This is part of a series of seven posts. The first can be found here.

#7. underfunding your efforts:

One of the most frequent questions that I get is how much is this going to cost. I usually replied by asking: how long is a piece of string? Without knowing the expectations of the client or selecting the best target market for their products, it’s an impossible question to answer.

The truth is that you don’t need to spend $10M to generate sales in the US, but you can’t expect to spend only $10K either. Unfortunately, there are no set formulas for marketing and sales budgets.

Your must tie your sales and marketing budgets to your revenue goals, and scale them down to what you can afford. As I mentioned in my last post, it will take you 12 to 18 months to reach those goals. And if you don’t plan so or underfund these efforts, you’ll likely fail.

So where do you start?

Many governments offer export assistance programs. Israel, for example, has one of the best: Israel Export Institute. It has to be — over 45% of Israel’s gross domestic product (GDP) is from exports. These programs offered trade missions to targeted countries, access to grants and matching funds, and sometimes have staffs who truly understand the industries that you’re within or smart enough to at least find out. And if you’re lucky, it’s all free.

Are these programs perfect? Not always, but they offer a starting point for you to make the connections, get the funding and expertise that you need — especially if you’re trying to enter big markets like the US.

So before you make your first trip abroad or spent loads of money, see what resources that they can offer to you.

This is part of a series of seven posts. The first can be found here.

#6. giving up too soon:

Too many companies enter the US with unrealistic expectations, impossible timelines and focused on massive gains. Many think like this: if the US semiconductor capital equipment market is $15B, we should be able to double the size of our company in a year, if not six months.

Those same companies also tend to leave disappointed with small fortunes wasted, and many egos in the trash. They dream too big, and their failures are equally large.

The US market is huge, but it’s also hugely competitive. It’s best to start small with modest expectations, and this is often very hard for any company founder/CEO to do.

You need to plan out at least 12-18 months before you start seeing any significant return on your investment. You also may need to add in time for some product redevelopment — remember that your products are created for your market initially, not the US.

Make sure that you plan all lead generation efforts, business travel and other costs to be spread over this time frame. And then add another 15% just in case.

While your sales and marketing plans must be flexible to accommodate surprises, whatever you do don’t deviate from them. And keep your expectations in check, or you will leave US frustrated with the smaller bank account.

Net Sin: Underfunding Your Efforts

This is part of a series of seven posts. The first can be found here.

#5. providing poor pales channel support:

Unless you’re willing to invest in a dedicated sales team, you’ll have to find help to close deals and manage your US customers. This is where manufacturers’ representatives and distributors can help you, but only if you treat them with the same support like they are your employees.

There’s a general misconception, both with Israeli and US companies, that reps and distributors primary focus is to generate new sales. While they might get your products in front of their existing customers, their strength lies in closing and maintaining customer relationship. Don’t expect them to actively prospect new leads — unless the prospect has an immediate need.

Know that they have to manage all of the products they represent, not just yours. Most of them carry or represent a dozen if not more manufacturers — making very busy and easily distracted.

You can’t expect them to treat you like their number one manufacturer if you don’t provide them with the basics:

• Great sales tools (asked them what they need)
• Ongoing product training (webinars are fine supplements)
• Face-to-face time meeting with customers and prospects in their territories (minimally once a quarter you need to help schedule meetings)

The truth is that they are often neglected by the manufacturers that they represent — especially American companies. So any special attention that you offer — such as providing qualified, ready-to-close leads or bimonthly joint sales calls — will help you gain more of their attention. And in return, they will help you generate more sales.

But be sure not to take on more distributors and reps that you can truly support — or you’ll fail quickly. Many companies make the mistake of believing that they need coast-to-coast coverage, and sign up reps and distributors accordingly. They believe that they need one in every state of the United States — that’s pure bullshit. Don’t hire a rep in North Dakota, if there are not many prospects in North Dakota.

Focus on the regions that have the highest concentrations of companies and where you can provide staffing support. When you understand the one niche market that you’re focusing on and where clusters of those prospects are located, you can develop your sales channels efficiently. You can also support them effectively, cut your travel expenses significantly, and generate sales more efficiently.

Your sales channels will support your sales growth only if you can effectively support them.

Next Sin: Giving Up too Soon

This is part of a series of seven posts. The first can be found here.

#4. focusing on branding, not lead generation:

The dot.com boom (and bust) happened in the early stage of my career. In the late 90s, I spent a lot of time in the San Francisco Bay area. Back then, there were a lot of companies that raised a lot of money to kick off their Internet startups. I remember attending a lot of launch parties during my visits. They were excessive, booze-filled events that were meant to grab the attention of the media.

During one event, I remember chatting with the company’s marketing director who earned an MBA from a well-regarded school. He told me that his startup spent $250,000 on the event that evening — my Midwestern jaw dropped. He grimaced at my reaction, and said that generating buzz and brand recognition was the new way of doing business. I took his business card, as I had done at all of these events, smiled and left.

Today, not a single one of those companies whose business cards I collected are still in business. While many of these US marketers had learned this lesson in the late 90s, I still see many exporters making this mistakes today.

While great brand recognition often helps the sales efforts, it far from guarantees them.

For many emerging B2B tech firms, great branding is a byproduct of successful sales efforts. And to get sales, you need prospects. And to get prospects, you need effective lead generation efforts.

Developing a great lead generation program doesn’t take millions of dollars or flashy presentations and brochures. It takes common sense and focus:

• Make sure your basic marketing materials — whether they’re brochures, presentations, white papers or even websites — all have a strong “call-to-action.”
• Make sure they are written to the industry that you’re targeting.
• If you just starting out, make sure that your prospect list is well under a thousand well-targeted contacts — 400 to 500 is ideal.
• Messaging is more important than method — you don’t need a Facebook page if you focus on creating a dialogue with your prospects.
• Focus on a higher frequency of “touches” instead of flashiness — which is expensive and guaranteed to have minimal return on investment.
• And don’t forget inside sales support — especially if you’re working with distributors and manufacturing reps — despite what they tell you, they won’t do follow up calls.

And if you still think that you need brand recognition to break into your target market, reach out to the media, industry analysts, and other thought leaders. For they will have a greater impact on your bottom line than any full-page ad

When you focus on generating great prospects one by one instead of your brand, name recognition will follow your sales growth.

Net Sin: Providing Poor Sales Channel Support

This is part of a series of seven posts. The first can be found here.

#3. being product and not customer centric:

What’s always impressed me about Israeli companies is the immense level of product innovations for a country of under 8 million people. Whether it’s medical technology, software encryption, mobile telecom or from a wide range of other industries, Israelis develop more product innovations per capita than any other country in the world.

That said, outside of you and I admiring this fact, no one cares.

No one cares that your technology might be light-years ahead of the industry. No one cares that your latest feature set is dramatically better than your competitors. No one cares about the awards you won, the staff that you hired, or anything else about your company.

No one cares unless you can show how your innovations can benefit them first.

If you’re truly interested in entering the US market, you need to check your ego at every customer’s door. You need to translate the most recent “bells & whistles” that your developers just released into bullet-pointed benefits that they will deliver. And you need to let your customers, not just your engineers, help drive your product development efforts.

US companies have a lot to gain from the innovations developed by your Israeli firm, but it’s up to you to translate those innovations into benefits that that they can understand.

Next Sin: Focusing on Branding, Not lead Generation