10 myths about entering international markets

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Here are 10 misconceptions by companies about entering overseas markets.

1 If we make a better mousetrap, they will buy it.

The question here is, do you think that factor alone is the necessary and sufficient condition to sell overseas? If it was always about quality, then why doesn't everyone always buy the best product?

2 English is the universal language, so we can simply sell in English.

This speaks to several issues: Does everyone in the client organization speak, read and write English? Remember, decisions often are made on a consensus basis, and your marketing materials may travel quite a bit within the clients' firms and sit on many desks.

3 Our labor cost is too high to market our product overseas.

This myth can be refuted with one statistic: Fifty-five percent of Japan's trade surplus with the United States comes from industries where their labor cost is higher than ours. If labor cost was the deciding factor, then how on earth could Germany possibly sell anything abroad?

4 Our price is too high for overseas markets.

Are you intending to compete only on price? Many commodities (oil, wheat, cement, corn) are price-sensitive, but the vast majority of international successes aren't.

5 Our skilled marketers can take on overseas markets.

If we define marketing as awareness, understanding and belief, we need to ask:

Do my marketing people know how to make overseas markets aware of the product? Do they know how to explain the products, attributes and benefits in terms that make sense to the locals?

6 Our in-house foreign nationals can sell to overseas markets.

In one example, a U.S.-based CEO told me his Chinese wife could negotiate with the Chinese government for market entry. My questions were: Is she a skilled negotiator? Does she understand the sales process? Does she have the motivation and energy to break into this difficult market?

7 Our local partners will handle all of the marketing.

This idea of relinquishing market control while enjoying great success is rare. Most of the time, overseas partners will look toward the parent to help stimulate demand, deal with problems as they occur, get to know the distribution channels, offer subject matter expertise and show that the parent company has indeed invested in the market.

8 The customer expressed all of the buying signs, and even said "yes" to our proposal.

Many firms overseas conduct their market research by posing as buyers. They conduct competitive intelligence the same way. Your banker will tell you that the sale is complete only when the money has been deposited into the bank.

9 We don't need to invest a lot; our Web site gives us a presence.

Actually, your Web site gives you a brochure, but no real place where businesses and consumers can get support, touch and feel your product, get to know your company and its staff, deal with returns, make product modifications and enable co-marketing agreements.

10 If it worked here (in the United States), it will work there.

This speaks to local ethnocentrism. Success at home also can be a hindrance to overseas success. Arrogance and impatience are often byproducts of domestic success. Market conditions, buying conditions, business practices, negotiation tactics and product specifications all differ by market.

So, how do you choose a market?

With hundreds of variables to deal with, there is finally help. The Market Access Toolkit will help. The Market access toolkit is a collection of articles, spreadsheets, screening mechanisms, white papers, booklets and audio products, complied by experts in international market entry.

It contains episodes from our radio show: “how to lose your shirt abroad.”

And with a money back guarantee, what do you have to lose?

Use the market access toolkit to analyze and choose the correct market, and the correct way to enter it.

www.marketaccesstoolkit.com

The Status of International Adoptions from Russia

For Americans looking to adopt internationally, Russia has long been had a stable adoption program. Russia has typically been the third most popular sending country for international adoptions in the United States. Russian children who are given up for adoption typically are so because the poverty level in the country is such that raising a child would be difficult or impossible for the lower class parents. The result is that a large number of Russian children are made available for foreign adoption.

Recently, however, attempts at reform within the Russian adoption system have led to major delays in the adoption process. A recently passed Russian law requires adoption agencies to be re-accredited. The process of applying for and being granting accreditation and licensing has proven to be a slow one, resulting in the delays that are currently being seen.

Applications for accreditation must be reviewed by five Russian government ministries: Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. One of these ministries sometimes requires clarification or additional information on certain applications, which leads to further delay. The website for the United States Embassy in Moscow cites one example in which the Ministry of Justice recently returned several applications to the agencies, asking for further information1. The Ministry of Education can only sign off on the accreditation after receiving approval from each of the four other ministries. At the time of this writing (May 30, 2007) the Ministry of Education had not announced a date by which the review will be complete, and no adoption agencies had yet been accredited by the ministry.

