Protected: Fact Sheet 5 Traditional Marketing Steps To Become An International Business
October 31, 2008 by 
cindy
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| 2.9 |
What Is International Multichannel Marketing?
October 28, 2008 by cindy
Many businesses look to web marketing as a cheap and accessible international marketing option.
Yes, you will be able to reach your international audience. But the question is…
- Are you seriously committed to developing your international markets?
If your answer is yes…
Then, you need to add in some target marketing. You need to adapt your message and your communication to specific cultures. This means you need to
- Chose a county
- Get to know your new target market
- Adapt your communication
- Create a relationship with your new target market
Vary The Channels To Create Relationships
Yes…
It is possible to create relationships with your international audience. The key is to find the right:
- Channels of communication
- Marketing strategies
Just like with your domestic marketing, you will often be more successful when you use more than one channel. With international multichannel marketing, using a variety of different channels has distinct advantages:
- More international visibility
- Better knowledge about your foreign market
The Different Channels
So what are different channels of communication?
- Search engine optimization
- Teleseminars
- Forum marketing
- Blogging
- Micro-blogging
- Direct e-mail
- Social media
- Joint ventures
- Telemarketing
- Direct mail
- Event marketing
- Print advertising
- Direct-response television
- Radio
- Public relations
Multichannel Marketing From A Distance
Many companies prefer to rely heavily on web marketing to stay in contact with their foreign markets. Have a closer look at the list above. It is not even a complete list.
And yet…
- Half of the different channels listed above, are web communication channels.
This means that international multichannel marketing is an option for many companies.
But, there is something else…
There is one more important thing you need to make multichannel marketing work from a distance…
Web Statistics To Get To Know Your Markets
When targeting new international markets, it is vital that you incorporate systematic testing right from the start. You must:
- Become acquainted
- Get to know
- Appreciate the needs
- Engage in meaningful conversation
…with your international audience.
And systematic testing will give you the information you need to adjust your communication as appropriate.
Multichannel Marketing Key To International Success
As you communicate with your foreign markets, you will learn how your international audience reacts to the different communication channels.
Cultural differences also come into play. And you may be surprised at how different markets respond to different channels.
Marketing through a variety of different channels is key for businesses to find the right marketing strategy from a distance.
When you find one marketing channel is not effective, have a look at other marketing channels together with:
- Different cultural traits
- National statistics for each marketing channel
Not only does marketing with a variety of different channels give you more visibility, it also helps you learn more about your international audience and find the best communication channels for your business.
More From Cindy
Interested in reading more on my personal opinions and experiences with culture customized content?
My Blog On Copywriting For International Markets - CindyKing.biz
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Read The Whole Story
Business Guide - Multichannel Marketing
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Multichannel Marketing• Do you know the best way to set up your communication with different countries? |
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This is part of the Get International Clients Business Guide 4 Build Your International Marketing Strategy Be sure to check out the other useful tips to build your international marketing strategy |
Need Help?
Need instructions?
Need to see where this fits in?
Still confused? Review your answers in the first Core Business Guide
Simply click on one of the 8 different color coded boxes immediately below to access other core business guides.
| 2.9 |
Website Design For International Markets
Last updated 27 October 2008
In This Business Guide:
Design Your Website For International Clients
- Design Your Website For Your Needs – Not On Cost
- 10 Top Traffic Generators For Your Website
- How To Hire The Right Website Designer For Your International Audience
Design Your Website For International Clients
Here are other useful articles on website design
Design Your Website For Your Needs – Not On Cost
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Design Your WebsiteFor Your Needs – Not On Cost |
10 Top Traffic Generators For Your Website
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10 Top Traffic Generators For Your Website |
How To Hire The Right Website Designer For Your International Audience
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How To Hire The Right Website Designer For Your International Audience |
Design Your Website For Speed
This first series is on how to improve the speed for your visitors’ browsers to upload your website.
This is a critical issue for good international internet practices. There is still a large population all over the world using slower modems. And browsers on mobile phones are also using different technologies.
Speed is critical for good international business practices online.
Here is a series of articles on how you can improve speed for your website visitors:
How To Speed Up Your Website For All Of Your Visitors
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How To Speed Up Your WebsiteFor All Of Your Visitors |
Use The Height And Width Tags
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Use The Height And Width Tags |
Use A Forward Slash On Your Links
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Use A Forward Slash On Your Links |
Reduce the HTTP Requests
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Reduce the HTTP Requests |
Optimize Your Cascading Style Sheets
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Optimize Your Cascading Style Sheets |
More From Cindy
Interested in reading more on my personal opinions and experiences with culture customized content?
