
Internationalising your business can be absolutely transformative for a business, but there are a few essential things that you need to consider before taking the leap. Here we discuss things to do before internationalising business.
Taking your time with this process is key to making sure that it works effectively the first time, as you want to make the right first impression, so your business is taken seriously.
So, here are the 5 things you need to consider before internationalising your business!
1. Carefully Analyse Your Supply Chain
The first thing that you need to do is carefully analyse your supply chain, to see how that will work now that you are massively expanding your potential customers, and their locations. If the internationalisation of your business is a successful one, then you are likely to have significantly more business than ever before. This means that your current supply chain might not be sufficient, whether it be production, packing, transport or any other stage.
It is absolutely vital that you go through each stage of your supply chain and be realistic about what is possible. From here, you should figure out a ceiling figure for the extent of business you will be able to do and make sure that you don’t exceed that until you have the facilities to do so.
2. Adapt Your Website
Next, you need to adapt your website to make sure that it is accessible for international audiences. The best thing to do is register a “.com” domain, then create subdirectories for each country underneath the main domain. For example, “fashion.com/ie” for the Irish domain and “fashion.com/us” for the American one. This means that any authority and trust built to the main domain is then filtered down into the subdirectories. When a user from a specific location lands on your website, they will automatically be taken to the correct subdirectory where the currency and language will be correct.
Making your website accessible to international users also via starting a blog is an essential step in internationalising your business because blog articles can educate your website visitors and help it rank better on search engines.
3. Get Credit Insurance
To protect your business financially during international expansion, you need to make sure you have the correct insurance. For businesses that sell goods or services on credit, then you will need credit insurance broker services. to protect the business if your debtor can’t or doesn’t pay their invoice, or if they become insolvent. This helps you to grow your business safely without having to solely base your decisions on the financial risk when you have the right cover.
This type of insurance won’t be suited to every business though, so it is important that you work with a broker to find the right type of international insurance for your specific business, and it’s needs.
4. Work With Your Accountant
When you internationalise your business, the employment and tax regulations that you need to follow differ significantly. There are so many complex intricacies that you might not know exist, so working with a qualified accountant who has experience in international business is essential. It is also important for the accuracy and feasibility of your business in an international market. It is key that you get this right the first time around, so investing in a good accountant who you can trust is definitely worth it.
Final Thoughts
Internationalising your business can be an extremely exciting time, but it is essential that you don’t get caught up in the process and you do everything properly. It would be worth working with an experienced business consultant who can guide you through the process to make sure everything is in place that needs to be!