8 Clues To Get You Global: Start By Building An Export Dream Team
An April 2002 report, "Easing Export Headaches," by Forrester Research, a technology-research firm in Cambridge, Mass., indicates 55% of the executives surveyed believe the Net will be vital to their future export strategy. Are you ready? The first clue in getting started is to develop your in-house export dream team.
As you prepare for this new development, you must remember this important point: success in exporting is directly related to a company-wide commitment. That company-wide commitment involves you alone or, as in the case of a large corporation, the executive committee, finance, operations, marketing and sales, logistics, research and technology.
Once you recognize the resources you have available and what it takes to export your product or service, you prepare a list of what is required from each of these functional areas of your company and present the list to the person who is willing to be a part of your export team.
Who do you look for? Someone who has great salesmanship qualities, persistence, an interest in international matters, bi- or multi-lingual language capabilities, cultural empathy, good writing and speaking abilities and pays attention to detail. If you find part of most of this in a person, grab him/her!
From each department you might need a person to assist you on an as-needed basis, or devote 10% of their time all the time or one-half day a week for a full year. Whatever it takes, the individual has to know what will be required from him/her over the course of time, understand the export process and how each member's tasks fit into the overall export process. Don't be afraid to get their commitment, preferably in writing, so they will be there for you on an as-needed basis.
My recommendation is to get each department person to set aside one hour each day just to work on an international sales strategy. It doesn't matter if there are no sales pending, what is critical is to arrange a structured amount of time that requires discipline, commitment and exchange of information. It gives everyone the feeling of importance and team spirit which is critical for the growth and prosperity of the company.
As you work with your export team, they need to be trained as you go along. If you are a novice exporter, they learn as you learn but the point is to get their input as often as possible and insist they execute their portion of the plan. Here is a general idea of what to expect from each member of your export team along with additional clues to get you global:
8 Clues To Get You Global
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Laurel Delaney (LaurelDelaney.com) is the founder of GlobeTrade.com and the creator of "Borderbuster," an e-newsletter, and The Global Small Business Blog. She can be reached at ldelaney@globetrade.com.
