Congratulations, you’ve decided to bring your enterprise tech business into the U.S. market. Now you need to suss out how to do that successfully. The keys to a lucrative deployment lie in understanding your target markets and buyers.
As the expert in international market entry, Kettering has a proven business development strategy that walks you through these considerations and the best steps for scaling your new success. In this article, we’ll discuss how to translate your value in a new market and key considerations of where and when to expand without overreaching before substantial growth.
Understanding Your Market & Buyers
As a springboard to scaling your business, you’ll want to ask yourself two questions:
- Do you already have clients in similar markets? If so, they are an easy entry point, and they serve as proof to validate your concept and need.
- Do you understand the market landscape? You’ll want to look at those who are providing similar services to determine and validate your viability, as well as begin the translation of business from your home market to U.S. expansion.
When an organization is entering a new international market, its primary focus is to identify and engage with a serviceable customer base. Therefore, your engagement with Kettering typically starts with our business development services. Our first step is to help you gain credibility in the market.
But don’t worry, this is what we do at Kettering International. We apply proven market knowledge from our methodology and the experience of our successful clients to model and shape your offering and engagement with the market. We work through entry strategy, advisory, identification, discovery, and eventually market entry testing with an “initial engagement hypothesis.”
Target Lighthouse Clients and Map the Market Terrain
The initial engagement hypothesis involves identifying your target clients and marketplaces for what your company offers and aspires to achieve.
In order to familiarize yourself with all segments of your ideal audience and create a favorable landscape for connecting with them, it can be helpful to take the time on the front end mapping out the answers to some well-researched questions posed to your early adopting clients. Figure out what they need, and research market potential to match that need with an ideal client in your new market. Consider these questions:
- What is their industry?
- What is the size of the company and annual revenue?
- Is the location in alignment with your entry plan?
- What are they interested in?
- What are their challenges in purchasing software?
- What are their channels for buying software?
- Who is involved in purchasing, and what triggers that action?
- What do they care about?
When you bring your business overseas, it is important to remember that you are bringing something new and have the opportunity to serve and be welcomed into an incredibly lucrative market. To operate as a rubber stamp entity and not till the ground with the effort of understanding your environment, your customers, and your unique positioning will topple your outreach before there is an opportunity to scale.
Experience + Presence = Valuable Metrics
As we mentioned in our previous article [insert ink], one of our unique offerings is that we serve as a presence for your U.S. market entry, leveraging the value of our reputation and established connections.
At Kettering, we match the right metrics and market for your expansion. First, you will want to be honest in your analysis of whether you are ready to transition from serving from afar to being a U.S. entity. Kettering International can help you take a hard look at your numbers and understand the capital investment involved in a well-planned deployment. We’ll also look at your infrastructure to ensure it is updated and capable of supporting the new clients you will be hosting in your enterprise tech business.
Additionally, Kettering International will help you with competitive research for analysis and strategy. That is why lighthouse clients who champion your success are a key component of our strategy. Understanding your customers increases your understanding of the marketplace and empowers you to synthesize your goals with real-world market data. This approach helps validate your demand and can also open up an initial cash infusion through early adopting clients.
Build a Bridge and Localize Your Business
In our business, we thrive on the cutting edge of technology. We stay updated and educated on best practices for optimizing customer experience and service. We stay ahead of the curve on implementing the tracking and analysis for customer journeys to leverage our clients’ experiences, while also ensuring their security with seamless cross-border payments and functionality.
We need to be the best in the game.
We also need to play for the home team. When you enter a new market, it takes more than adjusting a few cultural phrases and tweaking the color scheme to fit the flavor. It requires understanding the mindset and environment of your clients. We need to bring our best practices in a way that integrates with the company culture and uplifts the teams you serve — no matter where they are.
The key is to strike a balance between maintaining your uniqueness while successfully launching and scaling for U.S. market entry. With Kettering International’s proven business development strategies, we identify ideal markets and clients compatible with your growth strategy. As we crunch the numbers for you, we also hold true to the value of human relationships. The Kettering advantage is in the richness and commitment we maintain on all sides of relationships — our commitment to you, to your clients, and to our market associations. At the end of the day, a tech firm’s market entry success hinges on meeting the client where they are and meeting your goals simultaneously. It is this mindset of the rising tide that differentiates us at Kettering International.
That and our unflappable trust in our process. We know it works. Pick up the phone and give us a call, and we can even show you the numbers.
Get the Kettering International Advantage
With a heart for international business and building client profitability, Kettering strategizes to assist in your market expansion. We help strategically achieve your goals and grow your business at home and in the U.S. market.