Strategies for International Sales

Are they slow to speak up... or are you just American? In many U.S. teams, jumping in, talking fast, and speaking up assertively are seen as signs of confidence and competence. Silence, on the other hand? Often misunderstood as disengagement, hesitation, or lack of ideas. But in many cultures—Japan, Korea, Finland, Thailand—pausing before speaking is a sign of respect. You wait. You listen fully. You consider your words carefully. Interrupting or talking without preparing isn't seen as self-confidence. It’s seen as arrogance—or selfishness. If you're leading or collaborating globally, it’s worth asking: Do they really have nothing to say—or perhaps the context doesn't facilitate diverse interaction? In cross-cultural teams, listening through silence is just as important as listening to what’s said out loud. #TheCultureMap #ErinMeyer #CrossCulturalCommunication #GlobalTeams #CulturalFluency #WorkplaceCulture #CulturalIntelligence #InternationalBusiness #WorkAcrossBorders

If you're trying to crack America from a London desk, you've already lost. This week, I hosted a room full of founders at my home, and the conversation kept landing in one market in particular: America. I've watched this play out across thirty years now, from building my own business there to the ones I've backed and the boards I've sat on. Here's what I've learned about expanding into the US: 1. Local talent decides everything. International expansion lives or dies on local talent. Hire someone who calls it "home," not "the US market." If your American strategy runs on a passport and a Zoom link, it isn't a strategy. 2. The economics are brutal before you've even begun. A senior American hire will often expect two or three times what their UK equivalent earns. Notice periods over there are two weeks, not three to six months, which means the operator you bring in had better be capable of hiring their own replacement at pace because your bench will get tested faster than you think. Equity is your friend in that conversation; it's often the only thing that ties the right person to you for the long haul. 3. Partnerships can be the smartest opening move. You get the footprint, the relationships and the local instinct without betting the farm on a market you don't yet understand - and you buy yourself the time to find the right person to plant your flag properly. 4. Know what the right senior leader looks like. Someone who has built and scaled a business in the US before. Someone who already knows where the bodies are buried, who their competitors will be in twelve months, and who picks up the phone when you call. 5. Pay top dollar, or don't bother. When I brought Tom Rusin in to run the US business for HomeServe, I paid him more than I was paying myself. It felt uncomfortable at the time. It was also the single best decision I made in that market. If you're not willing to pay top dollar for the right operator, you're not truly committed to the country, and the market will smell that on you within a quarter. 6. The 15% rule. If more than 15% of your product or model has to change to suit the new geography, think again about whether you have picked the right country. If the model was 20% different in each country and one day you're running businesses in 20 countries, that is a recipe for complexity and disaster. The businesses I've invested in that travel well - Passenger and Gozney - are the ones that stay recognisably themselves wherever they land. Gozney sells the same pizza oven in America as in the UK. The only meaningful difference is that the American version is two inches bigger. Because of course it is. You don't crack America from a London desk. You crack it by hiring someone who already has. If you’re an entrepreneur or CEO and would like to attend a Growth Workshop, click the link here: https://lnkd.in/efTm7Jet

“It’s not enough to just win,” an old boss of mine used to explain. “The other side has to lose, badly.” Nothing gave him more satisfaction than eating his rivals’ lunch - and his competitive nature was contagious. When I started my first business I adopted his approach. But I soon also learned that I had to ally that competitive spirit with a more nuanced approach if I was to retain clients rather than just churn through them. Unlike winning deals, retention isn't just about having the best product — it's about creating value and a level of reliability that rivals can't match. 1. Retain on value, not price: Competitors will use price to try and attract your customers. It’s tempting to drop your yield accordingly, but that’s a race to the bottom. Instead take time to make sure your client can see how much they get for every pound or dollar they invest. Adding extra value will always be more profitable than reducing your fee. 2. Add features before you’re asked to: Write a customer engagement strategy that involves adding useful new services or features for your existing customers at least once or twice a year. Use these to upsell, build loyalty and increase their pain of moving suppliers. 3. Build trust through relentless delivery: Unreliability is one of the top reasons clients will look elsewhere. Meet key clients on a regular basis to understand how their needs are evolving and pivot your offering accordingly. And always keep your promises. 4. Outmanoeuvre your competitors: Never underestimate how determined your competitors will be to knock you off your perch. Devote adequate time to learning from their approach so you know the threat you face. Match your instinct to win new business with an equal determination to retain customers. Crack that and not only will you eat your competitors’ lunch today but you’ll have it every day.

