International marketing tools list

They are crucially important for an international business venture. Bear in mind the following:

Business cards

• Design: professionally intended to remember and attract prospects’ attention;

• Material: high quality;

• Lay out: easy to read; distinctive and informative; up-to-date and complete with area codes, country, telephone and fax numbers, postal code, e-mail, website addresses and other electronic social networking and blogging sites such as Skype, Linkedin, Biznik, Digg, Stumbleupon, Twitter, Myspace, Facebook and others.

• Language: in the appropriate tongues the business are conducted;

• Uniformity: consistent throughout the company;

Brochures

• Design: creative and appealing and professionally printed;

• Lay out: informative and easy to read, highlighting the company’s uniqueness;

Customer testimonials

• Examples: show that the company is highly recommended; represent your best customers; be from top executives; and be included in your brochure.

News articles

• Clear in stating that your company is a recognized leader.

• Quoted in your brochure.

• Reproduced on your letterhead.

• Displayed in your office.

• Sent to potential clients.

Videos, Podcast and other non-textual blog styles related to music, art, sketches and photos

• Sophisticated and interesting.

• Professionally produced.

• Oriented to the quality and benefits of the company’s product or service.

• Clear and concise; and easily available.

Websites

• Design: professionally and visually pleasing with broad information, e-mail enabled and capable of allowing online purchasing (if appropriate).

Maritime and International Trade Oral Presentations

Please note the evaluation criteria that will be used for oral presentations.

Read all about it in:

http://english6umc.blogspot.com/2009/05/maritime-english-oral-presentation.html

UNIT 2 - INTERNATIONAL TRADE PLAN GUIDES & TOOLS

Dear UMC Students,

As you have already noticed, we have approached learning from a different mind set:

We believe in our capacities of learning the English language through international trade study and practice, or through its reproduction and production.

For the second part of the course, we want due diligence in understanding some information as follows:

1. Methods to get Venezuelan products to international markets

http://www.austradeict.gov.au/Export-plan/default.aspx

2. Write a short version of a business plan

http://www.southaustralia.biz/library/Export%20Business%20Plan%20Template.doc

We will discuss all these topics next class.

We hope this insightful information helps you to continue moving forward to create positive results.

Yours truly,

Francisco Salinas

UNIT 1 - LISTENING ACTIVITY (Edited)

Interviewing Katherine
Star-up steps to international business

Listen to the podcast interview and do the activities that hereby follow.

Click to this address to start http://www.elanguages.ac.uk/activities/2EAP/01/du1s30402.htm

Part I

Practicing your listening skills regularly is important. In the first part of this interview with Katherine, a businesswoman, you will hear her talking about some of the challenges of ...

a) finding a market for a product or service
b) finding prospects for the intended market
c) setting up a business
d) getting a loan

Part II

Listen to Katherine’s interview again. Then, look at the following list and use the symbol “x” to choose the sentences that she only mentioned during the interview.

a) You need to start by identifying a service or product that your business can offer
b) You should have previous experience in sales and marketing
c) If you want to sell a product you need to market it effectively
d) If you want to sell a service it's advisable to have already worked in that sector
e) You need to have a profile of the market you are aiming at
f) You need to identify your typical customer and market specifically for him/her
g) It's important to know whether your intended market is likely to increase or not
h) You need to develop a competitive advantage

Part III

Listen and complete the interview.

Interviewer: OK, Katherine, um, we’re going to talk about _______________ _____ a business today. Can you tell me what you think are the first steps involved in setting up a business?

Katherine: Well, obviously, the first thing you have to do is you have to have an idea - you
have to have a concept. You have to see a _______________ in the market somewhere. You have to have an idea of a product or a service which you can offer either locally or nationally, or even
____________________. And normally this would be related to your own experience. Um, if you’re
going to go into the services market, then it needs to be probably something that you have
worked in the sector that you have worked in before. Not necessarily, but it’s a good idea.

