5 Reasons to Go Global

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Small and medium sized businesses that are looking to get an edge over the competition should be setting their sights globally.  So what does it take to expand your business overseas and what are the potential pitfalls and opportunities? Eugene Laney, Head of International Trade Affairs for DHL Express USA, has answers.  Here are his top five reasons to going global:

1.       Everyone else is doing it – Of the companies exporting annually 98 percent were SMEs

2.       Go where the people are – 95 percent of the world’s population live outside the US

3.       Think outside the box -  A recent study by DHL found that small and medium sized businesses selling in international markets are twice as likely to be successful than those that only operate within the U.S.

4.       Jobs, jobs, jobs – SMEs generate about half of the US’s workforce and that number can only grow

5.       Financing – Encouraging trade the US government is seeking to double the nation’s exports by 2014 by increasing funding

DHL Express recently released a research study (requires registration) that assesses the feasibility of small and medium size businesses expanding their business to the international marketplace that may be of interest to all you.  It's authored by Dr. Donald R. Lessard, Epoch Foundation Professor International Management at the MIT Sloan School of Management.

The White Paper, "Ready to Take Your Business Global?" can be accessed here.

Note:  In my new book, Exporting, DHL is referenced on several occasions.