To The Year That Was

©2014 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"The spring, summer, is quite a hectic time for people in their lives, but then it comes to autumn, and to winter, and you can't but help think back to the year that was, and then hopefully looking forward to the year that is approaching." - Enya

How to Leverage Offshore Outsourcing

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With offshore outsourcing, small businesses can accomplish more, level the playing field and accomplish it all economically.  In the following article, the author provides four steps to maximize your outsourcing options and expand your business globally.

One quick tip from the article:

Your offshore outsourcing partner should be able to measure success and provide a solution that meets your needs instead of just a cookie cutter approach. 

Read:  4 Steps to Leverage Offshore Outsourcing for Global Expansion

Getting Started in Exporting. Are You Ready?

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View the latest webinar I presented for Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP): Getting Started in Exporting. Are You Ready? (requires a 5-second log-in).  Here's what you will learn:

• Why this is the best and easiest time ever to export!
• What you need to do to get your business export ready
• How to craft a back-of-the napkin export business plan
• How to create a social media and networking presence
• How to market your business worldwide
• How to use e-commerce sites as stepping-stones to export success 

Getting Started in Exporting.  Are You Ready?

The No. 1 Mistake to Avoid When Manufacturing Your Product Overseas

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Shark Tank's Lori Greiner, inventor of the smash-hit earring organizer, talks about the No. 1 mistake to avoid when manufacturing your product overseas.  She says:

Manufacturing overseas -- in say in Cambodia, China, Bangladesh, Honduras or India -- is often cheaper. But it’s not necessarily easier. Making the leap is the business equivalent of a trust fall.

She goes on to say that when you manufacture overseas, you trade lower cost for higher risk.

Read the entire article:

Shark Tank's Lori Greiner on the No. 1 Mistake to Avoid When Manufacturing Your Product Overseas

Related articles:

• 9 Importing Mistakes to Avoid When Sourcing a New Product
• The Biggest Mistake Importers Make
• 8 Tips for Newbie Importers

Entrepreneurship 3.0: Creating Unlimited Opportunities

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I am really looking forward to returning and participating in the World Entrepreneurship Forum 2014 held in Lyon, France (as shown) October 19th-22nd.  It's such an amazing experience to reconnect with entrepreneurs, social entrepreneurs, political decision-makers and international experts from all over the world.  This year’s forum is about no limits.  According to the World Entrepreneurship Forum's website:

Entrepreneurship 3.0

Entrepreneurship is heading towards a new paradigm, a third industrial revolution based on renewable energy and hyper-connectivity.

Unlimited

Today, with skills and motivation, entrepreneurs of any age, experience, gender or background can reach beyond the old frontiers.

Opportunities

New rules and new leaders accelerate the transition toward the new world order. While traditional employment markets shrink, entrepreneurs seize new sources of opportunities to generate positive change.

To learn more about the World Entrepreneurship Forum and to become a member, visit here.   Check out the brochure.

Related posts to the World Entrepreneurship Forum.  Here's one of the first posts I wrote back in 2008.

Today in Global Small Business: Why Businesses Are Thinking Globally From the Start

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• How the U.S. government is trying to get more businesses to go international.
• With the launch of Apple Pay, is time running out for physical cash?
• IMF survey tells us what's in store for global growth.
• Why businesses are thinking globally from the start (hint: global mobile).
• How IBM is going global with its artificially intelligent computer system that processes vast amounts of big data to answer questions asked in natural language to the global corporations.
• How the economic recovery has given the richest countries in the world a boost.

Is Your State's Reputation As a Premier Global Business Destination Growing?

©2014 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"Utah's reputation as a premier global business destination is growing." - Gary R. Herbert, Governor, State of Utah, October 7, 2014

Empowering Entrepreneurs and Their Communities Around the World

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Ever heard of UP Global?

We are on a mission to make the world a more innovative and prosperous place, one community at a time. We believe that entrepreneurs are critical to driving a strong global economy and a better world. We do our part by supporting the grassroots leaders who are at the core of every strong entrepreneurial community. 

Get involved:  UP Global

Separately but related, take the next step in your entrepreneurial journey and learn more about the Global Accelerator Network.

Top Export Destination for British Firms?

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More than fifty-percent of small and medium-sized companies in the UK sell their products to the U.S., making it the top export destination for British firms.  Why?  To keep their businesses growing, they must look to foreign markets and the U.S. just happens to be a ripe one.

Research, by Barclays Business, shows that 37 per cent of small firms reach a growth ceiling in the UK within the first three years of trading, which is leading business leaders to turn to foreign shores.

Read the entire article:  U.S. Is the Top Destination For Small British Firms

For Global SMEs, Transformation is a Strategic Necessity

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As the recent study by Oxford Economics, sponsored by SAP, says, "SMEs [small and medium- sized businesses] are thinking and acting globally, competing with rivals of all sizes, and investing aggressively in technology to improve operations and make themselves more nimble."

For most [global] SMEs, transformation is understood as a strategic necessity, and perhaps as a key to survival.  Nearly two-thirds say they must transform to stay ahead of the competition, and over half say that technology developments are making traditional ways of doing business obsolete. 

Read the study:  How successful SMEs are reinventing global business.

How to Simultaneously Attract a Cash Investment in Your Business and Expand Internationally

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How do you infuse cash in your business and take it international at the same time?  Take, for example, DocuSign, the e-signature software company with operations in Seattle and San Francisco.

Three Japanese firms – NTT Finance, Mitsui & Co. and Recruit Holdings – all made strategic investments in DocuSign as a part of a $115 million series E financing round.

The three companies will each begin using DocuSign’s software to power their businesses, and Mitsui will also market DocuSign’s technology to its affiliate businesses and customers. In addition to the infusion of cash, the deal also will help DocuSign expand internationally.

There you have it.

Read the entire article:  DocuSign raises $115 million, attracts cash from Japanese backers

Today in Global Small Business: International Trade Will Increase by 20 Percent in 2016

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Smart ideas for doing business internationally (and we are happy to be quoted).
• Mexico is the third largest trading partner with the United States - what that means.
• Nine tips for doing business globally.
• Issues that arise when you are conducting business across borders.
• Why international trade will increase by 20 percent by 2016.
• Overview on export statistics released October 3, 2014

World's Biggest Pumpkin (Almost)

©2014 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion." - Henry David Thoreau

Got Pork?

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Remember the "Got Milk?" ad campaigns?  Now you can look forward to The National Pork Board revving up to market U.S. pork on a worldwide basis.

The USA is trying to come up with a tailor-made international marketing strategy to tap a bigger share of pork sales, now growing at an estimated 13% globally from 2013 to 2018, said Kevin Waetke, vice-president for strategic communication at the country's National Pork Board (NPB).

Read the entire article:  US to formulate separate international marketing strategy for pork

What Is Global Distance Selling?

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DHL recently launched a survey with 11,000 consumers in 20 countries to better understand consumer attitudes toward global distance selling (better known as shopping the world or cross-border commerce) – and the study shows significant differences between countries.

... the study suggests that businesses must understand their customers’ decision-making processes and align their business accordingly. Being aware of cultural and structural differences is a key success factor, particularly for cross-border commerce.

In the study, you will find out:

• Who is participating in cross-border shipping and in/with what countries are they most likely to engage?
• How are consumers finding retailers?
• How are consumers buying online? 
• How are consumers' returns handled?

Download the study (requires quick registration):  "Shop the World: DHL Charts the Journey of the Online Consumer."