3 Types Of International Communication For International Business Success Online

You can’t learn to ride a bike without…well, a bike. Can you?

International business involves cross cultural communication. It is the inherent nature of the business.

To develop good cross cultural communication skills you need foreign communication exposure. With people. Live.

Cultural skills are fairly easy to develop. But you can’t pick them up reading books. You need hands on practice. Most people only need the desire to communicate with other cultures and some practice to put them on the right track.

But good cross cultural communication skills are not easy to develop if you are an online business without much direct contact with your foreign clients. Read more

How Digital Age Communication Wrecked Havoc In Multicultural Communication

I was shocked a short while ago. I heard the strangest story. A French company’s owner and partner told me how they had been trying to reach the appropriate account executive at a large American sportswear company. And they just could not get through to the right person on the phone.

Every time they called they got caught in the new fancy telephone systems used by big companies today with automatic redirects. For some reason they just could not figure out how to use the American company’s phone system to get the right person on the phone.

My thoughts stopped immediately when I realized just how big an order they wanted to place, and the ongoing sales relationship they were eager to set up. These were big sports fans and they knew how to market this American companies goods to Europeans. These sports goods just can’t be found anywhere else in Europe. Did the American company realize the potential business loss? Read more

International Market Research - Don’t Get Stumped When Digital Age Communication Fails

Go Back To Old-Fashioned Best Practices

Yesterday I wrote about a story of two seasoned French executives who had been trying to place an order by phone with a large American company, and they were stumped by a sophisticated phone system.

They were lucky, they were the ones buying, and they wanted to place a large order that was scheduled to be renewed regularly in the future.

But what if they did not have such a strong argument? How can you reach the right person by phone? Read more

Non-Verbal Differences North American Women Need To Be Aware Of In European Negotiations

International sales negotiations need to be prepared. Cross cultural communication is mined with potential blunders. And if you are a woman, you need to pay attention to other details as well.

Here are a few more tips specifically for North American women in sales negotiations with Europeans: Read more

Case Studies - Best Small Business Tool For Building Trust In International Clients

Last updated 20 August 2008

What international business development tool is so powerful it calls your prospects and clients to action… and can demolish the biggest stumbling block of all in international business?

A Case Study

You see, telling a story is a very powerful communication tool. It speaks across cultures, across language levels. A case study is a story. The story of how one of your clients had a problem, how he chose your product as the solution, and the results he has had.

A case study often has more selling power to international prospects than any other promotional document because the case study tells the story of someone else resolving the same issue your client has.

If you have a success story with any foreign client it is a fantastic tool throughout all of your international markets and you should make a case study do describe that success. If the success story is with a client located in the country you are targeting it is even better. If you don’t have an international client case study but you do have local client case studies, don’t let that stop you. Your story will still have great pull because it still shows a problem and a solution. Read more

Case Studies - Easy Small Business Strategy Strengthens International Client Relationships

Last updated 20 August 2008

Why a systematic case study plan at time of sale is important to your international business development.

If you implement a systematic case study plan at the time of sale, you will get several case study elements. Some of your clients may not be willing to commit to a full case study. Not to worry.

There are three variations of the case study. Read more