The Global Market Has Changed-Have You?The business environment is constantly changing . We are now in the middle of a global market that is connected all the time and its reach is everywhere the net reaches. Everywhere.
Challenges have changed but like most challenges we have seen before, if we stay focused....we can succeed. While it is true that doing business has its own set of ladders to climb and snakes to skid down, there are countless rewards in a connected global market that has a voracious appetite for imaginative and innovative products.
If the rewards were not there, nobody would risk doing it and every day we see new small and medium firms taking the leap because that is where the growth and excitement are. Face this exciting reality, that whatever business you are in, you are global and you are potentially connected to everyone. You are an artisan with a small store in your city? You'll be surprised that someone in another continent has heard of you and will look for your website if it grabs their attention. Your market has expanded and it is open all the time even when you are physically closed.
You have a restaurant in a tiny corner of your city, serving great recipes your gramma cooks up? Go to Trip Advisor. Someone has posted a review of you. You are in a globally aware world. You have a bigger market than you think. The world sees you and it's all lying out there for your business. How do you go about doing business in this global market?
Get focused. My thinking has changed around this and we have reworked the article based on a whole raft of new thinking in the trade media. The premise is we cannot avoid the global market so everything we do, we target the world. Your customers are not limited to your street, town or even country. They can and do shop where the product and service meet their needs and where they feel valued and respected. So, here are our recommendations: 1. Check out the Internet
Google your business. You'll be surprised what you'll find there. Someone may have posted something about you already. You must own the message...so get moving. What businesses come up when you hit the Bing Button? Whatever is your business, you will find similar businesses there. See what they're doing. You'll get ideas on products and partners. You will find people interested in your products or services. You find companies that will up your game as a global company lining up to help. Join tribes, those with strong interest in your business. What do they like? What are they engaged in? 2. Dig in to the social media world. Get connected today...the window is closing. You are part of the world market whether you like it or not, as people post pictures, reviews, and videos of your business and tell the world market what they think. Connect with these people and check out their feedback. Engage with them because they are your marketers if they are satisfied but if they think you don't really care, they can really do a job on you. Social media has now become a marketing platform for many businesses. A flower shop we know in a small town in a less developed country recently put its Valentine packages up on Facebook...and the orders they got from other towns went way beyond their expectations. They needed help to deliver the orders and are now rethinking their business. What is even better is that social media marketing is within your budget. It is often free. Yesterday, my husband posted pictures of the leather artisan here in Barcelona from whom we bought a belt. He became this artisan's marketer when his friends started to ask questions and, of course, they can order online so the world has changed. Learn right now how to do it. 3. Find businesses similar to yours with a strong online presence.
How do they do it? How do they package their services so people can order from them online? Learn from them how to manage your online presence to reach a much bigger market. Here's a hint. Maybe Alibaba can help or a company like Shopify! In the past you needed your embassy, trade councils or people who had been in other countries to give you an idea of what to expect when doing business. Today, all you need is to get online and you will have all the information you want to know. Want to find out more or get answers to specific questions? You can always email those who posted or ask your questions in Quora. Or, ask Alexa or Siri. 4. Check out competitors in your home market. See their online presence. What are they doing to market their products? How do they manage in this new online environment? 5. Reorganize your business so you meet the challenge of this new environment Being online is not the end all of your going global. It is only the beginning. Look into how you can use this global market to enhance your business. Not to worry. Again, go online and you'll have more ideas than you can use. Remember, your children and grandchildren may know much more about this than you do. What a great conversation you can start! It is not that difficult and it is now a must in today's world to bring your business online so you have a presence in the global market that offers opportunities 24/7. Related Articles:
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