Create A Great International Marketing Plan

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Part 1: Successful Exporting From Canada Starts With A Marketing Plan

Businesses all over Canada have the potential to successfully export their products or services. Every entrepreneur, regardless of business size or offering, can potentially increase sales, compete in diverse markets and reach a global audience with his or her particular skills and expertise. One of the key components for export success is an international marketing plan.

Many Canadian businesses operating solely in the domestic market have a reasonable understanding of the needs of customers and potential customers. These businesses are generally familiar with the marketing tools at their disposal to reach their target audience. They know how much it costs to use these tools and they have specific objectives in mind when they implement their marketing strategies. Once these businesses start looking beyond the border, however, many of the assumptions about marketing are no longer valid.

A new marketing plan is required.

The best place to start the international marketing plan is with the business. Take a fresh look at what the business is about: what products or services does it offer? Why is it unique and what value does it offer customers? What are its current strengths and weaknesses (financial, human, technological, cultural and operational resources, for example) and how will these affect its ability to compete in a foreign market?

Once this self-analysis is completed, the reasons for exporting need to be addressed. Such simple questions as "why do we want to export?" are not necessarily simple to answer but the responses are important. A business must have a clear objective of why it wishes to undertake the challenge of exporting. It also helps a business establish the degree to which exporting influences the business direction and strategy.

In some cases, exporting may play an important yet secondary role based on the objectives of the business. In other instances, a business may find that its future is built upon exporting and this element of the business will become the primary focus. These decisions are simplified by conducting thorough market research.

Continue on to the next page to learn how to use market research to get your successful international marketing plan under way.

Part 2: The International Marketing Plan Continued

Market research is critical to the decision-making process in a marketing plan. Research reveals the market or markets that offer the best opportunities for investment. It reveals the political, legal and regulatory, financial, cultural, competitive, consumer and marketing challenges that a business may face as it considers exporting to a particular destination.

Without market research, a business is guessing at the best place to take its products or services. Careful analysis of market research leads to useful decisions regarding the nature of a market and potential customers: why would they buy this product or service? How much would they pay for it? What changes, if any, do we need to make in order to appeal to customers? What is the best marketing vehicle to reach buyers? Confident answers to these questions help form the next critical element of an international marketing plan: the market entry strategies.

In short, these are the things a business does to get its product or service into the target market.

For example, research has revealed the potential opportunities and threats in the business and political environment. What strategies will maximize these opportunities while reducing or eliminating possible threats?

Research has identified the sales and distribution channels typically used by similar businesses in the target market. How can these channels be accessed and successfully incorporated into the market entry? What types of messages will speak clearly to the target audience? Which marketing techniques work, which ones do not, and why? What type of product positioning or messages about the service will establish the strongest foothold?

The final component of a great international marketing plan is the implementation. The company is ready to export - almost. In order to implement the plan, someone must be responsible for its implementation.

This individual must have decision-making authority, adequate resources to turn the plan into reality and intimate involvement in the international marketing planning process from the beginning. This person is confident that the company is committed to the export effort, that marketing support is available both at home and in the target market, key partners are in place, professionally developed promotional materials specific to the needs of the new market are ready and measures are in place to monitor and analyze the export effort.




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7 Excellent Tips to Successful Telemarketing Online

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Telemarketing is selling, telephone based collation of data, spreading information on services or products and appointment making. Recognized as a successful marketing tool telemarketing is used world wide to generate sales, subscriptions, and make B2B contacts.

Telemarketing is expensive as compared to sending out mailers in the post. But experience proves that telemarketing gets five times the response of direct mail. Telemarketing is an effective business generation tool provided:

1. The objectives are clearly delineated. Determine whether you want to promote a product, gather information from people, take orders over the phone, or communicate information. Get your sales and marketing team to ideate and set the goals clearly.

2. Set targets for the number of calls and decision making conversations of the number of successes to be achieved in each session.

3. Get in order a database that is relevant.

4. Decide on the pitch and make it as friendly and attractive as possible.

5. Always undertake a test run so that you can fine tune glitches.

6. Work on perfecting a script. This will act as a guideline for each call. The first two seconds or so must capture the attention of the target audience.

7. Work on the telemarketing exercise in a focused manner. Even if you are outsourcing the exercise make sure that the people making the calls understand your business and focus clearly. Both you and the telemarketing team will have to think alike for the exercise to be a success.

Telemarketing skills is all about managing time well and generating an interest in the sales pitch. Telemarketers must be friendly, convincing, positive and caring. The smile and joy must reflect in the voice and the speaking tone must be practiced and well modulated.