My Blog On Copywriting For International Markets - CindyKing.biz
|
Read The Whole Story
|
This is part of the Get International Clients Business Guide 4 Build Your International Marketing Strategy Be sure to check out the other useful tips to build your international marketing strategy |
Need Help?
Need instructions?
Need to see where this fits in?
Still confused? Review your answers in the first Core Business Guide
Simply click on one of the 8 different color coded boxes immediately below to access other core business guides.
| 2.9 |
How Feedback Develops International Markets
October 16, 2008 by cindy
Many of the businesses I speak to are so eager to communicate and sell to their foreign markets they usually do not spend enough time on getting feedback.
Don’t forget…
Communication is a two way affair.
The primary reason why you need to spend time collecting feedback from your new foreign market is to find out how to position:
- How you need to communicate with this new market
- Your international offer
Start With A Two Way Conversation
It is easy to understand the importance of foreign market feedback. Simply imagine a face-to-face encounter with your best foreign client.
- Would you simply shove information over to him?
- Would you only half listen to him before giving him your sales pitch?
The challenge with getting market feedback with cross-cultural communication is twofold.
- You need to start the conversation before you can get feedback… and many people do not start the conversation.
- It is easy to think you have all of the feedback you need… when you don’t.
Begin The Conversation
Some businesses procrastinate and wait for answers to their business questions to come out of thin air. Yes, market research is necessary and can help you tremendously.
But there comes a moment where you must get direct feedback from your international market. This time is probably best earlier than you would expect.
To avoid cultural blunders and misplaced investments, it is best to validate your foreign marketing with direct foreign market feedback for your business.
A Door To International Business
With today’s social media options companies have the perfect opportunity to begin conversation with specific international markets. The trick is to use this conversation strategically.
- Stimulate foreign market feedback
- Gather foreign market intelligence
- Provide key information for your product positioning
- Provide key information to create the best offer for your product in specific foreign markets
Social Media To Begin The Conversation
A prior analysis of the cultural appeal for different social media formats will give you a good idea of which social media format to use in a specific country:
- Blog
- Community forum
- Event based social media
You might be surprised how popular some social media are in different countries.
The choice of social media may not appear obvious in some countries. This is where cultural web tools can help you.
Small Investment To Discover Best International Opportunities
If you want to open an international market, you will probably want to invest in hiring a local person to provide the communication on your social media.
The key for this small investment to pay off, is to create a strategic outline for your international marketing needs.
Is it worth the investment in time and money? Here are two very good reasons:
- You will acquire business intelligence relevant to your foreign business opportunities.
- You will also be able to establish a very clear viability analysis.
Reduce Your Time To International Market
Companies used to pay consultants for expensive reports on market analysis prior to taking any action. Social media to stimulate foreign market feedback offers a different option. One where businesses can use a “Ready Fire Aim” approach.
This reduces the time and money you need to invest in your first level of international market research. And it also gives you flexibility and speed in fast markets.
Get The Feedback You Need
When you begin to target new foreign markets you must give yourself time to get enough feedback from your new markets before investing in large scale marketing efforts.
You need direct feedback from your new foreign markets to find:
- The right offer
- The right way to sell to your new market
- The best way to position your company and products
- The best price
If you do not give yourself enough time to get the feedback you need you may invest in translations and marketing materials before you have the right information to communicate.
This is why a two step, and even a multi-step, communication approach may be your best option.
The social media option outlined above, can easily be the first step in your international communication plan. All you would need is:
- An international social media communication plan together.
- A basic website, for example, a website for one broad international audience.
- A well thought out communication strategy to stimulate foreign market feedback.
Foreign Market Feedback
With this basic plan the feedback from your foreign market will tell the next steps you need to take.
Read The Whole Story
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This is part of the Core Business Guide 4 Build Your International Marketing Strategy Be sure to check out the other useful tips to build your international marketing strategy |
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And this is also part of the Core Business Guide 3 Design Your International Visibility Be sure to check out the other useful tips to design your international visibility |
Need Help?
Need instructions?
Need to see where this fits in?
Still confused? Review your answers in the first Core Business Guide
Simply click on one of the 8 different color coded boxes immediately below to access other core business guides.
| 2.9 |
Flexibility In Your International Marketing Plan
October 10, 2008 by cindy
Yesterday we looked at how it is important to incorporate flexibility into your international marketing plan. We also saw how you need feedback and the ability to maintain marketing accountability.
