21 International Business Tips

Cross-Cultural Twitter Interviews

Do you want to develop your international markets, but find yourself hesitating? In my Cross-Cultural Twitter Interview series I ask everyone to share a useful tip for people starting to develop an international business. These interviews are with a very diverse group of people with strong cross-cultural skills and who often have first hand experience in business abroad.

Of course there are more tips we can add to this list. Please feel free to share yours below.

21 International Business Tips

1. Do your market and cross-cultural research! You have to find the cultural code for your product, service or business. You have to be ON CODE in your relationships.  – @deborahswallow
2. Don’t rush into it. Do Ur homework (aka research). Hire some1 who knows what U don’t.- @HoeferleConsult
3. Jump in the deep end and go do it. Work with an international company, get involved with international activities, learn and learn – @dkiernan
4. Firstly learn to win in your initial market, understand why you win, understand how internationally direct and thru partners - @dkiernan
5. travel & work for a longer period of time in different countries, make personal connections, …learning the language & books & research won’t do the trick alone !- @transdomo
6. “Research” yourself first then research the country/-ies you’re interested in – @culturematters
7. Travel the world by yourself. Skip the group tours. Walk, bike, take trains. Go out and meet your neighbors. Smile.- @PicSeshu
8. Be transparent, open, listen. In fact, develop very same qualities which r needed 2 be successful with social media – @tdebaillon
9. One bit of advice to people in international business is be prepared to make mistakes so don’t forget to have fun – @DR4Ward
10. Develop cultural proficiency: knowing when to listen, when to ask for help and when to speak – @XCulture
11. Treat the world as a big domestic market and be sensitive to it.  I do not mean be homogeneous, but you can’t be limited by thinking inside your borders.  If you want to trade internationally, you cannot perceive there to be a border around your own country. – @jackyan
12. Without language skills, you can’t hope to fully understand the country, its business, and most everyday aspects. – @CotterHUE
13. Come to Canada, it’s all here, we’re host to over 200 cultures… plus, we cross markets every day; it’s a fascinating consumer base ..seriously? advice for those interested in international business: do your research/homework – @DoreenatDMS
14. In another country, trying to speak the language brings many advantages… even if they know yours – @pocketcultures
15. Learn about the cultures and customs of those you work/do business with. Learning a bit of their lingo shows respect – @psitutor
16. Read, research & ask: from local business practices, legislation, & policies, to history, traditions and everyday life – @culturalrealms
17. Know about their culture before you pitch in. A friendly gesture in local lingo can remove all the barriers…I’ve witnessed business deals getting finalized simply because both parties gave due respect to each others’ culture. – @mintblogger
18. If you are interested in international business, start to read an international magazine, e.g. The Economist. – @lyceum
19. Learn a new language. It takes years, but depending on translation and interpretation is expensive, and will never capture the whole cultural context of a conversation or relationship. Unless you use @LCWllc ’s translation services, of course. – @SeanJamesOliver
20. Have confidence in what you bring to the table but be flexible with what others bring to the table – @DavidComp
21. For people interested in int’l business…combine cross-cultural experience with learning cross-cultural theory… the theory helps illuminate the experience. Both are important. - @CateBrubaker

What Is Your Tip To Improve International Business Skills?

What do you find most useful in developing international business skills?

• What’s your favorite tip?
• Does one stand out and resonate with you?
• Do you have another one to add?

Go ahead and share your international business tips below.

Tagged as: catebrubaker, cindy king, cindyking, cotterhue, cross cultural marketing, cross-cultural skills, culturalrealms, culture, culture definition, culturematters, davidcomp, deborahswallow, definition, definition of culture, dkiernan, doreenatdms, dr4ward, hoeferleconsult, International Business, international business skills, International Sales, jackyan, lyceum, matthewbennett, mintblogger, ohhlala, pocketcultures, psiutor, seanjamesoliver, tdebaillon, transdomo, xculture