Even with national success, it is still very challenging to take a manufacturing business international. As with any other business looking to go global, winning over the thrust of a new target market is difficult but with some work, it can be done.
There are a lot of challenges that come with scaling up a manufacturing business and below, we will look at how you can overcome the most common challenges when taking a manufacturing business global.
Go Local While Going Global
When entering a new market, localization is key. Research has shown that people respond better to and engage with businesses that address them in their local languages. Apart from hiring people who can speak the native language of the new markets you get into, you also need to ensure that your website, marketing materials, and all communications are in the local language and that they have the correct spelling and grammar.
When talking about localization, businesses have to also think about translation services, specifically technical translation services. Technical translation services are vital when a manufacturing business wants to distribute a catalog of its products in the local language.
Another reason why technical translation is especially important in manufacturing is that it helps customers get acquainted with your products if user and instruction manuals are in a language they understand. Technical translations help customers better understand a product, how to use it, and how it will benefit them, and this can have a huge impact on user experience as well as the likelihood of the customer purchasing from you again.
Lastly, technical translations are important because they allow safety and training materials to be better understood by locals. When establishing a manufacturing business in a different country, you will likely hire locals, and you have to ensure that everyone is properly trained and that they understand the safety manuals and instructions.
Using a Single Point of Truth to Overcome Disjointed Information
Entering a new market is always difficult when you do not have control over the data you have about the products you wish to sell. Product Information Management systems are data hubs that function as single sources of truth for all the data businesses need to market and sell their products.
These systems can also be used as sources of data about customer preferences, purchase patterns, and trends to allow manufacturing businesses to take advantage of this data to identify new opportunities.
Take Advantage of Existing Marketplaces
It might not seem like it, but there are a lot of opportunities for manufacturing businesses looking to go global in marketplaces like Amazon and Alibaba. These global online marketplaces have an inbuilt audience and can be a great entry point for manufacturing businesses looking to enter new markets and to take advantage of the enormous e-commerce opportunities and potential.
Some of these marketplaces also offer businesses help in finding the right market for their products, and this is something manufacturing businesses can leverage.
Taking a manufacturing business global can be challenging, but these challenges can be overcome by using available resources like translation services and massive global marketplaces.