Incorporating flexibility into your international marketing plan will help you to:
- Adjust your marketing as you learn more about your foreign clients
- Avoid cultural blunders through feedback
- Avoid bad business decisions by listening to the feedback you get
Flexibility helps you change. It helps you to know when to respond. And, also how to respond.
But how can you include flexibility in your international marketing plan and still maintain marketing accountability?
This is where creating a process is important.
First let’s look at naming 4 steps in the process of incorporating flexibility into your marketing plan.
1 - Feedback
It all starts with feedback from your new foreign markets.
This is the process through which you acquire international business intelligence. This intelligence helps you improve all of your international business strategies.
The first step in to collect feedback from your international audience, prospects and clients. Everything counts.
2 - Assessment
Then you need to digest this information. It may not seem obvious, but you must not immediately make assumptions. Your assumptions will probably be culturally tainted… and they could be false.
You need to look at this information objectively.
3 - Understanding
This leads to the third step of understanding your international markets. This does not come from your own logic. It is almost like a light bulb going off. You need to meet your foreign markets outside of your own comfortable environment.
This is where you can understand the feedback you get from your foreign markets.
4 - Change
And once you understand the feedback you can look at your current marketing plan and make adjustments. You now have both the international business intelligence and the foreign market understanding.
Part Of Your Marketing Plan
By outlining these 4 steps you can plan for them. You can add them into your international marketing plan. And allow for the time and means necessary for required change.
How do you add them into your plan? Being aware of this process and these steps is already a good part of the process. A simple validation procedure or checking point is usually all you need.
- Does the feedback you have match your current international marketing plan?
- Do you need to take the time to assess this information?
- Is there any reason to dig deeper, to understand your feedback better?
And if you need to adjust your international marketing plan…
…then make the necessary changes as quickly as you can.
Better International Business Results
Effective cross-cultural marketing requires good right brain skills. This is why it can appear difficult to bring marketing accountability into your international marketing plan. But you simply need to identify the right process, and the right elements to measure.
Once you have established where you need to place these questions into your marketing plan, it becomes easy to evaluate and measure.
Many cultural blunders happen because businesses:
- Do not stimulate foreign market feedback enough.
- Do not take the time to assess and understand this feedback - they make their own assumptions too quickly.
- Do not make the changes their foreign market indicates they want.
If you do not have international business experience, you find this difficult to grasp fully. Simply ask yourself these questions at key moments, milestones, or when you take action in your foreign market.
Seasoned international business professionals use similar processes to maintain flexibility. But this process is often unconscious and they apply it continuously throughout all of their tasks.
Read The Whole Story
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This is part of the Core Business Guide 4 Build Your International Marketing Strategy Be sure to check out the other useful tips to build your international marketing strategy |
 |
And you can also use this as part of the Core Business Guide 6 Analyze Your International Viability Be sure to check out the other useful tips to analyze your international viability |
Need Help?
Need instructions?
Need to see where this fits in?
Still confused? Review your answers in the first Core Business Guide
Simply click on one of the 8 different color coded boxes immediately below to access other core business guides.
| 2.9 |
The 3 Differences In Your International Marketing Plan
October 9, 2008 by cindy
Do you already have a marketing plan for your domestic business? Do you need an international marketing plan too?
Of course you can guess that these 2 marketing plans will not be the same. There are 3 differences you need to incorporate into your international marketing plan.
Feedback
When marketing to different markets abroad you must stimulate market feedback. In fact this needs to be one of your top priorities right from the beginning.
When you first start targeting a foreign country you will need to adjust your communication and your marketing and sales strategies.
It is important to understand how your communication is received in a different culture. And this takes time to understand well.
As you get to know your foreign markets you still need to pay attention. In order to seize business opportunities, and avoid bad decisions, you need to know what is going on.
Place a high priority on stimulating feedback in your international marketing plan.
Flexibility
Again, it is all about getting to know markets that are different from your home market.
As you get to know and understand these new prospects better you will need to adjust your marketing. Simply put:
Your international prospects react differently to your products.
These differences may be very subtle. They can also appear at any stage of your international business. But if you stimulate feedback and listen for these differences you can:
- Improve your international results.
- Become present in your foreign markets.
A little time spent double checking your strategies can save you time, money and cultural blunders. So, plan for flexibility. Include a process of evaluations, and room for change, in your international marketing plan.
Viability
In an international marketing plan you need to include even more elements of marketing accountability. The viability of your international endeavors may depend on this.