Interviewer: Mm mm. OK. Um, and how do you go about defining the _______________ that you’re aiming at?

Katherine: Well, again, um, if it’s a service or a product, you have to have an idea of who
your _______________ customers or clients are going to be: you need a _______________ of them. You need to know what age group they belong to. You need to know if it’s aimed at men or women or both. Um, the kind of _______________ group that these people belong to. And perhaps nationality. Maybe it’s a national market, maybe it’s international. You also need to know, um, if your market is static or if it’s likely to _______________ and, if it’s going to grow, in which direction it will grow. You need also to have an idea of your principal competitors in the field and see what they’re doing and, once you’ve looked at what they’re doing, you have to define what is your ____________________ advantage. What makes your product or your service special? It may be cheaper price. It may be some kind of some ________________ _______________ on the product or the service. It may be a personalization of a product or a service.

Interviewer: Mm. OK. It sounds like a very complex process.

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UNIT 1 - (READING EXERCISE) - Edited

Basic steps on how to start an international trade business

Read the thought-provoking article and answer the given questions. Be prepared to talk about these issues with classmates and the professor in class.

First Step
Check online import and export business start-up resources and tools

Trading goods and services allows businesses around the world to compete on a global basis with their competitors.In the past, it was very costly to acquire the commercial intelligence needed to play in the global market place.Now, equipped with the internet we can access valuable market information and find foreign buyers and local suppliers, anywhere, anytime.

Second Step
Start by learning a little more about import and export

International trade training makes good business sense. Attend training programs offered by universities or take on line courses. They can open you doors to:

• Succeed in new global markets
• Strengthen your industry knowledge
• Advance your international trade career
• Increase your credibility and visibility
• Gain world-recognized credentials
• Expand and diversify your skill base
• Network with a vast group of qualified international trade professionals
  
  

Third Step
Legal aspects

Once you are convinced of the vast opportunities that the field of import export offers, you need to register your business with the government.

The use of professional services is essential to the success of a small business, whether you are buying an existing business or franchise, starting from scratch on your own, or expanding a business you presently operate. Professionals can provide the knowledge and expertise in the areas that you are limited, and they can round out your management team to ensure your business operates efficiently. One of the professionals you will want to consult with as an entrepreneur is a lawyer.

Selection of a business structure

Whether you plan to operate a home-based business or are involved in a large commercial operation, you will need to decide on which type of business structure best suits your needs.

Your options will range from sole proprietorships, partnerships, limited or incorporated companies, to co-operatives. A lawyer can help you choose the correct form of business structure, based on factors such as the number of people involved, the type of business, tax issues, liability concerns, and financial requirements of the firm. An accountant should also be consulted regarding the tax implications of the form of business structure chosen.

Fourth Step
Setting up an office

Most businesses initially start out from leased premises rather than incurring the major capital investment of buying or constructing a new building. However, leases still constitute one of your largest expenses, and usually represent a long-term commitment. As such, your signed lease agreement is a very important legal document. Leases can vary from a simple one-page agreement to a lengthy complex document; depending on the space you are renting (e.g. mall space vs. separate building). The other choice you have is to run your business as a home-based operation.

Fifth Step
Get international trade information

Usually government offices and non-government organizations (Ngo’s) provide excellent international trade information and resources for starting, operating, and growing your business. For further information, also check out the import export links found on the internet.

Manage your business from start to finish

• Careful planning is fundamental to success
• Successfully managing a business requires specific management skills in addition to knowledge of key business practices
• Make sure you build a knowledge-based information system that allows you to be well organized
• Write your business plan, which is a guide to starting and running your business. This plan will encourage loans, promote growth, and provide a map for you to follow
• Set up a bookkeeping system to keep good records about the business financial position and the business daily income and expenses, which can help you to make good decisions and comply with government regulations
• Use benchmarking tools to improve your business performance by identifying problems, finding their solutions while furthering opportunities
  

Sixth Step
Funding Sources and Loan Programs

Explore your financing options.

