Articles

Article Series

This blog is about developing strong cross-cultural and international skills for international business. The articles are separated into 8 different categories which you can read about below.

  1. International Business
  2. Cross-Cultural Compentence
  3. International Marketing
  4. International Sales
  5. International Social Media
  6. Useful Resources

Master Your International Business Success

These articles are based on what I’ve learned in over 25 years field experience in international business development in both sales and marketing and particularly for new market entry. Since I started this blog, I’ve noticed that most people get stuck because they lack some basic cross-cultural and international business skills. This isn’t a surprise because you need international experience to develop strong skills in these areas.

As my particular skill set is in new market entry I cover the cross-cultural and international skills you need for everything from international business, to the different aspects of international sales and marketing.

With my traditional business marketing background I am particularly interested in how social media and web marketing can make international business development more accessible than in the past. And I enjoy trying out current social media and web marketing best practices and apply my international business expertise.

This is what I write about in these articles and I hope they help you master your international business success.

Here are summaries of the 8 different categories I write about.

#1: International Business

iconcatib ArticlesThree skills are important when you enter a new market and open up an international business: risk management in an unknown environment, flexibility and adaptability. In addition to this you also need solid cross-cultural skills in communication, marketing and sales. The article series here cover the following aspects of international business development:

These article series will help you make the connection between cross-cultural competency and the international skills you need to make a successful international business. Read more on international business development here.

#2: Cross-Cultural Competence

iconcatccc ArticlesThe need for strong cross-cultural competence in todays business environment is stronger than ever before. Globalization and the changing demographics in many of the world’s leading countries has lead to a significant increase in multicultural businesses. And with the economic recession and the opportunities provided by the web, many people are also turning towards international business.

These article series cover the many different facets of cross-cultural competence in international business, including:

Although these articles are written specifically for cross-cultural communication in international business, they can, of course, apply to  multicultural domestic businesses too.

But the cross-cultural competence needed for multicultural businesses based in one country is not the same as cross-cultural competence for international business. The cultural differences in doing business with different countries also greatly impact cross-cultural competence in international business. The stronger your cross-cultural competence, the easier it’ll be for you to acquire strong international business skills and get more international clients. This is why this series goes into such depth. Read more on cross-cultural communication here.

#3: International Marketing

iconcatim ArticlesWhen selling to international clients you’ll need to adjust your marketing before you can really tap into your new international markets. Your international clients respond differently to your marketing messages and you’ll need to find out what you need to say them to make more sales. To develop a specific international market you’ll probably have to review your marketing right from the beginning. And applying cross-cultural marketing techniques can improve your marketing even further.

This section is divided into 3 different parts:

#1: International Marketing

#2: International Web Marketing

#3: International Content Marketing

These three different sections are aimed at raising your awareness of how you need to:

  • First adapt your marketing to get more international clients.
  • Then how to use web marketing to reach international markets with today’s media.
  • And how to connect with your audience abroad thanks to international content marketing.

Read more on international marketing here.

#4: International Sales

iconcatis ArticlesThe saying says “money makes the world go round”. International business relies on great internationals sales skills.

But cross-cultural selling has its challenges. I’ve learned a lot of things and picked up a few international selling tricks during my 25 years in international business and share them here on this blog.

Here’s a list of article series on International Sales.

Click through to learn more about the different aspects of international selling to develop your business in other countries.

#5: International Social Media

iconcatism ArticlesThe web gives us visibility to the rest of the world and social media provides us with a tool to connect with a large portion of this world. As web communication in different countries continues to develop and social media evolves the opportunities for using social media in international business will expand.

But businesses can use international social media today. After all, I used international social media marketing to successfully build a strong international network for my own business.

This blog is about cross-cultural skills for international business development, and I frequently cover what I learn about the role social media in international networking, international market research and more. Here are the categories covered in these article series:

These series are aimed at raising your awareness of how you need to adapt your marketing to get more international clients. Read more on international social media here.

#6: Useful Resources