Getting started with international business and selling products overseas can be an intimating venture. 

After all, each country is unique in terms of government policies, cultural nuances, language, laws, time zones, inflation rate, currency, etc. Navigating many of these areas can be challenging and very overwhelming. With that being said, let’s take a look at some of the most common challenges of international trading.

The Challenges of Selling to Overseas Markets

Cultural Nuances

Marketing messages play a huge role in influencing consumers. You can deliver messages through media like newspapers, television, or even social media. Humour is often a huge part of getting the customer’s attention. But, what’s funny in one culture may be highly inappropriate, confusing, or even insulting in another.

For effective advertising, it’s important that your message doesn’t get lost or distorted in translation from one language into another. In the lack of a deep understanding of the cultural nuances, morals, religious views, and customs; an international business could be doomed to fail.

Linguistics Differences and Communication Style

Americans, for instance, tend to hurry along while negotiating. However, in some countries, they put a ton of emphasis on building relationships before signing off on a deal or taking it seriously. Executives from certain countries often place huge value on facial expressions and not just the words being exchanged.

Finding Reliable Partners

Promoting a business and selling a product in a foreign market often relies upon finding and working in collaboration with distributors from that country. Additionally, you may need to hire sales reps based in the target country along with public relations and marketing firms to help you out. 

But, as an outsider, you may not have adequate knowledge and experience of living in the country. This often makes it a challenge to find a competent and trustworthy partner.

Inflation and Currency Exchange Rates

The dollar value varies in different countries. Also, one dollar may buy you goods and services of different worth. It’s important to familiarise yourself with how the current exchange rate works between the target country and your country of export. 

Monitoring inflation rates is also important as it impacts the value of the dollar. Different countries have different inflation rates which directly impact things like the cost of production, procuring materials, and labour costs.

Foreign Policies and Political Nuances

Businesses don’t operate in a vacuum. They are influenced constantly by foreign policies, politics, international trade laws, and the nature of the relationship between two countries. There are countless subtleties and nuances to these relationships. Therefore, you should always stay on top of international news related to your target country. 

Decisions made at the top by political leaders directly impact labour laws, taxes, the cost of raw material, transportation infrastructure, and so much more. For success in overseas markets, always stay informed of these new policies to form new strategies based on new information.

How to Sell to Overseas Markets

Having Cultural Knowledge

Never underestimate the power of cultural differences. They could easily make or break your business. You can only add value to the local markets if you understand cultural nuances that often define their needs. An intimate understanding of the local community that you plan on targeting would always come in handy.

Perform Plenty of Market Research

Your market research should focus on evaluating the viability and profitability of your project. Think about the possible threats and opportunities along with the turnover rate. Include evolutionary trends as part of your research. Study your competitors, what products they offer, and at what price. 

How can you outdo the competition and how can you gain a competitive advantage? This step will create a clear path for you on ways to position yourself right.

Market Development Strategy

As part of your development and marketing strategies, think about the market’s economic feasibility, financial costs, and future forecasts. Think about whether it’s a financially smart move to invest in that market. Also, think about trademark and property protection. 

Does the local government and authorities protect the proprietary needs of the business? Work out a liaison and partnership to seek guidance and opportunities. You can do that by working with an existing client/supplier or forming a ‘local’ partnership.

Understanding Buyer Targeting

Create buyer personas to identify target customers. A buyer persona describes the demographic, age group, income bracket, personal preferences, needs, and challenges of what a typical customer looks like. 

By taking into account these psychological, demographic, and geographic factors – you can create smart marketing strategies. You can also communicate better and set the right pricing for your product.

Who is ATI (American Trading International)?

ATI (American Trading International) is an American Export Trading Company that focuses on exporting US-based food and beverage products to more than 80 markets. The company holds 26 years of experience and counting. 

It handles international trading for 5 product categories:

• Name Brand Products: A brand-name product is one that is created by a well-known company and has the company’s label on it. An example of this would be Coke or Head & Shoulders.

• Private Label Products: Private label products are ones that are created by one company and sold under the brand of another. Private-label products can be found in a variety of industries, from food to cosmetics. Store brands or own brands are private label brands handled only by a retailer for sale in a certain network of stores. Two examples of private label brands are Freshly or American Classic Foods.

• Generic / Value Products: Generic goods are commodities that are identified solely by their basic product type rather than by a specific brand. Many stores sell generic goods at lower prices than brand-name ones. Generic soft drinks, for example, are frequently less expensive than brand-name soft drinks such as Coke or Pepsi.

• Food Services: Food services refers to the consumption of food and beverages outside of the home. Consumers go to food service outlets for a variety of reasons, including convenience, the opportunity to try new foods and tastes, to celebrate, and to socialise. Food service encompasses a wide range of eating occasions and locations, including restaurants, hotels, cafes, and more.

• Bulk Ingredients: Bulk foods are big-quantity foods that can be purchased in huge bulk lots or transported from a bulk container to a smaller container for purchase. Food items such as nuts, spices, grocery items, chocolates, and beverages are examples of bulk food ingredients. Bulk food ingredients are accessible in both processed and unprocessed forms. Whole food ingredients refer to bulk food ingredients.

How ATI Can Help US Companies sell to Overseas Markets

Regional Specialities

ATI maintains teams with region-specific knowledge to form strong relationships with international buyers. As most staff members have lived or worked in target countries; they are able to make smart decisions based on cultural insight and key understanding of the target market.

Marketing Strategy Development

ATI always remains on top of the latest foreign policies, political ongoings, and economic changes. Based on that key demographic information, it’s able to develop effective marketing strategies. 

Sales teams often work with US embassies located abroad and make sure to comply with overseas laws.

Buyer Targeting

Having the right partner by your side is important otherwise you run the risk of poor brand presentation that could hurt your goodwill and reputation. The sales team at ATI performs due diligence to attract the right kind of buyers. 

ATI comes up with creative and effective campaigns to target only the most qualified and serious partners across international markets to sell your product.

The Bottom Line

For information on American Trading International (ATI), visit us at www.american-trading.com. Interested in working together? Call us at +1 (310) 445-2000 or learn more at https://www.american-trading.com/news.