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5 Steps for International Marketing

Go global - international
Modern B2B Marketing to fill up your sales funnel | Canada

Go International:
5 Steps for Effective International Marketing

International-Marketing-Go-International img
  • (Revised: 02/02/2023)
  • Reading time: 2 minutes

Are you planning to go international? Is your business ready for global markets? If your business is in the process of global expansion, or if you are considering entry to the US, you need to master essential global marketing strategies for expansion.

    1. Research the Targeted International Market
      Many companies skip this crucial step and jump right to market penetration. They open an office in their target market and hire a local salesperson. After a year, they find that this office still has more expenses than revenue. To protect yourself, we suggest carrying out brief research in order to identify the local market needs. This helps identify specific market trends, competitors, and ways the solution can be customized to meet demand.
      This step delivers a positioning strategy that enables you to refine your marketing messaging and define your potential client segments. For example, if you would like to enter the US market, you should first determine what states are a good fit for your solution and first focus your attention on these regions. This will lower your initial costs and enhance the likelihood of turning prospects into clients.
    2. Create an Actionable Marketing Plan
      In place of a short planning phase, most SMEs choose to respond to random opportunities. For example, a potential reseller contacts them and they say to themselves, “Sure, why not bring them onboard.” After two years,  they find out the reseller is not delivering results. By this point, the company has invested a lot of resources to train this reseller without seeing a return on that investment
      To avoid this scenario, we suggest building a marketing plan to generate demand based on the initial research (as described in Step 1) and the available budget for your targeted international market. Choose international marketing tactics that enable you to focus on the target market that best fits your product/service.  Encourage prospects to learn more about your offering while your sales team is still operating from your headquarters. If your company is looking to develop a distribution network, our plan will include a process to identify, validate, and monitor resellers.
    3. Adjust Branding/ Messaging
      International markets are different and there are many considerations to examine. Trade barriers, proximity, and currency are some of these. But what about cultural differences? How do you handle these?
      To this end, we implement the positioning strategy from Step 1 and make sure to adjust the website, sales and marketing material, in addition to other documents designed to reflect the localized message. After all, if your messaging does not match your target market, potential clients may overlook your solution.
    4. Customize the International Marketing Plan
      While executing the marketing plan, you want to make sure that you have someone on your team who understands the cultural or linguistic nuances. A lot of the time, companies assume that they can deploy marketing tactics the same way they do in their local market. This is not necessarily true. We have seen campaigns where the use of certain wording in a different context results in market rejection. Sometimes, colours in one culture drive a message that a company had no intention of conveying in another culture, negatively impacting the attractiveness of their solution. Thus, it is important for an expert in the targeted market to review the plan before it goes international.
    5. Measure Impact and Improve
      You need to measure each international marketing campaign on a regular basis to ensure the company is receiving the desired results in a timely manner. The assessment should concentrate on both quantitative and qualitative aspects of the marketing plan. For example, though the number of prospective clients is important, we highly suggest assessing the quality of the prospects and defining whether the potential clients meet the specific definition of the potential client base as defined in step 1.

Following the above steps will help you  go international safely.

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Business-To-Business Marketing Horror Stories

Marketing mistakes
Modern B2B Marketing to fill up your sales funnel | Canada

Business-To-Business Marketing Horror Stories

Marketing mistakes
  • (Revised: 02/02/2023)
  • Reading time: 2 minutes

Every year on Halloween, people of all ages turn off the lights, cuddle up on the couch, and watch their favorite horror movie. While Halloween only happens once a year for everyone else, I am faced with horror stories all year long. On a weekly basis, I meet with companies that are living their very own nightmares as a result of their own marketing inexperience and unpreparedness. While I am the first to agree that business-to-business marketing is no easy task, I am also the first to admit there are always ways to try and avoid problems. So for this Halloween, we here at Direct Objective have a little treat in store for you. Turn off the lights, cuddle up on your office chair, and get ready for our very own Business-to-Business horror stories… candy not included.

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Chapter 1 - Marketing Without Measuring

Companies who spend large amounts of money on marketing should live by one word: measuring. If marketing initiatives are put in place without the ability to measure key performance indicators, then why bother? Make sure that you have the right plan in place in order to fully reap the benefits of your marketing initiatives and not fall victim to the Marketing Grim Reaper.

