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How to Build a Business Internationalization Strategy in 6 Easy Steps
We are seeing rapid growth in new and emerging markets. As a business owner, it is important for you to understand the global economy and make plans for the internationalization of your business. If you don’t know where to start – here’s a simple 6-step guide to build a comprehensive internationalization strategy.
Business Internationalization as an opportunity for growth
Taking your business international can be exciting. More importantly, it is a critical next step for expanding your business. You can reap the benefits of new markets and new sources of revenue if you make the right decisions. You should consider internationalization when:
- there is a demand for your business overseas
- you want to diversify your market presence
- you want to build a more competitive business
- simply because it’s the time!
By creating a concrete Business Internationalization Strategy, you can ensure that the path to internationalization is a lot smoother.
Strategic planning for internationalization
A Business Internationalization strategy has multi-fold and multi-level plans that help you make the best impact and become quickly profitable in a new market. For it to be successful, your strategy needs to be a good fit for the needs and capabilities of your business. Here are the key steps to build steady, sustainable, and achievable international success.
Key steps for according internationalization
Step 1: Find the right market
When expanding business internationalization strategy, there are several factors to consider to find the right market for your business. Here are some factors you should consider:
- Will your business be profitable in the new market– chart and analyze the costs involved in executing your business plan in the new territory. Does it create the same – if not more – profit value for your venture?
- If your business is going to be profitable, analyze the size of the new market. Will there be a large number of people interested in your product or service? You can even hire an analyst to perform primary research for you.
- Consider the legal, economic, and even environmental scope of your business in the new market. What kind of resources will you get access to? What is the ease-of-doing-business factor? Will the exchange rate have a major impact?
Step 2: Analyze and understand your competitors
Although your business may have a unique offering, it is important to include an analysis of your competitors in your research. Here are some key things to keep in mind:
- Identify saturated markets that lack offerings similar to yours – identify local pools that do not have enough competition within your industry.
- See which competitors harness benefits from partnerships and collaborations and how they do that – analyze if these benefits can also be applied to your business.
- Learn from the development strategies of other expanding businesses in the new market – this will also help you identify indirect competitors in your industry.
Step 3: Identifying growth opportunities
Expansion to new markets requires thorough research of existing growth opportunities. You can do so by these key steps:
- Review figures from the past decade – collect data that is relevant to your business and analyze if the market is developing or declining.
- Identify adjacent opportunities – a study reveals that corporations that have the most sustainable growth arcs are the ones that have expanded their businesses to adjacent opportunities.
- Analyze trends and policies which suit your business footprint – consider the options that various market trends offer, and work with the ones that best suit your business footprint and your value proposition
Step 4: Understand the local behavior of your industry
Without an understanding of how your business will engage with the market locally, your internationalization strategy is incomplete. Here are the key steps for doing this:
- Identify and understand your target consumer – working with the consumer within their own comfort/cultural zone is an important feature for your business’ growth.
- Create a migration plan – work with your research to see how your brand translates and impacts your new market, and what modifications are required to create the right impression.
Step 5: Find strategic partners
Business internationalization can be done alone, but you can create multiple avenues for growth by strategically working with partners. Things to keep in mind while creating a partnership plan:
- Identify mutual values – look for partners who are moving towards similar goals or are effectively seeking similar industry growth.
- Identify partnerships that complement your values – partners who can fill in the gaps that are created as a part of your internationalization process can help reduce the risks and investment required for your internationalization
Step 6: Lean on professionals in the area
Business internationalization strategy is not a risk-free undertaking— it can get overwhelming. But it helps to have the right professional resources for your business. Hiring local professionals not only helps you cut costs but also gives you access to diverse talent pools with adaptive expertise. Recruiting, as well as retaining employees can be a part of your effective growth strategy if your business engages professionals in the new market area.
Why internationalize your business to Latin America?
Latin America today is a galaxy in a universe of options. Faced with growing business internationalization strategy demand, expanding horizons towards other markets is not only a competitive advantage but also a specific option for any company.
In Serviap we become your ideal ally if you want to expand into Latin America, as a leader in the PEO industry we help companies expand their operations, providing a single point of contact for one or multiple countries, and internationalizing them successfully.
Conclusion
The business internationalization strategy is the next step towards profitable and sustainable growth. What seems like a daunting process, can be made a lot easier by breaking it down into key steps— building on your value proposition, in-depth market research, and analysis of opportunities and partnerships. Armed with a stage-wise plan, you can make more informed decisions about expanding and growing your business.