What does this mean? Here is a simple action plan:
- Review your international marketing plan
- Create a process
- Include steps that can be measured
- Review these steps for relevancy
- Use this process to create accountability
- Review results for viability
This gives your business the tools to make the right decisions to grow in foreign markets. Include a process for marketing accountability in your international marketing plan.
Use Your International Marketing Plan
Incorporate these 3 elements in your international marketing plan and add one more. Next all you need is to:
- Put your international marketing plan into action.
Even if you start with the most basic marketing plan, all you really need is to take action and give priority to these 3 differences. Your market feedback, flexibility and viability analysis will guide you through the rest.
Read The Whole Story
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This is part of the Core Business Guide 4 Build Your International Marketing Strategy Be sure to check out the other useful tips to build your international marketing strategy |
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And this is also part of the Core Business Guide 6 Analyze Your International Viability Be sure to check out the other useful tips to analyze your international viability |
Need Help?
Need instructions?
Need to see where this fits in?
Still confused? Review your answers in the first Core Business Guide
Simply click on one of the 8 different color coded boxes immediately below to access other core business guides.
| 2.9 |
3 Reasons To Start With Integrated Marketing
October 8, 2008 by cindy
Integrated marketing is on most marketing managers’ agendas today. The reason why it is on most agendas is because it strengthens all of your marketing actions. It has become an essential part of business.
What is integrated marketing communications?
It is the process of ensuring relevancy and consistency for each prospect and client in all your brand communications.
When It Is Challenging
Integrated marketing can be a challenge. It is not always easy to implement the processes needed for effective integrated marketing into existing marketing plans.
What makes this challenging?
- The number of communication channels.
- The apparent variety in prospect profiles today.
Easy For Communication In New Markets
Imagine starting a completely new communication strategy. A communication strategy with a clean slate. And in a new market. One you are just beginning to develop.
It would be easy to include integrated marketing processes right from the start. And here is what makes it easy:
- Your focused efforts on your new markets
- Your need for feedback from your new markets
- The limited number of communication channels you will have in the beginning
There is a distinct advantage in establishing an effective integrated marketing strategy when you begin to develop a new foreign market. It is easier to establish when starting a new communication strategy, compared to an established communication strategy.
One Message For One Foreign Market
When you create your first communication plan for a new foreign market you usually find it easy to concentrate on creating an integrated marketing message. This usually happens naturally as part of the process.
Integrated marketing creates effective communication across different media platforms.
Your market research is fresh and you naturally want to stimulate more international business intelligence through your communication.
Even if your communications with your foreign market are limited in the number of channels you use, you will probably use good integrated marketing practices.
Integrated marketing comes in to play with creating good website templates for multiple localized websites.
Stimulate Feedback To Create Action
When you first communicate with a new foreign market you want feedback.
In fact, if you are smart, you will also create your first communication to actually stimulate feedback from your new foreign market.
- You try to get your readers to take action: give you feedback.
Again, this is also very similar to your goals in integrated marketing:
- Moving prospects from a state of awareness to taking action.
With feedback it is easy to move into the next step…
Tracking and testing become a part of optimizing results for both the international marketer and the integrated marketer.
Step Into Integrated Marketing
Implementing an integrated marketing plan right from the start of your international business development makes good sense. Here are the reasons why:
- You get all of the value of an integrated marketing plan.
- You develop your international markets faster.
- You create a structure you can measure.
- You track and test results for marketing accountability.
- You create a base to measure international viability.
An Added Bonus
Integrated marketing for new foreign markets can also favorably influence your integrated marketing for your domestic markets:
- The extra strategy and focused targeting required.
- The simple integrated marketing model you create for your foreign markets.
Good international business development usually elevates the level of company-wide business practices. This is probably the “expense” of international business today:
- Investing the time and effort in establishing great business practices.
Many would agree this is a good option.
Read The Whole Story
|
This is part of the Get International Clients Business Guide 4 Build Your International Marketing Strategy Be sure to check out the other useful tips to build your international marketing strategy |
Need Help?
Need instructions?
Need to see where this fits in?
Still confused? Review your answers in the first Core Business Guide
Simply click on one of the 8 different color coded boxes immediately below to access other core business guides.
| 2.9 |
How Do You Create An International Marketing Blog?
Quick answers to…
Your Frequently Asked Questions
This is part of a series to answer the questions readers leave on my blog and business directory.
If you have a question you would like to have answered, related to international business development, cross-cultural marketing or international sales communication, simply leave a comment here below and I will get back to you.
Today’s question is:
What are the first steps in creating an international marketing blog?
This is an interesting question that came in last week.
