I haven't been very regular in blogging of late . . . but now I've done the next best thing, or maybe even gone one better -- I've written a book on entering new international markets. The book, published by Lioncrest Publishing was released April 11, 2018. It's available in paperback and a Kindle eBook edition on Amazon -- you can buy it here.
The book is based around a few big picture strategic imperatives, illustrated by real world stories, and supported by lots of practical advice on how to successfully implement those strategies.
The 3 big big strategic ideas are:
- To be successful in a new market, you need to be able to translate what makes you successful in your home market to a different cultural context. Because the very notion of value is inherently cultural, you can't just assume that what your existing customers find valuable and how you deliver that value will work in a new foreign market. You need to proactively choose the markets which are the best fit for your business if you want to maximize your chances of success.
- To sell your product or service abroad, you will almost certainly need to change some elements of what you sell and how you deliver it to your customers. Those changes will reverberate throughout your organization, cascading down through product development, operations, sales and marketing, customer service, finance, HR, and legal. You need to make sure your company is aligned with your international strategy in advance or you can experience dissonance in your corporate culture and disruptions in your operations which will not only undermine your new venture, but could very well damage your existing business.
- The one thing that will allow you to sleep at night when doing business in sometimes distant markets is to know that you are doing business with good people who share your goals and with whom you've developed a solid relationship based on mutual trust. Developing this kind of relationship requires an understanding of the impact of cultural context, including differences in communication styles, notions of value, and attitudes toward things like time and identity.
The book is NOT an academic tome. It is a practical business book meant to be easily read and digested by business people, whether small entrepreneurs, "c" level executives at larger companies, or people directly responsible for exploring and developing new international markets. It is intended to impart a few big strategic insights and provide executable tactics that will greatly increase the probability that a business of any size will be successful in entering new international markets.
So if you have found anything of value in my blog posts, by all means, buy the book! I think you will find it helpful in ensuring your business's success in new international markets.
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