A well planned telemarketing exercise will help your business generate a database, building business contacts and leads, create an awareness of your business activities, and promote your products.

Tie-up with a telemarketing agency or handle the exercise yourself if you have the infrastructure. Since it is a long term relationship find a telemarketer you can strike a rapport with. Read as much as you can about telemarketing and learn about legal issues, best practices, and TPS registered telephone users.

Telemarketing is a successful business tool and will lead to good returns if planned well and implemented methodically. Among all the marketing exercises telemarketing has a proven success rate.

The World Wide Web has articles and in depth guides on telemarketing as well as online telemarketing professionals who will take care of all telemarketing needs.




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Save Money with Small Business Accounting

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Financial records to enable accounts to be submitted and the tax payable calculated are unavoidable responsibilities of being in business. Bookkeeping at its most basic level does not require high levels of accounting knowledge and experience and accountant fees can be saved.

Sales Invoices

A sales invoice is a prime document. In more advanced accounting systems technical terms such as sales day books, sales ledgers, debtors and credit control are important but at the basic level bookkeeping of sales is the act of recording those sales in the business books.

A sales day book is basically a log of sales invoices issued by the business and this level of recording financial transactions is all that may be required for a small business. A simple bookkeeping method is a list of invoices that only require entering into the business books once.

Simple bookkeeping for sales invoices is single entry bookkeeping with manual analysis. While the accounting staff may make these entries in the small business environment the business owner usually keeps the books.

Larger companies use accounting software to produce the accounting information in a variety of formats for different financial control and reporting purposes. Within the financial accounting package the sales would not only appear as a list making up the total sales turnover but would also be entered in a sales ledger.

Each sales invoice being allocated to the various clients to whom the sales had been made. The sales ledger at this stage of the bookkeeping represents the value of goods or services sold to each customer.

Purchase Invoices

A purchase invoice is a prime document and a purchase day book is a list of purchase invoices received from suppliers. The purchase invoice day book would not normally require further financial analysis of the type of expenditure. To that extent a simple purchase day book would be a good starting point for a simple set of accounts but require a little more sophistication requiring analysis by expense type for both financial control and taxation purposes.

Single entry bookkeeping is sufficient for most small business with the addition of analysis columns.

Medium and larger organizations require to track and control purchase invoices to control costs and payments. In a mirror of the sales ledger system purchase invoices would also be entered by supplier into a purchase ledger. The easy way is to allocate each supplier a code number so that the accounting software can collect the amounts owed to each supplier the individual supplier accounts being the purchase ledger.

Global Marketing Solutions for Local Businesses

The best way to improve your local business’s presence on the Internet is through online local business marketing. You can propose an article about yourself and your business in these submissions. It is a great way for you to promote yourself and your business to the local community, piquing the interest of those who read about you. Such submissions offer excellent alternatives to traditional marketing techniques, which are time-consuming and costly compared to online marketing. They are more personal and more likely to draw the customer in with the desire to learn more about what you can offer him or her. Not to mention that your possibilities are simply endless. You can reach countless people – today most people have access to a computer. Online searching is a great way for new clients to find you and they surely will! Not only globally, but also local clients search on the Internet to find your business, and this offers great possibilities.

Browse for sites where you are allowed to submit an article with one or two active links to your own site. These web sites typically require that you provide links at the bottom of the article in a short biography of yourself. When clicked, the links will divert the person reading the article to the printable coupons, offers, and discounts that your business provides. This is a convenient way for potential customers to read about your services and then follow the links to obtain more information about your business. Articles are also a great way to position yourself as an expert on the topic and show your best qualities through the information that you provide in the article. If you are not allowed to submit your article with links or URLs, consider trying a different portal. The purpose is for customers to be able to click their way to your site. If they can’t do this, they may go to the competition.

Trying to target local customers who will seek out your business and use your services? How will you reach these people? What can you do to grab these potential customers without using up your marketing dollars? Is there a good way that beats the old-fashioned marketing techniques? There sure is. The best solution is to submit local marketing press releases or articles to a variety of portals.

Many local businesses advertise through radio, newspapers, or other typical local advertising mediums. Distributing handbills, hanging up notices, and advertising through your local television cable operator are some of the old methods that people have used to market their businesses. Don’t worry. You can do much better than these old, useless strategies. Instead of these outdated methods, online services can be used via local business registration and online business profiles. The Internet is less expensive and more cutting-edge than ‘old’ media, which may not reach your target audience. Instead, with an online presence, you will target many different people – men and women of all ages. The Internet helps you to get through to a very broad target market and expand your client database.




