

Prospecting will lead to a portfolio of prospects or also potential business partners with whom you will decide to collaborate. The type of partners will depend on the type of chosen distribution channel.

Build a portfolio of prospects

Different tools and organizations can be used:

Professional directories, newspapers, magazines…
Trade show directories,
International Commerce Chambers
Internet Databases
Social Networks

Prepare and translate your prospecting documents

Catalogs or Leaflets in PDF,
Business cards and email signature,
Terms of Sales,
Export tariffs,
Samples,
Videos and Images,
Website, landing pages,
Contents optimized for marketing search ; SEO (Search Engine Optimization), SEA (Search Engine Acquisition)

Storytelling matters. My best advice is to seek help from professional Copywritters, Translators and Community managers who will respect your message and the intercultural notion that you must always bear in mind.

On the other hand, if your product has a very high degree of technicality, have it translated if you find it by a translator specialized in your industry or trade. Be aware that technical terms are not found in dictionaries.

Start prospecting

Become a growth hacker. Modern digital plateforms and new tools will allow you to automise marketing and sales tasks and grow your pipeline of prospects.

Send contents on social plateforms, direct messages on B2B networks (LinkedIn) or emailing to make your brand known before prospecting. Be sure all the targets are opt-in.
Master the art of writing impactful emails and cold phone appointment booking.
Organize a first export mission with B2B meetings in a specific region-country zone and rationalize intelligently your meeting agenda.
Plan (Yearly) to participate in several trade events selected according to your sector of activity (First study this sector/country to find out if the said event is promising. Some trade shows taking place in your own country can also allow you to meet potential foreign buyers).
Publish online contents and press releases or advertisements in dedicated professional and social medias.

This type of direct approach immediately allows you to:

Present your products or services,
Assess their level of customization to the target market,
Quantify potential demand,
Position yourself against your competitors,
Seek or find an agent or distributor.

I strongly advise you to set up an annual or multi-year program of actions by allowing travel slots by visited areas, regions, countries. Accordingly, you shal book time slots where you stay in the office to do the administrative and operation tasks. You can associate it with an expenditure or business forecast.

For two reasons :

The business does not fall at the first visit therefore, it is necessary to return several times to the same customer or distributor.
Planning your rounds also allows you to optimize your geographical coverage by optimizing the expenditure on airplane/train tickets. Expenses will not pay for themselves immediately.

In summary, How to start exporting and grow internationally

International growth requires a structured and defined approach with clear goals, budget, skills, plans, and actions
Prospecting is the key activity to build a portfolio of potential customers or partners, depending on the distribution channel
Different tools and organizations can be used for prospecting, such as directories, trade shows, chambers of commerce, internet databases, and social networks
Prospecting documents should be prepared and translated professionally, with attention to intercultural aspects and technical terms
Prospecting methods include sending contents, writing impactful emails, booking phone appointments, organizing B2B meetings, participating in trade events, and publishing online contents
Prospecting allows to present products or services, assess market fit, quantify demand, position against competitors, and find agents or distributors
Prospecting should be planned as a long-term and multi-regional strategy, with travel slots and office time balanced with expenditure and business forecast.

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
Dr. Theodor Seuss