We gave a presentation in February at Design Network North’s Rise & Design about growing your business through export. Why us, well we’ve got some experience ourselves of producing work for clients outside of the UK.
Whilst we stay in our comfortable office our work travels as far as China and Australia, helping clients to communicate their message clearly. Our understanding of brands and strategy and our curiosity and willingness to learn provide clients with strong, insightful creative work.
The following is a brief overview of the talk Paul gave at the event.
Exporting! Arghhh
Exporting is often seen as a large step into the unknown, with differences in language, business terms and cultures. A lot of businesses see these issues and think it’s more complex and harder to approach than ‘local’ business. Whilst they know their offer is great, communicating it internationally can seem daunting so steer clear of it.
Exporting! Oh yes
Language, business terms and cultures may be different but all business is about needs, relationships and communication. With planning and knowledge, these elements can be focussed and communicated clearly, proving a great platform to seek out new clients.
Making a plan to export your product or services is also a great way to focus your business on your offering and your communication;
- You’ll work harder at defining and targeting clients, to make sure they’re a good fit for your business
- You’ll work harder at communicating your message, benefits and offering
- You’ll develop better relationships as you’ll understand their needs, and they’ll understand why they need you
And the benefit of all this hard work is two-fold. Not only will you make your message clearer to international clients it’s also likely to impact your ‘local’ business;
- You’ll understand more about your ideal clients and what they may be looking for
- You’ll communicate clearly your message, benefits and offering
- You’ll develop better relationships too as you understand your skills and your clients needs
Start exporting everywhere.
There’s never a ‘good’ time to start. Apart from now.
- Develop a plan – Seek advice and work out what you want to achieve
- Assign a budget – It’ll take time and money to reach new clients
- Put it in motion – Work with partners you trust to make it happen
If you’re thinking of exporting as a way to grow your business the team at UKTI are well worth talking too. They have a great understanding of what it takes and can offer various levels of support to your business.
Visit the UKTi site - www.ukti.gov.uk