I am tired of hearing about sales and marketing alignment. It's an outdated narrative. Here's why: Consider this: Buyers are typically 57% to 80% of the way through their buying process (depending on which study you consult) before they even raise their hands to engage with sales. This statistic alone underscores a critical reality: The Silent Killer in Sales: Overestimating Salesperson Influence Many executive teams believe their sales heroes can close any deal, but here's the reality: Salespeople are closers, not magicians. 🪄 The concept of "alignment" implies separate entities that need to be brought together. In today's complex buying environment, this siloed approach is obsolete. Modern businesses require a seamlessly integrated revenue generation system where sales and marketing function as one cohesive unit. Strong marketing, clear value propositions, and a frictionless buying journey are crucial for success. Think of it like football - Sales is your star running back, but they need a solid offensive line (Marketing) to create opportunities long before the final play. Here's the shift we need: From siloed functions to a collaborative team environment: • Break down walls between Sales & Marketing • Work together on buyer personas, messaging, and content throughout the entire buying journey • Invest in both sides: Equip teams with necessary tools and shared metrics From "closing the deal" to "creating a winning customer experience": 👉🏽 Optimize the entire customer journey: Every touchpoint matters, especially early-stage interactions ️ 👉🏽 Focus on providing value from initial marketing outreach through to ongoing support The benefits of this integrated approach: 👉🏽 Shorter sales cycles: Well-nurtured leads convert faster 👉🏽Higher customer lifetime value: A seamless experience fosters loyalty 👉🏽 Boosted employee morale: When everyone's on the same team, magic happens Let's move beyond "alignment" and embrace true integration. Sales and Marketing are different positions on the same field, working in unison to drive revenue and achieve championship-level results in today's buyer-driven landscape. #sales #b2b #marketing #culture #customerexperience #leadership

Entering a market isn’t guesswork. It’s math. And the equation is simpler than you think. When a new player shows up, incumbents move fast: → Drop prices until rivals run out of cash → Lock up distributors and suppliers → Flood the market with brand spend → Sign long contracts with penalties → Lobby regulators to raise barriers That’s 5 of 10 ways big companies protect their turf. For new entrants, fighting head-to-head rarely works. The smarter play is partnership. Instead of burning years and millions, you can borrow scale, credibility, and access. Here are 5 proven ways to do it: Co-distribution ⤷ Partner with a non-competitor who already sells to your target customers ⤷ You get reach without building your own network. Joint innovation ⤷ Collaborate with an incumbent to launch a new product ⤷ You share costs and inherit their credibility White-label supply ⤷ Sell your product under an incumbent’s brand ⤷ You scale quietly, while learning how the market really works Adjacent alliances ⤷ Enter through a related industry ⤷ Bypass the strongest defences Anchor partnership ⤷ Land one marquee partner ⤷ Their endorsement signals trust and opens doors The question is: how do you know if you have a real chance? Use the Entry Equation. Success Score = (Distribution × Incentive × Differentiation) ÷ (Switching + Regulatory + Capital) Score each factor 1–5 (5=Excellent): • Distribution Access • Incumbent Incentive • Differentiation • Switching Costs • Regulatory Barriers • Capital Intensity Interpretation: 0–5 = Low viability 6–10 = Conditional entry 11–15 = Strong entry Need an example? An EV battery startup partners with a Tier-1 auto supplier. Here's the assessment: • Distribution = 4 • Incentive = 5 • Differentiation = 5 • Switching = 3 • Regulatory = 4 • Capital = 3 Score = (4×5×5) ÷ (3+4+3) = 10 Interpretation → Conditional entry The path forward: reduce regulatory drag or switching pain This is how experienced CEOs think about market entry. Not just, “Can we compete?” But, “Who can we partner with to get through the defences?” Remember: Go-to-market partnerships aren’t a growth lever for new entrants. They’re the only way in. --------------------------- Was this helpful? Get cheatsheets like this each Wednesday. Subscribe to my free newsletter: https://philhsc.com ♻️ Repost this to help a founder or CEO assessing a new market ➕ Follow me, Phil Hayes-St Clair for more like this