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Internet Marketing - Things to Avoid when Building an Internet Marketing Company

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Internet marketing consistently opens its doors of opportunities for those individuals who are looking for two things: freedom and moderate to huge monthly income. Although it is good to be an ordinary yet well-compensated employee, complete with benefits entitled to them. However, the change happening in the market is consistent; the increase on their monthly wages is not sufficient to compensate the increase in the prices of basic and primary commodities. Add to it the inconvenience they feel every time they are obliged to follow their superiors on the things they need to do and need not to do while working for the company.

The result: moderate to poor compensation (due to consistent increase of basic commodities against inconsistent increase of monthly wages) and lack of freedom of enjoying their work, which lead to inefficiency, and worst, getting laid off from work.

With Internet marketing, you are in-charge. There will be no managers or supervisors to tell you that you need to do this and do that. You have the discretion of choosing what time you want to work and what type of investment you prefer.

In other words, you will not work anymore for the company. You will be the one to build your own company. And it will be called an Internet marketing company.

Pleasant to the ears, isn't it? However, just like other things existing in this world, you should familiarize yourself with the do's and don'ts when starting an Internet marketing company. Keep in mind that in starting an Internet marketing company, you must heavily consider the "wants and needs" of your clients. They are powerful factors that can determine the fate of an Internet marketing company-if it is successful or it is nearing on its downfall.

Here are several things that you should avoid when starting your Internet marketing company.

• Waiting to announce the availability of your website for the Internet public- waiting for your website to be entirely finished and marketing it later on will be detrimental in the progressive stage of your Internet marketing company. You will miss the feedbacks that are supposed to be one of your major concerns in improving whatever errors you have committed. This is very crucial on Internet marketing. Although it is not yet entirely finished, launch your website so that you will see if your work satisfies the Internet public's needs.

• With a new Internet marketing company, you should make your point clear and concise. However, mixing the message that you want to express will just create an impression to the Internet public that you are inexperienced in handling the product or services you are offering for sale. You will just lose the opportunity of widening your clientele base.

• Asking for extensive personal information of the subscriber- keep in mind that people will not give up their personal information easily without knowing what they are getting into. If you have some information that you want to share to the public, require minimum information such as the name of the subscriber and the email address.

• Too much use of keywords in the site content- although it is important that you need to have high keyword density within the contents of your website, flooding them with the keywords you are targeting with will create an unprofessional impression. Always the keywords should be within the natural flow of the content, allowing your readers to know what your main points are without making them realize that they are seeing your keywords for several times already.

• Placing unrelated contents to the site- there is no point in placing plenty of keywords that have nothing to do in particular with your Internet marketing company. Even if its a highly paid keyword, if it is not related to the content of your site, it is useless and will not help but instead ruin the professionalism of your company. Select the keywords that go with the content of your site and have meaning to the content.

These are the things that you should avoid when starting an Internet marketing company. From your marketing strategies to the content itself and the layout, almost every step that you will take will have an impact to the success of your website. Strictly follow the do's and don'ts of starting an Internet marketing company and it will give you high chances of survival.




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Global Marketing Solutions for Local Businesses

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The best way to improve your local business’s presence on the Internet is through online local business marketing. You can propose an article about yourself and your business in these submissions. It is a great way for you to promote yourself and your business to the local community, piquing the interest of those who read about you. Such submissions offer excellent alternatives to traditional marketing techniques, which are time-consuming and costly compared to online marketing. They are more personal and more likely to draw the customer in with the desire to learn more about what you can offer him or her. Not to mention that your possibilities are simply endless. You can reach countless people – today most people have access to a computer. Online searching is a great way for new clients to find you and they surely will! Not only globally, but also local clients search on the Internet to find your business, and this offers great possibilities. Browse for sites where you are allowed to submit an article with one or two active links to your own site. These web sites typically require that you provide links at the bottom of the article in a short biography of yourself. When clicked, the links will divert the person reading the article to the printable coupons, offers, and discounts that your business provides. This is a convenient way for potential customers to read about your services and then follow the links to obtain more information about your business. Articles are also a great way to position yourself as an expert on the topic and show your best qualities through the information that you provide in the article. If you are not allowed to submit your article with links or URLs, consider trying a different portal. The purpose is for customers to be able to click their way to your site. If they can’t do this, they may go to the competition.

Trying to target local customers who will seek out your business and use your services? How will you reach these people? What can you do to grab these potential customers without using up your marketing dollars? Is there a good way that beats the old-fashioned marketing techniques? There sure is. The best solution is to submit local marketing press releases or articles to a variety of portals.