These postponements in the adoption process have had some other consequences, as well. For example, prospective adoptive parents are having trouble traveling to Russia for their adoption visits. Russian adoptions require two such visits, the first being about a week and the second lasting two to three weeks. The Russian government issues visas to adopting parents for these visits, with specific parameters indicating the dates of the visit. However, because all adoptions are falling behind schedule, Americans are attempting to travel to Russia outside the dates specified on their visas. This can be especially problematic if they are able to travel to Russia, but wind up staying beyond the departure date of the visa. Significant delays in departing Russia can occur.

For the moment, adoptions in Russia are still mired in the bureaucratic accreditation process. The Russian government and the Ministry of Education are unable to say when the review might be over and adoptions will be back up to speed. For those wishing to adopt a Russian child, it is still possible to do so, but one should be prepared to weather a significant waiting period. If enduring the process is not feasible, there are plenty of other countries with available children to consider. Some other viable options include China, South Korea, Guatemala, and many countries in Africa. News and updates on the Russian adoption process are available from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow website:

http://moscow.usembassy.gov/consular/consular.php?record_id=adoptions

Tips for International Car Shows

Attending international car shows can be a thrilling experience. Regardless of whether you are planning to take your family or even your own car to the show there are some things that you should think about ahead of time. Always planning ahead can ensure that you are well on your way to being fully prepared and ensure that your visit to the car show is the best possible. Never leave things to the last minute to plan a trip if you are going to an international car show.

Your first step is to always ensure you know exactly the dates of the car show. You never want to arrange the trip on the wrong weekend or at the wrong period of time. This can be a huge and costly mistake that is not always easily fixable. Double and triple check those dates to ensure you know exactly when they are, and also determine exactly which of those days you plan on attending.

Once you have confirmed all of the dates for the car show start looking at accommodations. Pick out your hotel rooms early and ensure that they are booked well in advance for the best rates. Waiting until the last minute can force you to pay as much as double for the rooms that you would normally pay which is a huge increase and not something that is unavoidable. Additionally, determine if you are going to need transportation for the car show. After all, if you are taking a car to show, you may not want to drive it around the area where the show is. If you are not taking a car, you probably will not be taking a car.

Once you have your accommodations arranged and the dates picked out it is time to start handling transportation. If you are merely going to view the cars this is much simpler. Either purchase a boat ticket and take a cruise at the same time, or purchase a plane ticket. If however, you are planning to take your car you need to spend some serious time planning this. You are going to need to find out about shipping your car, ensure that you have all inspections for the vehicle done on time, ensure you have adequate insurance coverage for the vehicle in case it is lost, stolen or damaged while in transit and even ensure that there will be efficient transportation for the vehicle. This is not a simple task at all and can be quite a nightmare trying to arrange at times. Start in advance to ensure that this goes as smoothly as possible.

Some of the other considerations is you need to find out about admission. Regardless of whether you are taking a vehicle or not it is important to ensure that you know you will be able to get in. For example, if the show is by invitation only, you may be upset to discover you made all of the arrangements and are not able to get into the show. This can be a huge disaster, so always ensure that you know exactly what is expected in order to get admission to the show once you arrive. Call to check with the planning organization well ahead of the car show to ensure that you have the best results possible with this.

As you can see, a bit of preplanning is all it takes in order to ensure that your trip to an international car show is as smooth a process as possible. Never worry about the show being a disaster, with a good bit of planning you are certain to really enjoy the entire international car show experience. Never have any worries, with good planning skills you are more than certain to thoroughly enjoy the show and be quite excited about all of the prospects that the show can hold for you. There are so many exciting things at the international car shows and it is a spectacular feeling to attend.

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