How To Get Organized For Exporting
Some customers who are seeking our assistance to enter/expand in the MEA region are in fact not ready for export. For costs reasons, they generally treat export sales no differently than their domestic sales. We always advise our Principals to separate international activities from domestic ones at a certain stage. Employees who are handling your domestic business may not be qualified to deal with international customers.
As inquiries increase, companies may choose to either set up an export department or separate the management of their exports from that of their national activities. It is important that your foreign customers/Distributors feel that
you are ready for export. Their inquiries should be met within maximum 5 days. If you are not fully ready yet, do not hesitate to communicate this to your future partners/customers as you are building up your international activities.
Small companies try to absorb export sales into current functions. However, the separation of international from domestic business is inevitable and can be achieved at different levels in the organization. We advise to create a start-up export department with a qualified manager who reports to the company’s sales and marketing Director. Once kicked off, the department may enjoy an autonomy to a level of an international division and then start looking for proper distribution channels.
The two crucial components for export readiness in unfamiliar market are specialized skills and a focused marketing. Both have a direct impact on increasing your export sales. Thus, make sure to build a strong back office marketing support necessary to generate leads and sales.
TBMedex SAS provides product distribution, market research, distributor search & selection and sales management services form medical companies wishing to enter or expand in the MEA region.
www.tbmedex.com
