In the highly competitive world of business, global expansion is a crucial part of many organizations’ growth strategy. Taking your business internationally is one of the most effective ways to get a foothold in new markets and become a global authority in your niche. However, expanding globally is a complex and dynamic process that requires massive investment of time and resources. If you are not thoroughly prepared, you can end up wasting resources and dealing with extra costs and delays. You need the right strategies if you are to succeed with your global expansion plan. To this end, we have prepared five global expansion strategies that can help you lay a foundation of success.
Hire the right people. You need a good team in place to help you execute your idea in the countries or regions that you are expanding to. You may consider relocating your current staff to the new country, hiring an entirely new local team or a mix — just remember that the best team is the one that meets your unique needs. Relocating individuals from your current team can add diversity that drives creativity and innovation, whereas a local team can help you with the local language and culture and build on existing client relationships, contacts and networks. Evaluate your needs and hire accordingly.
Speak the language of the people. One of the challenges that you are likely to encounter when expanding globally is the language barrier, so prepare a multilingual strategy to help you conquer the hurdle. Moreover, if you are to be heard by your target audiences, learning to speak their language is paramount.
Additionally, your products, brand message and promotional materials need to be understood in the local language. To navigate cultural and linguistic nuances, work with partners who offer professional translation services to help with your localization strategy. But even translation services can miss the mark sometimes; hiring locals can help you get your messages across.
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Ensure compliance. The last thing you need during a global expansion is to get into legal tussles with the regulatory authorities in the regions that you are expanding to, which can be costly and cause delays or unending legal battles. So, do your due diligence by engaging compliance experts in your target market or ensuring your staff conduct its own thorough research into the legal requirements in your region of interest — including labor laws, industry regulations, advertisement restrictions and consumer protection requirements. Ensure that you get all the required licenses and certifications so you are in compliance from day one.
Adopt global HR management. Expanding into new geographies requires adapting your human resource management to the targeted environment. The regional selection process should include skills availability assessment. Compliance as it pertains to hiring and employee management is a consideration that bears repeating. Do your due diligence or engage the services of experts to ensure you are in compliance with local employment laws.
You will also want to align your salaries and compensation packages with local market rates. In addition, aim to incorporate training on legal and cultural differences and the best ways to handle them in every region.
Going global sets up your business for possible exponential growth. However, going about it blindly could cause losses that affect your existing business. Proper planning and research are paramount to navigate obstacles such as language barriers, cultural differences, legal requirements and employment. Adopting these strategies could be the key to set your business up for success.