Do you want to know how sell products in international markets? In this article I will tell different rules for selling in international market. Many would think that I am talking about selling software products online. Yes, but it is more than this. All business owners want to make a global brand and attract international clients. But unfortunately, very few make it a reality. This thought is true especially in the software industry where you sell digital products online. Therefore, I did some research to find the rules to sell products in international markets. These rules will surely work if you are thinking about selling software applications internationally. But the same will apply in other industries also. Many people in the import export business will benefit from it.
How to Sell Products in International Markets
The rules of game are very simple. You need to follow a step-by-step approach to make an online sale. This does not mean you cannot use them for offline business. Accepting online payments is easy and this may impact future of business. Due to this we are focusing on selling from website. You can also run marketing campaign for international market but as of now we will leave it for a future article. Use the below mentioned techniques for selling internationally.
1 – Select the target country
2 – Research and find country specific keywords
3 – Make country specific website
4 – Keep language on priority
5 – Make sure you accept local currency
6 – Analyze competition
7 – Collaborate with competitors
8 – Install payment gateway with international currency
1 – Selecting the target country is the first step of selling internationally
First of all, you need to select the target country. Target country is the place where you want to make a sale online. Rest of the things will depend on your country of choice. Selecting the right country is also important. For example: if you are a raw material supplier and you start selling in a country where people do not import from international markets. Due to this, the whole exercise of selling internationally will fail.
2 – Research and find country specific keywords
Research is very important irrespective of which business you are into. Making a website needs investing money and time. Therefore, make sure you research about country specific. English speaking countries also have variation of words and sentences. Look for famous keywords people search on Google that are related to your business. There are a few free keyword traffic search tools you can use. With some research, you will find what people are searching. Based on this data you can run your online marketing campaign.
3 – Make country specific website
People want to buy from a nearby shop. This offers convenience and trust. Country specific website means buying a domain with .us extension if your target country is United States.
4 – Work on Product Presentation
Whatever looks good, sells well. This means that the outer packaging is important. Due to this you need to ensure that your product presentation is amazing. Include as much detail as possible in the initial draft. You will save a lot of time doing it. Additionally, if you have good product portfolio chances of making a sale online are more.
5 – Language is important
Every business owner wants to make a global brand. You cannot do business everywhere easily due to language barriers. If you want to sell in international market, I believe you know the target country. For example, you want to sell in Russia. Make sure you make a website in Russian language. The idea is to make sure maximum people understand the product in their language.
Therefore, if you want to sell in Sweden, make a website in Swedish language. English works fine if you want to sell products in UK, USA or Canada. There are many English-Speaking countries, where you can make a sale.
6 – Competitor analysis is important to Make a Global Brand
There are rules for getting success in international markets. This does not mean it is very simple. You face competition in business from international players. There are existing companies who do not want you to succeed because it impacts their business. Due to this, if you want to sell product in international markets, be very careful.
7 – Make competition work for you – Collaborate with Competitors
When you are new to the market then there are lot of factors work against you. First of all, you lack knowledge of local market. Above all, building trust among customers takes time. Additionally, you will also face competition from existing player. But you can transform competition into growth engine by collaborating with them. At least you can do it for a limited time. The idea is to understand the marketing from an existing players view. You can use their knowledge for your benefit and improve your product’s image.
8 – Install payment gateway with international currency
Payment gateway creates a bridge between customer, bank and company in order to process secure transactions. International payment gateway allows accepting payments online from anywhere in the world. f you want to make a global brand this is one of the first requirement. You can install payment gateways with multiple currencies. Due to this it becomes very easy to sell products in international markets. To apply for a payment gateway, you need to complete some documentation. The documentation process changes with country policies.
For example, if you want payment gateway in US (Example: Most company’s demand SSN for individuals) the terms will be different. In case of India, you need to provide different documents (Example: AADHAR).
Benefits of Selling Internationally
First of all, the question is why selling internationally. The simple answer is growth. There are many reasons to sell products internationally. Some of them are mentioned here.
- Your dependency on local customers will reduce. Your dependency on local customers will reduce. This is good for business.
- It takes time but after some time, people start to recognize. Due to this you increase trust among customers and acceptability. Over the period of time, you make an international brand.
- International brands survive for long due to global presence.
- You can make a lot of money from the international market.
- The brand is making money from multiple sources. Due to these chances of success increase due to low probability of business failure.
- If sell products in international markets, your customer base also becomes broad. Even small policy changes in the domestic market does not impact much.
These are just a few benefits of making a global brand. There is unlimited scope when you start connecting with other countries. Just follow these simple techniques to sell products to international markets. Everyone wants to make an international brand but very few do something in reality. If you are one of them then there is no stopping.