What difficulties may await the CEO and their team when entering a foreign market:
- Language barrier. With English, problems arise less often, but if we consider the Asian market, then things are more complicated with Eastern languages. Since we work with IT and Blockchain technologies, we are not limited to only English-speaking countries. We are considering a market where these directions are common, and we are trying to enter each country. That is why we hire translators who:
- are present on the call;
- translate the brief and TK;
- translate letters for intermediaries.
Here another important point arises – the adaptation of the site to English and other groups of languages that you need to work with clients in the areas that are emphasized. Take care of this in advance or make a presentation in English that you will send to potential clients.
- Mentality. How many cases exist when, without understanding the characteristics of the population, managers were unable to build communication with foreign clients.
Example: Baby food manufacturer Gerber, owned by Nestle, has been seen in several curious situations when introducing its products to the international market. For example, the word “gerber” in French means “sick”, which is not suitable for a food brand.
Also important for American colleagues is the legal purity of interaction and getting recommendations about a partner. And when working with German leaders, you have to be very scrupulous. In Germany, price adjustments are required literally to the cent, accuracy of descriptions to the letter, a certain format for all images.
Before entering into communication with a potential partner, we consult with an expert in a given region. He tells us about all the features of building a business.
- Acceptance of payments. Of course, a simpler and more profitable option is to work directly with customers. If you have such an opportunity, international transfers continue to be carried out by many services (Solar Staff and others). It is worth choosing those that automate the workflow. Through such services, you can withdraw money to cards, current accounts or electronic wallets.
Direct bank transfers are also still available if you have a non-sanctioned bank account. However, to work with foreign customers, you will have to prepare bilingual contracts and reporting documents in two languages, be ready to communicate with compliance departments and wait up to 7 days for payments.
How to look for foreign clients
We use the following possible channels to attract foreign clients: personal acquaintances, visits to international IT and Blockchain forums, cold mailings in order to get in touch with companies that need traffic or design services. At first, we worked only with cold mailings, more than 50 letters were sent per day. As a result, 5-6 sales per month with an average check of $4800. Searched for clients via Telegram. We wrote a script in advance and proceeded to action.
What must not be violated so that the partnership with you is not terminated
Timing. We are already working with Europe, America, China. The first thing that is strictly worth learning is the observance of deadlines. Even if the amount of work increases during the course of the project.
Difference in time. The big difference in time zones when working with American companies is also a challenge, but not as big as their exactingness. We had a case when we needed to call two partners – one of them in America, the other in Australia, we are from Russia. For us, the call was at 4:00 am. So be prepared for a downed mode.
Compliance with TK. In Russia, the contractor can make adjustments “at his own discretion”, argue the point of view and implement the project taking into account his vision. The practice of working with foreign projects has shown that each deviation from the original TOR should be agreed with the customer.
PS “)” only Russian guys put a smiley emoticon, abroad everyone uses emoji. So avoid these informalities in messengers.
Thus, the international market is what you need to master right now. You should not “spray” in all areas. Choose one or two directions for yourself, choose one country. Make a list of 10 in-demand niches ahead of time and don’t be afraid to start with cold emails. After the first trial and error, you will already be adapted and will be able to go to any country. It’s like learning a foreign language, the first one is always the most difficult, and then at least 10