To obtain funding or apply for a government program you will need a Business Plan. Developing a strategic Marketing or Business Plan is the key to succeeding in any business. Research and planning are especially important for global ventures. It allows you to identify your opportunities and risks.

There are two type of financing available to business: equity and debt. Simply stated, equity is the money that you put into your business. Debt is what you borrow from others to invest in your business.

(Please note that there is a hybrid type of financing known as "mezzanine financing" which is somewhere between equity and debt. For instance, the investors lend with the right to convert their loans into shares of the company when the company eventually goes public, or after some definite period of time has elapsed. However, this typically only applies to larger firms who intend to go public at some future point.).

Sources of funding

Personal: credit cards, personal lines of credit and overdraft facilities, all of which can be used by the owner to finance his business. In effect, the funds so used become loans from the owner to the business

Suppliers and clients: Negotiate terms with your regular suppliers so that you can expand your sources of funds. Ask for a good faith deposit to cover part of the fees that you will earn related to a contract, and progress payments on the work completed, instead of waiting for completion of the contract to collect your fees. You could ask for equalized billings especially in cases of long-term clients who use services occasionally or at cyclical peaks.

Friends, Relatives and Business Acquaintances: Since they know your character and your business knowledge, they may be prepared to advance you funds.

Government Loan and Grants: Governments have loan, guarantee, or grant programs for any or all of the following: creation of jobs or technology; exporting; training; venture capital, start-ups, innovation and increasing capacity

Operating line of credit: The financial institution agrees to make available a specified amount, where the amount borrowed can fluctuate regularly within the limit depending on the company's cash flow.

Term Loans: the financial institution agrees to make available a specified amount for the financing of long-term fixed assets.

Equipment financing: Computer equipment, office equipment and automobiles could be financed either by buying or leasing these assets from the finance subsidiaries of the companies who manufacture the equipment or from third party finance/leasing companies.

Answer to the following questions

Should I go into business?

Preliminary question analysis

1. Are you a good loser?
2. Do you enjoy working on projects that will take 5-10 years to successfully achieve?
3. Have you ever participated in the setting up of entities such as cooperatives, community organizations, fund-raising projects, etc.?
4. Do you like being in charge of other people?
5. Do you take risks just for the thrill of it?
6. Do you believe in organizing your tasks before getting started?
7. Do you like to take care of details?
8. Do you blame others when something goes wrong?
9. Do you enjoy competition?
10. Are you likely to work long hours to reach a goal?
11. Can you accept failure without admitting defeat?
12. Can you take advice from others?
13. Do you have a savings account and other assets?
14. Are you good at managing your time?
15. Do you take advantage of on line resources?
16. Are you taking international trade classes?
17. Are you willing to reinvest your salary/business profits to help your business grow?
18. Are you committed to make things work?
19. Why do you want to start your own business?
20. When are you starting your own business?

Note: A "yes" response to questions would indicate that you have what it takes for succeeding in business.

Competency Profile Questions

1. What can I do if I start an international trade home-based business?
2. Since English is the international trade communication language, what results am I willing to get in order to master this language?
3. How can I build a knowledge-based information system?
4. What opportunities and risks do I have when setting up an international trade business?

Should you need to verify your "starting business vocabulary", please check the glossary on this page:

http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/plan/getready/serv_sbplanner_gready_glossory.html

UNIT 1 - (LISTENING SCRIPT 1) Check list for starting a business

Small Business Administration

Interview with Wendy Baumann

Ron Johnson: You are listening to the SBA, Small Business Training Network, your small business resource. I’m Ron Johnson. Owning a business is a dream for many Americans. But what does it take to turn your dreams into reality? How can an entrepreneur know if he or she is even ready to start a business? Is there a checklist that can be used to help guide you? With me today to discuss such a checklist for starting a business is Wendy Baumann. She is president of the Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corporation in Milwaukee. SBA provides funding for more than 100 women business centers nationwide designed to help women start and grow their small businesses. Welcome, Wendy.