Before creating a business blog for international audiences, be sure to thoroughly do your groundwork. This will get you on the right track from the start.
Identify Your International Business
There are two things you have to determine right from the start.
You need to identify which kind of international business your company is able to do at present. You need to know why you want to create an international marketing blog. Read more here:
You then need to clearly identify which type of marketing you will be using. Again read this to help you clarify your direction:
Identify Your Audience
Once you know where your business lies, you then need to research your target market’s needs.
You need to determine whether
- You write one blog to target one broad international audience, or
- You use cross cultural marketing skills to target one specific country and culture at a time.
The Right Communication Platform
A blog is a great business marketing tool in many countries.
But it may not work well in the country you are targeting.
Have a look at the different Cultural Web Tools in the link below. These web tools are categorized by different cultural behaviors.
Is a blog an appropriate vehicle in your target market?
Easy With The Right Ground Work
The answers to these questions gives you the information you need to identify the right answers to your next set of questions:
- Which language you should use
- How often you need to write
- Who should write the blog
- What to write about
- How to inspire interaction
Pimp Your International Marketing Blog
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Guide To Cultural Web Tools• How can you tweak your web site to improve your cross-cultural communication?Lots of tools here. |
Read The Whole Story
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This is part of the Get International Clients Business Guide 4 Build Your International Marketing Strategy Be sure to check out the other useful tips to build your international marketing strategy |
|
And this is also part of the Get International Clients Business Guide 2 Plan Your International Sales Road Map Be sure to check out the other useful tips to plan your international sales. |
Need Help?
Need instructions?
Need to see where this fits in?
Still confused? Review your answers in the first Core Business Guide
Simply click on one of the 8 different color coded boxes immediately below to access other core business guides.
| 3.6 (1 person) |
How Can I Get Information On My Foreign Markets?
September 24, 2008 by cindy
Quick answers to…
Your Frequently Asked Questions
This is part of a series to answer the questions readers leave on my blog and business directory.
If you have a question you would like to have answered, related to international business development, cross-cultural marketing or international sales communication, simply leave a comment here below and I will get back to you.
Today’s question is:
How can I get information on my market in different countries?
Use the same guerrilla tactics you could use in your domestic market.
Identify relevant:
- Websites
- Blogs
- Online forums
- Magazines
- Books
- Trade shows
- Events
Don’t forget to use the free online translation tools to help you in your market research.
Aim for places where you can pick up people’s opinions. Listen to what is said in your foreign market. Facts and figures can easily be misleading if you are interpreting them from a different cultural vantage.
Your international market research will go slower than in your domestic market. This is the one difference you will find. But don’t try to speed this up. This process will give you the time to adapt your own mindset.
I strongly advise mixing your online research with some research by phone. Call appropriate people who live in your foreign market.
Aim for more feedback from real people than online research data. This human touch will give you a valuable insights on where to look next.
Above all else, keep active in your research. Keep at it. Even if you make one phone call a day, or every couple of days.
The key is to cross reference your research.
Some call this multi-dimensional research. You need to hear from people with different viewpoints on your market. This gives you a much better understanding. It also eliminates any cross-cultural misunderstandings.
Read More About International Market Research
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International Market Research GuideInternational market research is easy, find out more here. |
| 2.5 |
The Two Biggest Barriers To International Marketing
September 11, 2008 by cindy
I often see two barriers to effective international marketing. The barrier usually depends on the size of the company.
Small And Very Small Companies
Most of the small companies do not really have a marketing strategy. They assume international marketing is a website.
And occasionally, if they realize this is not enough, they look for specific internet tactics to find the right solution.
Larger Companies
What happens here is inaction.
I have come across different excuses for the inaction, but inaction is the main barrier to establishing an effective international marketing strategy.
Company Centered Barriers
Now if you talk to company executives who are struggling with their international business development, you will often hear market-centered excuses.
- Language barriers
- Market differences
- No market for our products
…that sort of thing.
They focus on perceived market-centered barriers.
Now, let’s go back…
Have a closer look at the two barriers I gave earlier:
- No real marketing strategy
- Inaction
These are company-centered barriers.
International Marketing Gives You The Answers
In order to develop your business abroad you absolutely need to understand each of your international markets.
If you think you can target one broad international audience without digging deeper into each specific country and culture, have a look at these two articles:
- 5 Traditional Marketing Steps To Become An International Business
- The 7 Traditional Paths To International Business Development
Review these with your own business and then read this:
In international business development your international marketing gives you information you need to make your overall strategy.
Even when you use preliminary market research to guide your international business expan