Tutorial, the Export Check-Up, the Ideal Market, the KPIs

Before moving into foreign markets, it is advisable to carefully evaluate your company in order to identify in advance all those critical issues capable of undermining the growth process across borders. It is not at all easy and automatic to select one or more foreign target markets, but the data can help us in the screening process. Identifying and measuring your KPIs can be crucial in the phases of entering a foreign market, where the company and its offering are not yet known.

WHAT IS THE EXPORT CHECK-UP?

The Export Check-Up is nothing more than a self-assessment of all the tangible and intangible assets of your company.
It involves answering a series of questions to understand whether or not you are ready to face a foreign market. Suppose we are a company operating in the food sector. Our desire is to enter the vast and rich United States market commercially. Before starting any operational activity, it is good to ask yourself:

• Is my production capacity sufficient to meet local demand?
• Do I need to make specific investments for the chosen target market?
• Are my organizational and financial structures adequately ready?
• Do I have catalogues, price lists and consolidated procedures to be successful in the market?
• Do I need specific certifications? Is my packaging correct? And marketing?

There is no bigger mistake than trying to enter a foreign market (and perhaps succeeding in the initial stages) without having carefully, almost obsessively, evaluated all the details of your company. It is a good idea to draw up the export Check-Up, in order to have a snapshot of the state of the art at a given moment and also to have the list of corrective actions to be carried out.

Once the necessary interventions have been applied, you are ready to attack the desired foreign market!