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Chapter 2 - Branding Is NOT Forever Young

The branding of your company is not where you should cut corners. While a substantial investment into your online content, signage, and logo is definitely recommended, remember that over time, as the industry around you changes, so too should your branding. Allocate an annual budget for revamping your website,marketing material, and even your logo, if necessary, to avoid being viewed as the Mummy of your industry.

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Chapter 3 - Marketing Tactics Are Not Automated

So, your company wants to invest more in various marketing tactics? While this is a step in the right direction, do not think that merely setting it up is enough. Integrate and automate your tactics to ensure that your social media, email campaigns, SEO, PR, and other campaigns are aligned accordingly. Not doing so would be the equivalent of getting lost in a haunted house. Avoid it and plan ahead!

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Chapter 4 - To Go International or Not to Go International

Every year innovative products are developed, successfully tested in local markets, and 7 years later there is still no attempt to break into the international arena. In today’s business market, the world has become a global village, easily accessible to all who want to access it. Cut down your time-to-market by daring to enter the international market – you’ll find that it’s a lot less trick and a lot more treat.

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Chapter 5 - International Expansion Needs International Experience

Breaking into the international market is better when you have someone that you trust with the knowledge on how to capitalize in that market. Before embarking on this new endeavour, make sure your company is ready for a new market and that you are attracting new leads in the market  for when your senior salesperson takes over. Remember, if the sales are not there… R.I.P.

So there you have it, your very own guide to avoiding B2B Marketing Nightmares. Now turn on the lights and get back to work!

Happy Halloween!

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The above-mentioned marketing consulting and lead generation services are how our B2B marketing agency accompanies organizations in their quest to grow. Contact us today and allow us to look at your specific marketing challenges and suggest how we can assist you specifically.

Testimonials

“Ranking our Web site high on search engines results, designing a professional Web site look and developing engaging relevant content for a heavy technology company like us resulted in a dramatic increase in client leads that we receive from our Web site.”

Simon Robin CEO, Hardent
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Do You Really Know Your Prospective Clients?

Prospective clients
Modern B2B Marketing to fill up your sales funnel | Canada

Do You Really Know Your Prospective Clients?

Prospective clients
  • (Revised: 02/02/2023)
  • Reading time: 2 minutes

Recently, a friend of mine returned from her summer vacation in Provence, France and, thoroughly enchanted with the place, she recommended I read Peter Mayle’s “Encore Provence”. The book, written by a British author who made his home in Provence, is most intriguing when he describes the cultural differences of the region. Through his anecdotes we come to appreciate that the differences are real and, though experienced immediately, they can only be understood with time and after many personal encounters.

When I started reading I was guilty, much as you probably are, of assuming that the only prominent cultural differences would come from an Anglophone living in a Francophone environment, but this was not the case. Peter Mayle elaborates on the beauty of Provence by contrasting its people’s ways with the Parisian way, with the British way, and with the American way. He even touches on the differences between Marseille and Avignon, both in Provence, and how the ways of carrying out business in one does not necessarily apply to the other.

Peter Mayle’s comparisons are useful in reminding organizations that when you first consider entering a new market, or you are about to launch a new product to a target market with which you are not fully familiar, it is instrumental that you ensure:

      1. You have identified the prospective market that would most benefit from your solution
      2. Your target market can afford your solution
      3. You understand how your target market operates and how your prospects expect to do business with you
      4. Your solution features are highlighted in a way that fits like a lock and key, allowing you to effortlessly open the door to your prospects

All the above is a result of:

    1. A well-thought marketing strategy
    2. Fine customization of your branding to the market that you are after
    3. Creative marketing campaigns that attract the attention of your specific target market
    4. Constant evaluation of your marketing results to ensure that you truly address your prospects’ needs
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If you are looking to turn more of your prospects into paying clients, please do not hesitate to contact us. We offer suggestions and solutions to make sure you have the right market approach with your products or services.

Testimonials

“Ranking our Web site high on search engines results, designing a professional Web site look and developing engaging relevant content for a heavy technology company like us resulted in a dramatic increase in client leads that we receive from our Web site.”

Simon Robin CEO, Hardent
Schedule
a Free Call