Wendy K. Baumann: Thank you. It is a pleasure to be here today.

Ron Johnson: Now, Wendy, what are the key items on the checklist?

Wendy K. Baumann: Well, really, you first have to identify and understand the reasons of why you want to start a business. I often ask entrepreneurs or business owners in the early stage to hold out their hands. What is the “who” behind this business? The “what” behind this business? When, where, and most importantly, really, why?

You need to begin at this early stage of doing a self-analysis of your own skills and your experience. You really have to look very carefully early on. Is this business idea viable or feasible? And then ask yourself the hard question, do you have the capacity and the interest to carry out this viable business idea?

And then, finally, still at this early stage is, I think we really need a plan, a written business plan as ideas, something ideal. Something happens when you take all those ideas in your head and really begin to put them down on paper in a formidable plan for yourself and then other supporters along the way.

Ron Johnson: Why is it so important to understand your reasons for wanting to start a business?

Wendy K. Baumann: It is really central to the business plan and to why you are going into business. For instance, I hear a lot of people say, “Ah, I do not want a boss. I do not want to have a boss again.” And I will often say to them, “Well, actually, when you go into business for yourself, every single one of your customers is really a boss.”

So you need to think of why you are going in. Is it because you have an idea and invention and want to bring that to market? Do you believe perhaps you can do something better, faster, different in terms of a product or a service? Do you see a niche in the market and want to go into that niche in the market? Do you want to make a million dollars?

All of those can be very good reasons, but your business plan will look different and your plan in pursuing this business idea will look different depending on really what are the why’s of starting that business.

Ron Johnson: And Wendy, you mentioned the importance of doing a self-analysis. What do you mean by this?

Wendy K. Baumann: Well, in terms of analyzing, do you as an individual, are you an entrepreneur, really? Are you an entrepreneur? Are you somewhat of a risk taker? What is your business acumen and what do you feel about that?
Entrepreneurs generally are a little bit more risky takers. They are a little bit more those leaders and you need to ask yourself early on, what do you think about leadership? Do you enjoy that sense of competition? Do you like getting ahead? Do you like winning? What is your energy level in running a business? Because most business owners, especially in their first and early stages, it is not a nine-to-five job. Sure you might be on in a retail environment nine to five, but when are you doing the books? When are you doing the hiring and firing when you are looking at your business plan and looking at your projections, your financials?

So once you have really asked hard questions and you can answer “yes” to most of them or have good answers, then it might be the time that you are really suited for entrepreneurship.

Ron JohnsonWendy : How do you determine if a business idea is feasible?

K. Baumann: An ideal situation is often a niche in the environment. And by this again, I mean, okay, a niche business is not a coffee shop; a niche business is not a restaurant; a niche business is not a construction company. But it might be niche in terms of where it is located. It might be niche in terms of the type of coffee, the type of food, the specific market available in construction right now. So you need to see if there are some niches to be filled.

And second, again, you need to look at the service of this business. Maybe there are many coffee shops, but maybe they are not of a certain kind of nature, a certain kind of service. You need to see what is going to be unique and distinguishable about your business.

One thing that I love is when customers or when entrepreneurs say, “Ah, there is no competition at all in this whole area.” But then you have to ask yourself a little bit, why is not there any competition? Maybe there is not a market for it.

Ron Johnson: The last point you mentioned was business planning. Why is this so important?

Wendy K. Baumann: Business planning really is critical and we really like to see individuals with that business plan. It is a blueprint. It is a map. It is a guide to going where you eventually want to go. It is an idea you talk about, you know, the idea itself of a business. One needs to talk about the market for that business, which is a really key part, the products, the services, the team and the management, if it is a self-proprietorship, if it is going to be a team of individuals.

