Cindy King's International Business Blog » phone

9 Tips To Learn More About Your International Markets Over The Phone

Cindy King — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 03:00:48 +0000

When it comes to market research for international audiences, it’s tempting to outsource everything if you can afford it. And today many people today try to do their international market research online. But when you do lots of online research you can get complacent.

No matter what your business is, there comes a time when you must have direct contact with the people. People in your international markets. You can pick up lots of useful information when you communicate with others in person. And this information can prove to be vital when it comes to people who live in a different country, have a different lifestyle and a different way of thinking. Unfortunately I meet a number of people who seem to avoid picking up the phone.

Here are the most useful tips I have found when connecting with people in your international markets by phone.

#1: Do Your Prep Work

First of all, remember why you are seeking direct contact. Take a few steps back and review your situation. You want to see the big picture and not get bogged down in too many details. You’ll hear more feedback when you are open to what could be of interest to you.

#2: Get Comfortable With The Phone

Get social!
(CC licensed Flickr photo by the waving cat)

Sometimes it’s easy to pick up the phone and call people located in your target country. And this is great! Phone calls can be a great starting point.

And if you think it’s impossible to reach the right people by phone, try thinking outside of the box. Look at the contacts you do have. Look at the social media contacts you already have, and the ones it would be easy to cultivate. With the notion of six pixels of separation, slowly start networking and look for a way to begin to get feedback from the right source.

#3: Who To Connect With

This is where many people jump into sticky mud. In some cultures you could get away with reaching out directly to the person you’re interested in. But in many cultures this is not the best place to start. And you could hinder relationships by Why not start with the outer circle of your contacts and gradually move inwards towards the people you are most interested in connecting with? This takes a bit longer, but if can give you insights into how best to proceed.

#4: Review Context Before You Call

: Don’t make it difficult for others to understand you.
(CC licensed Flickr photo by Richard Scott 33)

Context is everything. Review the reasons why you are calling this particular person before you pick up the phone. Think of what you’re going to say. Now imagine the person on the other end of the phone. Will this seem normal to him?

One clear goal per phone call usually works best. Because if you ask for too much information or want to get too much out of a call, this can confuse people from different cultures or send wrong messages. You want them to quickly understand why you are calling them and the context has to be relevant to both of you.

#5: Stay Focused

There’s a balance to find in being clear about what you want and remaining open for helpful feedback. And this is how a few well planned questions can come in handy. But in order to get useful feedback from your international contacts you’ll also need to go with the flow because that’s where you can uncover some gems of information. So, you’ll need to remember to stay focused on the big picture.

#6: Keep A Mental Tab Of What You Can Say

I just mentioned having a few well planned questions, but you can also review a few other things you can say to get the conversation going. And when talking to people of different cultures over the phone you might find you need to adjust your usual communication tactics. Here are some good things to keep in mind.

Confirm what you know, what you understand from this and ask if this is accurate.
Ask if there’s more information you need to know
Ask for suggestions and then try to understand the relevancy

When doing international market research by phone I like to cross-reference the same general questions with several sources. This makes it much easier to understand cultural differences.

Clarity will help you to figure out how everything fits together. (CC licensed Flickr photo by Jerrycharlotte)

#7: Get Over The Fear

It is normal to be apprehensive about calling someone you do not know. And when you are calling to a different country it can even be daunting. Add in the factor that you may not know if the person speaks English and you may not feel like reaching out. There’s no need to be afraid. People are basically polite. Even more so when they feel they are helping you.

#8: Cultivate Curiosity To Open Communication

When you call someone thousands of miles away, they will be curious why. This can be a great way to start conversations and get the information you’re looking for.

#9: Create Better Connections With Your International Markets

Make these eight steps a habit. Whenever you interact with someone related to your international market be open to feedback and try to learn a little bit more. This is how you’ll learn to build stronger connections and ultimately have a better foundation for understanding your international markets.

A Better Understanding Of Your International Markets

The knowledge you can gain through simple phone conversations with your international markets can help you improve your international strategies and get more international clients. Of course you’ll need more research, and even in-person meetings, but connecting by phone is very easy to incorporate into your schedule and can help you to understand your international markets much better.

Copyright Cindy King 2006-2010 - International Business Blog

9 Tips To Learn More About Your International Markets Over The Phone

Avoid Email In Cross-Cultural Conversations

Cindy King — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 23:00:41 +0000

Cross-Cultural Communication Challenges

When you just begin to develop your international business, you will probably be tempted to do as much as possible by email.

Reasons We Give To Use Email

There are some very good reasons to choose email.

It is quick and easy
There is less worry about time differences
You are less intimidated than with direct contact
You can contact more people
You think it is cheaper
And you may kid yourself into saying that it is “just” preliminary research and does not merit a personal phone call

But there are also some very good reasons why it is often better to take the time to use the phone.

When Emails Become A Skill

Email communication can be tricky within a common culture.

Some people know how to use good email etiquette and some people do not. For example, how many subject lines do you still get in your inbox that are misleading and end up wasting your time?

There are also issues of:

Current email best practices to avoid spam filters and ensure deliverability.

And what about:

Who you should email and who you should put on copy.
When and where you need to give critical information.

It is easy to understand why email conversations are not always easy.

Now let’s add another factor…

Cross-Cultural Conversations

When you first start contacting people in new international markets you are starting cross-cultural conversations.

In ordinary, face-to-face encounters, the confrontation of two different cultures can easily lead to communication barriers, and misunderstandings.

Now imagine the added friction of email conversations. There are even more factors that can go wrong.

I can think of two recent examples that happened to me.

The first example was with a fellow Bahamian. So a culture I belong to and understand. There was a series of emails where the person in question clearly sought a business opportunity. But there were three problems with the email exchange:

The email address was from a man, and the person signed as a woman saying she was the most senior person there. Now, I know this was not spam. It came from a very reputable company. But it killed the credibility for me. Who was I in communication with?

She was asking me to drop clients into her lap without giving me any information at all to go on. She kept sending me to a website that was very poorly written, and incomprehensible to anyone outside of her office.

I was busy and did not want to spend the time and money to call her back. Maybe when business lulls.

The problems here were more to do with a lack of good email practices. Yes, certain Bahamian traits of pride did come into play, but bad email practices stopped the conversation.The second example was from a Chinese reader, with a similar vague request for me to solve her companies economic problems. Again this was not spam and clearly a sincere request. This time the cultural differences were obvious. Email do not work well in cultures where indirect communication styles prevail. How can you possibly get anything out of an email when you cannot give clear indication of what you want or need?

Twenty years ago, management often discussed whether you needed a face-to-face meeting or a phone call. In today’s economy, the choice of email or phone calls is just as valid.

Phone calls can give you much more information than an email.

During a phone conversation you can usually get a good understanding about the limits of what can be done by phone and what needs a person to person meeting.

It is best to avoid emails in cross-cultural communication when you can. And more importantly, make sure you learn when to call when it is needed.