For a lot of products working with a local sales agent or with a dedicated sales representative can be a good solution.
Especially if you have a customized product or service, or you want to work with a number of resellers in the country, an agent can be the one connecting these parties to your organization abroad.
Agents can be individuals, but I often recommend to work with established companies who already have a good network and where you are not dependent on just one person.
The United States of America has a population of 327 million. In 2022, 83% of the population lived in the cities, and this percentage is slowly rising. The average income per capita is almost 60,000 USD. This is promising to sell your goods, but you’ll have to know where to start.
The United States (the US) has 50 states, five territories, and a federal district. The country is governed by the federal government, having fifty states and a federal district. The US is one of the world’s first constitutional republic countries, with from January 2017 Mr. Donald Trump as the president.
Being one of the largest economies in the world, the US has a significant influence on the global market. With a big consumption market, diverse culture, and a developed economic system, the US is a tempting destination for many international businesses. Diversity is characteristic of the US market.
The Americans have a strong emphasis on individuality. They value individual performance and personal competence. The work environment is open and informal; they welcome ideas and different opinions. However, the casualness of the work environment may appear to be rude and foreign to people from other cultures. Time is very important in the US. It is considered as a tangible asset which needs to be spent carefully. Wasting time will create a negative impression and Americans do not like any negativity in any form.
The best preparation for doing business in any country is visiting it. This way you can experience the culture, check the shops and build your network.
With Trip.com you can compare flights and also book your hotel.
Hotellook compares different hotel sites so you always have the best rate.
Localrent connects you to national rental car providers per country.
If you don’t want to work with agents, you can always set up a local office yourself or try to sell your product from abroad. This all depends on the product or service and the ease to reach the right buyers. Be careful with the contracts that you close with agents. In many countries their status is well protected and you can’t take their recurring income easily away from them.
I always put a lot of emphasis on drafting a good distributor pitch. Even if you already have great sales materials for your end-users, this often does not make clear what the benefits are for a potential agent, distributor or retailer to work with you.
When you approach potential sales channels with your standard documentation, chances are high that they are holding of. If you make it crystal clear what are the benefits for them, like in the example presentation, you will get a much higher response rate.
Please note that it helps to put concrete data in your presentation. You may think it is sensitive, but just know the secret is in how you achieve the rotation or the low returns level, not in the data itself. So share it here, in order to get the right attention.