What are the financing for that business and how does this plan really link that all together in terms of the words and the numbers that taint the story of ideally a successful business unfolding?

Ron Johnson: If you decide to go ahead and become an entrepreneur, check out SBA’s online small business training network at www.sba.gov/services/training. There you will find more than 25 free courses on all aspects of business ownership. SBA also offers many resources to assist entrepreneurs in starting or growing their small businesses.

These resources include more than 60 district offices with at least one office in every state, more than 10,000 SCORE counselors who provide free business counseling, over 1,000 small business development centers, and more than 100 women business centers. You can learn more about all of our resources at http://www.sba.gov/.

I would like to thank Wendy Baumann, President of the Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corporation in Milwaukee, for providing a checklist for starting a business. We will see you soon.
[End of file]
[End of transcript]

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UNIT 1 - (READING 1) How to start an international trade business

International trade is one of the hot industries of the new millennium. But it's not new. Think Marco Polo. Think the great caravans of the biblical age with their cargoes of silks and spices. Think even further back to prehistoric man trading shells and salt with distant tribes. Trade exists because one group or country has a supply of some commodity or merchandise that is in demand by another. And as the world becomes more and more technologically advanced, as we shift in subtle and not so subtle ways toward holistic modes of thoughts, international trade becomes more and more rewarding, both in terms of profit and personal satisfaction.

Trading goods and services allows small businesses around the world to compete on a global basis with their larger competitors.

In the past, it was very costly to acquire the commercial intelligence needed to play in the global market place.

Now, equipped with the internet we can access valuable market information and find foreign buyers and local suppliers, anywhere, anytime.

What type of import/export business can are there?

First off, let's take a look at the players. While you've got your importers and your exporters, there are many variations on the main theme:

• Export management company (EMC): An EMC handles export operations for a domestic company that wants to sell its product overseas but doesn't know how (and perhaps doesn't want to know how). The EMC does it all--hiring dealers, distributors and representatives; handling advertising, marketing and promotions; overseeing marking and packaging; arranging shipping; and sometimes arranging financing. In some cases, the EMC even takes title to the goods, in essence becoming its own distributor. EMCs usually specialize by product, foreign market or both, and--unless they've taken title--are paid by commission, salary or retainer plus commission.
  

• Export trading company (ETC): While an EMC has merchandise to sell and is using its energies to seek out buyers, an ETC focuses on the other side of the trading coin. It identifies what foreign buyers want to spend their money on and then hunts down domestic sources willing to export. An ETC sometimes takes title to the goods and sometimes works on a commission basis.
  

• Import/export merchant: This international entrepreneur is a sort of free agent. He has no specific client base, and he doesn't specialize in any one industry or line of products. Instead, he purchases goods directly from a domestic or foreign manufacturer and then packs, ships and resells the goods on his own. This means, of course, that unlike the EMC, he assumes all the risks (as well as all the profits).

In all of the above cases, should you be in need of assistance when exporting or importing, it is recommended that you enlist the services of a freight forwarder and/or customs broker. These people are familiar with the details of importing and exporting and can help you with such matters as clearing your goods through customs, documentation procedures, shipping, export restrictions and regulations, and foreign import regulations.

• Manage your business from start to finish
  
  Careful planning is fundamental to success.
  
  Successfully managing a business requires specific management skills in addition to knowledge of key business practices.
  
  
• Asses your leadership traits, decision-making skills, and how to manage your employees.

• Be ready to execute marketing basics, setting prices, filing your business taxes, legal considerations, forecasting for future growth, and financing options.

• Write your business plan, which is a guide to starting and running your business. This plan will encourage loans, promote growth, and provide a map for you to follow.
  
  It explains
  – who you are,
  – why you’re in business,
  – what you do, how you do it,
  – where you operate,
  – how you will generate profits,
  – who your customers are, and
  – why your business is important.

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