Many local businesses advertise through radio, newspapers, or other typical local advertising mediums. Distributing handbills, hanging up notices, and advertising through your local television cable operator are some of the old methods that people have used to market their businesses. Don’t worry. You can do much better than these old, useless strategies. Instead of these outdated methods, online services can be used via local business registration and online business profiles. The Internet is less expensive and more cutting-edge than ‘old’ media, which may not reach your target audience. Instead, with an online presence, you will target many different people – men and women of all ages. The Internet helps you to get through to a very broad target market and expand your client database.




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10 Amazing Ways To Jump Start Your Sale

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1. Find a strategic business partner. Look for ones that have the same objective. You can trade leads, share marketing info, sell package deals, etc.

2. Brand your name and business. You can easily do this by just writing articles and submitting them to e-zines or web sites for republishing.

3. Start an auction on your web site. The type of auction could be related to the theme of your site. You'll draw traffic from auctioneers and bidders.

4. Remember to take a little time out of your day or week to brainstorm. New ideas are usually the difference between success and failure.

5. Model other successful business or people. I'm not saying out right copy them, but practice some of the same habits that have made them succeed.

6. Take risks to improve your business. Sometimes businesses don't want to advertise unless it's free, sometimes you have to spend money to get results.

7. Include emotional words in your advertisements. Use ones like love, security, relief, freedom, happy, satisfaction, fun, etc.

8. Ask people online to review your web site. You can use the comments you get to improve your web site or you may turn the reviewer into a customer.

9. Out source part of your workload. You'll save on most employee costs. You could out source your secretarial work, accounting, marketing, etc.

10. Combine a product and service together in a package deal. It could increase your sales. If you're selling a book, offer an hour of consulting with it.




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WHERE’S YOUR BUSINESS GOING?

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Building a brand requires the same four questions necessary when planning a trip: When do I want to go? What do I want to do? Where do I want to go? How will I get there? It’s always a great time to plan a vacation, and it’s always a great time to build your brand.

Consumers begin forming opinions of your product and organization as soon as you break into the marketplace. If you’re not controlling your image and message, it’s being controlled by others through their perceptions of you and your product. A successful brand strategy makes sure that a compelling message is delivered correctly to your target market. The time is now to start building your brand.

A business owner who lacks a clear vision can never truly know how his business is performing. The best brand image and strategy can only be created when the owner clarifies and communicates the vision to the team who will create the brand identity.

A solid brand strategy is like the magnetic North on a compass: It guides you, your business decisions, and your potential customers so you’re able to find each other. It lays out the best route for the business to take in order to communicate its core message and unique promise of value to the target market.

The business must also take its current reality into consideration. How are you positioned in the marketplace? Do you know what differentiates you from your competitors? Are you positioned to take the most direct route possible to achieve the success you want?

So, when do you want to go on your branding trip? The sooner you establish your brand, the better.

What exactly are you looking to do? Your best bet is to create a brand that will differentiate you from the competition and help you reach the next level of growth.

Where do you want to go? What this means is how much of your potential do you want to tap in to? Strategic branding can help you achieve the goals that have been set for your company.

Finally, how will you get there? By partnering with professionals who understand the benefits of branding and marketing.




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Successful Marketing

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Simple marketing principals are the differences between the success or failure of business.The need to achieve customer confidence is important in any business venture. The largest obstacles to sales are uncertainty or confusion on the part of customers. To overcome these obstacles your business needs to first demonstrate and project an image on knowledge, dedicated customer service, added value and quality products. Demonstrate to your clients the advantages to doing business with you and your commitment to them to gain their trust and confidence in return.Your marketing should be designed to effectively achieve brand recognition within your market that will in turn lend integrity and a larger market share. You need to get in front of your clients in many different ways. Having a successful marketing plan is a result of exposing your business and your unique selling proposition to as many people in your target market as possible using a cost effective campaign.Your prospective clients need to see a genuine passion and belief in you products and services from you. This passion will give your clients belief that you’re committed to your services and products, giving them a sense of security when they purchase from you.Nearly every purchase that a client makes is triggered by emotions. Building a rapport with your clients will help them to feel good about their decisions to conduct business with you. Showing them how your service or product and improve their lives or alleviate problems will get them emotionally engaged with the product or service.Part of building confidence in your business is done by overcoming clients’ initial feelings of distrust. This can be done with written guarantees or by using testimonials from previous clients. Often when starting a business there are special offers and sales. The problem with specials is that people tend to be great procrastinators without a time limit imposed on them to take action. People always have a good reason to put things off, so give them a sense of urgency to come and take advantage of your services by imposing deadlines. Form a marketing plan that identifies your target market and your tactics for getting their attention. Identify your strengths that you can promote and your weaknesses that need improvement. Set goals that you want to achieve with your marketing and limits to the expenses you are willing to incur. Fundamental marketing will move your business in the right direction when consistently implemented. If you’re willing to take the risk of starting your business, you will have to be willing to properly market your services and products to achieve its success.



