Taking your company global could be the best thing that’s ever happened to your business. After all, there are billions of people in the world that you can reach with your product if you scale up to an international level.
On the other hand, it could ruin your business.
Before you take the leap into international marketing, read through these tips to make sure you’re ready to take your business to this level.
1. Expand Your Business
Before you can get into the global market, you need to get more people on board. There are two basic ways of doing this.
Hire More People
By hiring people either from overseas or who have experience with international markets, you’ll be ready to connect with people from your target countries.
This will help you retain control of your company but can be difficult if you need to get work visas to bring people to the United States.
Partner with Another Business
Another option that can help you save money while leaping into the international market is to partner with existing businesses in foreign countries.
The biggest downside to this is that it can mean some loss of control and profit margins, but it can also make the process significantly easier and help you expand more rapidly.
2. Make Modifications
There are some important changes that will also need to be made to your product and sales pages before you can completely step into the foreign market. This begins with translation.
Once sales materials, packaging, and marketing materials are translated, they will also need to be checked for cultural correctness. Be sure to hire an expert to check materials so you don’t accidentally turn people off from your product because of a poor translation.
3. Get an International Trademark
What’s to stop someone in another country from stealing your company name and product ideas as soon as you arrive? Nothing, if you don’t have it trademarked internationally.
To truly be registered internationally, you have to register in every country, which can make the process difficult. For that reason, it’s best to work with an international trademark registration company that can help you get this vital step done right.
4. Create Plan for Local SEO
If people in the country you’re looking into don’t know about your product, then you won’t be able to make many sales. That’s why part of your preparation to entering the international market must be local SEO.
Local SEO will drive traffic to your website from the areas where you’re targeting. That will help raise brand awareness and get people buying your product as they find out about it from your website.
5. Hop on a Plane
The best way to seal a deal in the international market is with a physical handshake. So you better be prepared to hop on a plane to meet with potential business partners!
Fortunately, most of your business travel expenses are tax deductible, so you’ll get some benefit while being able to reach out personally with other people.
Need More Help with International Marketing?
Now you’ve got a few tips to get you started with taking your business to an international level.
If you need more help with international marketing, especially with local SEO, be sure to check out our blog and other resources created for business owners just like you.