Steps to Market Entry (EXPORTS)
The basic steps to market entry, or exporting your
products, is (1) develop a strategy, (2) identify target markets, (3)
identify trade partners and (4) communicate with potential partners. The
following will help you get started and there are even more links in the
Research & Statistics
section of this site.
Strategy
Developing an International strategy and plan is the first step in
expanding into global markets. It requires a commitment by management to
allocate the resources necessary for research and analysis.
The Unz Co. Basic Guide to Exporting is a
valuable tool to aide companies planning to become involved in exporting
and covers topics such as developing an export strategy, creating a
marketing plan, where to get appropriate advice, and methods or channels
of distribution. The following link takes gets you started with strategy
development.
http://unzco.com/basicguide/c1.html
Centers for International Trade Development provide
an Export Readiness Assessment that helps determine whether you are
ready to begin exporting.
http://www.citd.org/StartupKit/eras/index.cfm
Identify and Analyze Target Markets through
Market Research (see also
Research & Statistics Section) Snapdata International Group has an
international market research tool that provides information on 37
countries and 34 industry groups. This site gives you access to top line
data for global markets with up to date statistical overviews of
industry by country, key companies and company profiles as well as
distribution chains and forecasts.
http://snapdata.com/
National Trade Data Bank and Stat USA is a service
of the U.S. Department of Commerce that provides a single point of
access to authoritative business trade and economic information from
across the U.S. Federal government. This site contains current trade
releases, opportunities for international market research, country
analysis and the trade library of the National Trade Data Bank.
http://www.stat-usa.gov/
The University of Michigan International Business
Resource provides Globaledge which is a comprehensive source for global
business knowledge. This site provides relevant statistical data for
over 197 countries, including business climate, news, history, political
and economic structures, and investment opportunities. Some country
profiles are available in multiple languages.
http://globaledge.msu.edu/
United Nations Statistics Division provides
economic and social statistics for more than 200 countries and
territories. This unique source of global economic data includes links
to other international statistics programs and agencies that highlight
economic, financial, trade and labor statistics as well as information
on industrial commodities by country and structures of trade by product,
service and region.
http://unstats.un.org/unsd/databases.htm
Partner Identification
Once the export strategy is in process and the target markets have been
defined, you must find buyers for your products in your targeted
countries. The U.S. Department of Commerce assists U.S. exporters with
an International Partner search service covering more than 80 countries.
http://www.export.gov/salesandmarketing/IPS.asp
World Trade Centers can furnish detailed profiles
of local business contacts, including manufacturers, distributors and
services providers in specified countries based on company-provided
criteria. They also perform market research tailored to specific needs.
http://world.wtca.org/portal/site/wtcaonline
Communication with Potential Partners
Contact all of the parties on your target list with a letter of
introduction; follow up with an email or fax to those who have not
replied. Send additional information to those that have responded and
request information in the form of a profile from each of the
prospective partners. Use this information to narrow down the list.
Visit the potentials on the short list if possible; conduct bank and/or
reference checks. Create a contract that outlines the relationship
between the parties.
Steps to Procurement (IMPORTS)
TradePort is a premier online resource for
comprehensive information and links to global trade assistance. This
site provides a guide to U.S. Import Basics that outlines how to create
an Import Plan, information about logistics, how to go about foreign
sourcing, financing your initiatives and security issues.
http://tradeport.org/how_to_import/index.html
The International Trade Data System provides U.S.
import resources that include an overview of the U.S. Customs entry
process, the different types of entries and the import regulations of
U.S. Federal Government Agencies.
http://www.itds.treas.gov/Import2.html
The Import Export Coach is a website that allows
free downloads of comprehensive instructions on how to import. This
group provides import export business start up information, links,
resources, and articles.
http://www.importexportcoach.com/import.htm
Trade Terms
Glossary of International Trade Terms
http://www.itds.treas.gov/glossaryfrm.html |
