Simple Actions You Should Take Now to Prepare Your International Business for Success

We’re facing challenging times, and many international business activities are currently at a standstill as conferences are cancelled, countries close their borders and logistics become increasingly complicated. How you spend the next few weeks or months will certainly impact your ability to recover and even thrive in the coming years.

We're not the type to sit on the sidelines and wait for the smoke to clear; we keep our pipeline full, our networks large and never stop hustling. This is why we put together a list of activities you can be doing now to prepare yourself for future success in the international marketplace.

• Join Relevant Groups on LinkedIn – LinkedIn Groups provide so many great opportunities that are often overlooked, from valuable market insight to expansive networks within your industry. Join with the intention of offering value to the group. Be genuine, supportive and get to know group members on both a personal and professional level. A favorite among international business professionals is: International Business (43806)

• Train New or Existing Distributors – New distributors need to be adequately trained and existing distributors often need refreshers. What better time to allocate resources to ensure your distributors are well versed in your products, know how to properly position them and can provide suitable after-sale care. You may even consider creating a training guide for future distributors if you don't already have one.

• Translate Documents – Many organizations have marketing assets, user guides, product testimonials, and more that have not yet been translated for their key international markets. These difficult economic times have caused many professional translators to seek new projects; they are ready and able to assist. Now is the time to finally get those translations done!

• Create a Distributor Advertisement – Most international businesses thrive when they have the right distributors on the ground in their target markets. These potential partners may not yet know the advantage of working with your company, but you can easily communicate that to them with a concise, yet impactful, advertisement. For a limited time, we are giving away a free template you can use to create your own custom advertisement. Download it here.

We understand you may be struggling with your day-to-day activities, and we hope this list will provide some guidance and solid deliverables during a time when there are so many unknowns. We encourage you to stay busy and stay motivated; there are stakeholders out there waiting to hear from you and waiting to benefit from your product or service. Keep on taking your brand around the world!

We'd love to hear from you! Please let us know some of the activities you're focused on now to prepare your international business for success.

---

Casey Kooiman, founder of TradeCase Global, is an international business professional with 10+ years of practical experience. Casey is passionate about providing advice & resources to help small businesses and entrepreneurs take their brands around the world!