After the COVID-19 pandemic upended the global economy, the World Bank forecasted the “most robust post-recession recovery in 80 years” was on the horizon in 2021.
The timeframe may be a bit delayed at this point, but the takeaway is the same: Opportunities for international expansion abound for companies ready, willing and able to take advantage of it.
When I joined RTB House five years ago, I was tasked with building out the business in the Middle East and Africa. I then moved to Italy, Spain and Portugal before coming to the U.S.
Here are the five most important lessons I’ve learned about global expansion so far:
Advertisement
1. Know the market.
For starters, you need to understand the market you are entering. Do your research so you know what trends impact that market. Go to conferences and listen to attendees. Meet with potential customers. This way, you’ll be able to identify the biggest opportunities and the most important prospects before you begin hiring on-the-ground experts.
2. Combine your expertise with local talent.
Then, focus on hiring the best local talent. Pay close attention during interviews too, as interviewees can likely teach you a lot about your new market as well.
Once you’ve hired a local team, combine your joint expertise — theirs on the country in question and yours on the company itself and its products — as you approach prospective customers. New local hires should also have contacts to help set up meetings faster than you could alone.
3. Trust local hires to help you navigate.
It’s also important to trust the expertise of these new hires in new markets. You don’t hire smart people to tell them what to do — you hire them so they can tell you what to do.
Also remember that what works in Markets A and B may not necessarily work in Markets C, D, etc. Instead, explain to staff in new locations how your business operates in existing markets and what you want to achieve now. Then, let local experts help guide you there.
4. Company leaders benefit from multiple locations.
Where company leaders should be based is a more complicated issue, as there are benefits to being in the new market, as well as advantages to being based closer to the company headquarters. The benefits to the former include having a brand ambassador on the ground for both the new market and the new team.
Meanwhile, the benefits of the latter include having a better understanding of how the company works, what it is trying to achieve and why. You’re also able to better see how other markets function as part of a cohesive whole.
5. Markets vary in opportunities and challenges.
In a similar vein, markets vary drastically around the globe. I like to say that because of the scale and complexity of the U.S. market, it’s like going from driving a toy car to a real car.
But it’s a double-edged sword. The opportunity in the U.S. is huge because of the number of potential prospects alone. But there are also many more competitors, so it’s harder to distinguish yourself in the market.
For example, the number of emails you need to send in Italy or Spain in order to get a response from prospects is far less than the number you need to send in the U.S. when your brand is not yet known in the market. And so anyone planning to enter the U.S. should be prepared to juggle far more prospects than ever before, along with complicated campaign setups.
But of course the opportunities and challenges differ based on the market in question.
Tomasz Wnuk is President of North America for RTB House. He graduated from Warsaw School of Economics with both quantitative methods and information systems and economics degrees, and at the same school he finished his PhD studies. Wnuk has done several projects regarding EU funds distribution in Poland and consulting projects. At RTB House he is responsible for the NORAM Region. Outside of work, he is an avid runner.