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Different Business Models

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There are many different business models that you can use for your business. It is important to understand which one will suit your needs. Sometimes you can use more than one business model to create multiple streams of income.

Different business models-what are your options:

1. Marketing: A simple marketing site will involve a small website. This website will just be a few pages; Home page, about us, two pages of content, and of course, your sales page. Include a page for inviting affiliates to sell your product. Some marketers will make mini sites. This type of website will be just a sales page and a page inviting visitors to join their affiliate program. You should also include a free newsletter for visitors to sign up for.

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Methods of Email Marketing

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Many people think that email marketing has lost its power due to the new laws. However, the new laws have actually helped those with newsletters and those using email marketing. It has forced publishers to write quality newsletters and to treat their subscribers with the respect that is due to them. Using good methods of list building is the key to your success with email marketing. It is critical that you gather highly targeted subscribers to your opt-in lists. here are some methods of email marketing for your reference. 1. Newsletter: Your free newsletter is your most powerful form of email marketing. It will achieve a few things. One, it enables you to build a large responsive opt-in list. Secondly, it will allow you to develop a strong business relationship 2. Mailers: mailers are a very profitable and easy way to automate your income. You set up an auto-responder sequence on your auto-responder. The intervals between mailings will be up to you, depending on what, to whom, and who you are promoting. You can use this for a new product, backend selling, or pre-selling information. The mailer can be directed at leads that ask for more information or old customers.3. Announcement lists: You can make multiple lists for different purposes. One of the most fun and profitable is an announcement list. Some of your subscribers will be actively searching for new products and this list is a tailor made for them. This list will alert subscribers about any new product you are promoting, and of course, to sweeten the pie- a special discount just for them. Email marketing is still a great way to market. You just need to take advantage of the new technology that helps you to get your mail past the spam filters. One word of warning, never send email to those who are not on your opt-in-list. This is labeled spam and can get you into a whole lot of trouble. Plus, it will ruin your reputation as a business person.



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Role of B2B Sites

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Natasha is an avid web surfer. Her favorite sites include yahoo, msn, e.bay, BBC and CNN. Many a time, you will notice her shifting from one tab to the other. Natasha terms the Internet as ‘an excellent source of information’.

Jack is also an avid web surfer. Coincidentally, even Jack states that the Internet is a treasure trove of information. When the topic shifts to ‘favorite sites’, Jack lists tootoo.com ,VNUnet.com, techworld.com and silicon.com as his favorite sites.

Well, if you closely observe the site names listed by both Natasha and Jack, then you will notice that the sites listed by Natasha are the ones that are frequently visited by general web surfers. On the other hand, most you of will conclude that Jack visits some obscure sites. Well, that is clearly not the case. The sites visited by Jack are popularly known as B2B [Business to Business] sites. These are niche sites that basically cater to the demands of hardcore professionals. In other words, B2B sites are not meant for any Tom, Dick or Harry.

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Several basic marketing tips for exporters

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What is marketing?
Marketing is many things and has many purposes and, therefore, many definitions. In a word ,marketing can be defined as "the composite of functions needed to move goods from the producers to consumers to satisfy consumers’ wants and needs."
All marketing approaches should generally aim to:
1.  Provide satisfaction and value to existing customers.
2.  Provide the promise of value to potential customers.
You should look at marketing as everything you produce, from communications (including emails) to your products to your advertising and promotions. In every task or business decision, you are directly or indirectly delivering your company's offerings, image and reputation to the market for its continuing evaluation. Your business image and your results are always on the line. Marketing is important because it can directly affect a business' performance and, particularly for small to medium enterprises engaged in global trade, its livelihood.
Planning your promotion and market presence.
One of the most cost-effective and immediate ways to get responses to your offerings is to take advantage of the variety of online promotion options available, including registering as a seller on certain B2B sites which offer space (your own mini-website) for you to place your product catalog.
Differentiation through service.
One important part of ongoing marketing efforts is your company's perceived level of service in the eyes of your customers and partners. A high level of service is hard to maintain but invaluable in setting your company apart from your competitors. Some tips include: 
Return phone calls and respond to emails within 24 hours.
Set up regular tours of your factory or premises as well as demonstrations of your products. 
Ask clients what you can do to help them achieve success in their business. 
Hold a seminars and trainings at your office (or online) for clients and prospects. 
Create an area on your website specifically for your customers. A testimonial or success story area, or even a discussion board, draws customers to you. 




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