by Laurel J. Delaney How do you react to an email from a customer located thousands of miles away who wants to buy your product? To get the ball rolling every export sales transaction must contain information pertaining to product description, price, quantity and transportation, but within those confines lies a host of other details that can go wrong. The…
Small businesses are poised to drive economic growth through international expansion. Here are four tips to serve as your guide to going global. Don’t Go It Alone. There are plenty of organizations, such as the U.S. Commercial Service (buyusa.gov) that have programs and services to help small business owners locate potential business partners such as buyers or distributors overseas. It’s also…
This article is one of my favs because it offers a shortcut to just about everything you need to know to take your business global. It was originally written for and published by GoDaddy. It starts like the following. “From choosing the right market to having a payment plan in place, this is your cheat sheet to growing a global business. If…
15 There are a million ways to get started in exporting and a zillion more online resources available to help you out. But, there is no shortcut to exporting until this – all you ever need to get started. And, of course, back it up with the book. Hope you find the white paper useful. If so, pass it along….
Here are a few frequently asked questions about Laurel Delaney’s book, “Exporting: The Definitive Guide to Selling Abroad Profitably.” 1. What’s your background? I am the founder and president of Chicago-based GlobeTrade.com, a global marketing and consulting company that helps entrepreneurs and small businesses expand internationally. The company was established in 1985. In addition, we are the creator of The…
Why should you take your business global?” Here are seven unexpected reasons. 1. You can generate greater revenue for less effort. Sure it takes a long time to seal a deal internationally, but once you do, the revenues are typically far greater than on a domestic deal. For example, let’s say you market a crystal chandelier cleaner. When you ship…
When I wrote my book, “Exporting: The Definitive Guide to Selling Abroad,” I interviewed several successful business owners to get their take on what works for taking a business global. Barbara Roberts was one of them (see her latest report on entrepreneurship here). Before it was sold to Getty Images, FPG (Freelance Photographers Guild) International, the company that Roberts was formerly…
How an Export Product Business Is Born by Laurel J. Delaney This is a repeat post because many people over the past couple of weeks have emailed me asking “how do I get started with an export business?” Here’s an example of how the journey to exporting or launching an export business begins. Imagine someone named Abel Anderson who is working…
15 Places to Look for Global Trade Help by Laurel J. Delaney You can never have too many resources to help you expand your business internationally. Here are 15 places to get all the help you need with global trade. 1. Exporting Guide http://exportingguide.com Exporting Guide equips you with the knowledge you need to market, sell, and fulfill orders internationally,…
Are You Ready to Export? by Laurel J. Delaney Anyone who wants to export, can. The world awaits. The essential element needed to be successful exporting is readiness. The rest is mechanics and know-how. Whether you’re a first-time exporter or entering a new market, selling goods and services across borders is easy and just a mouse click away. I’m here…
What Sells in Japan: A Quick Course by Laurel J. Delaney In celebration of a 20-year anniversary to writing my first exporting book, “Start & Run a Profitable Exporting Business,” I’ll be sharing excerpts from that book here over the coming months. This post provides eight common denominators of successful products imported into Japan. Read on … Sheer determination and superhuman…
Line Up the Charter Members of Your Export Dream Team by Laurel J. Delaney In celebration of a 20-year anniversary to writing my first exporting book, “Start & Run a Profitable Exporting Business,” I’ll be sharing excerpts from that book here over the coming months. This post helps you line up your export dream team. Read on … One of the first…
Exporting Incentives by Laurel J. Delaney In celebration of a 20-year anniversary to writing my first exporting book, “Start & Run a Profitable Exporting Business,” I’ll be sharing excerpts from that book here over the coming months. This part still rings true from the standpoint of challenging why aren’t more companies exporting? Below I outline a few reasons. Read on…
6 Answers to FAQs about Importing and Exporting by Laurel J. Delaney, President of GlobeTrade.com Can I import motor vehicles? Do I need an export license? Where do I start with an import-export business? These are just a few of the questions I receive on a weekly basis from readers all over the world. It’s impossible to address all of…
9 Unexpected Reasons to Take Your Business Global by Laurel J. Delaney One of the biggest questions I get from small business owners is this: “Why should I take my business global?” What follows are nine unexpected reasons. 1. You can generate greater revenue for less effort. Sure it takes a long time to seal a deal internationally, but once…
In my Exporting: The Definitive Guide to Selling Abroad Profitably, I list a plethora of resources to help you grow your business across borders. Here are a few additional resources and tools offered by organizations to provide advice and insight as well as statistics on international exporting. 1. Foreign Trade Produced by the US Census Bureau, Foreign Trade (http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/) is responsible for…
Oh if there is one thing that makes us very, very happy, it’s when business owners benefit from our work. Drew Greenblatt, President of Marlin Steel, and one of the contributors in Exporting: The Definitive Guide to Selling Abroad Profitably, Chapter 30, Export Success, Tweeted the following: Exporting: The Definitive Guide brilliant book – field manual on how to grow…
The following is an edited excerpt from Exporting: The Definitive Guide to Selling Abroad Profitably (2nd edition; Apress 2016; ©Laurel Delaney). __________ Jim Collins has it right. No matter what brilliant idea or well-organized plan you have in place for exporting, the basic and most important side of your enterprise is still the human side. It starts with getting the right…
Exporting offers many benefits to entrepreneurs, small businesses and the local economy. Small businesses that export to foreign markets sell more, grow bigger, support more jobs, and pay higher wages than small businesses that don’t export. That is why the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) focuses on three areas to help small business grow their business through exporting. The SBA State…
I want to make sure you caught all of these newly published articles I wrote over over at what has now become The Balance (an About.com brand): 7 Etiquette Rules for Importers and Exporters Learn how to better communicate with people from other cultures, including people in your own country. https://www.thebalance.com/7-Etiquette-Rules-for-Importers-and-Exporters-4078647 The Art of Negotiating Deals Abroad In this feature, I offer…
Join us for the world’s best Global Small Business Forum 2016 held in Chicago on Friday, October 21st from 7:30 a.m. — 4:30 p.m. Central time at 70 West Madison Street, Chicago, Illinois. And here’s a snapshot of who plans to participate as moderators, panelists and speakers (http://globalsmallbusinessforum.com/speakers-2016/): Richard Paullin, Executive Director, International Trade Association of Greater Chicago; Chairman, IL…
What’s challenging SME exporters? Why do companies go global? Why are non-digital companies becoming serial acquirers of digital properties? Read on and you will discover. 7 Exporting Takeaways from the 2016 Small Business Exporting Survey The Small Business Exporters Association (SBEA) has recently released its 2016 Small Business Exporting Survey. The survey, conducted February 22 to March 14, 2016, compiled…