All of our clients have renewed their contracts this year. (Apart from 1 who took it in-house and asked us to train them). It's because our core philosophy is: "Clients come first" More tactically this means: 1. Make promises, keep promises. This is a simple mantra we live by. We make tons of micro promises & then meet them as we said we would. → 24-hour turnaround times. → Delivering content when it’s expected. → Meeting UK-based clients every 6 weeks. → 24/7 WhatsApp contact - we reply at 1am. → Getting clients booked on international stages. It sounds simple but so many people don’t meet the expectations they set. So when you do, you’re set apart from the rest. 2. Care about the details no one else will. We obsess about client delivery. Our clients are in the top 0.1% of their respective industry - so we have to be too. → Build a highly customised strategy. → Reading books about their industry. → Building a custom visual for each post. → Delving deep into their target buyer persona. → Implementing A/B/C/D testing & experiments. → Implementing a rigorous quality assurance process. The best in the world always sweat the small stuff. 3. Iterate our Offering We're always making sure our work is delivering for our clients. → We do more of what's working. → Actively seek feedback from clients to improve. → Adjust our style of working to fit their schedules. → Over-delivering and giving away free additional services. → Monitor KPIs and tweak our strategies to maximise impact. → Testing new ideas to get better results & trying new things. More happy clients. More results. More referrals. More renewals. Everyone talks about how to win new clients. But great businesses focus on getting them results, keeping them happy & retaining them as clients. That's our focus.

“A brilliant VP offended a Japanese client without realizing it.” The meeting room in Tokyo was a masterpiece of minimalism—soft tatami mats, the faint scent of green tea, walls so silent you could hear the gentle hum of the air conditioner. The Vice President, sharp suit, confident smile, walked in ready to impress. His presentation was flawless, numbers airtight, strategy compelling. But then came the smallest of gestures—the moment that shifted everything. He pulled out his business card… and handed it to the Japanese client with one hand. The client froze. His lips curved into a polite smile, but his eyes flickered. He accepted the card quickly, almost stiffly. A silence, subtle but heavy, filled the room. The VP thought nothing of it. But what he didn’t know was this: in Japanese culture, a business card isn’t just paper. It’s an extension of the person. Offering it casually, with one hand, is seen as careless—even disrespectful. By the end of the meeting, the energy had shifted. The strategy was strong, but the connection was fractured. Later, over coffee, the VP turned to me and said quietly: “I don’t get it. The meeting started well… why did it feel like I lost them halfway?” That was his vulnerability—brilliance in business, but blind spots in culture. So, I stepped in. I trained him and his leadership team on cross-cultural etiquette—the invisible codes that make or break global deals. • In Japan: exchange business cards with both hands, take a moment to read the card, and treat it with respect. • In the Middle East: never use your left hand for greetings. • In Europe: being two minutes late might be forgiven in Paris, but never in Zurich. These aren’t trivial details. They are currencies of respect. The next time he met the client, he bowed slightly, held the business card with both hands, and said: “It’s an honor to work with you.” The client’s smile was different this time—warm, genuine, approving. The deal, once slipping away, was back on track. 🌟 Lesson: In a global world, etiquette is not optional—it’s currency. You can have the best strategy, the sharpest numbers, the brightest slides—but if you don’t understand the human and cultural nuances, you’ll lose the room before you know it. Great leaders don’t just speak the language of business. They speak the language of respect. #CrossCulturalCommunication #ExecutivePresence #SoftSkills #GlobalLeadership #Fortune500 #CulturalIntelligence #Boardroom #BusinessEtiquette #LeadershipDevelopment #Respect

In countries where trust takes longer to build (as is the case of most Asian markets), the most effective approach I’ve found is to bring real business to the table without expecting anything in return. If someone seems valuable, introduce them to a client, a partner, or an investor. Don’t ask for a favor or a cut. Just deliver. If they choose to reciprocate, that’s a green flag. If they don’t, that’s fine too because the point isn’t immediate return. It’s accelerating trust. All other forms of relationship-building, e.g., dinners, drinks, small talk, are way less valuable in comparison to this. Nothing builds goodwill like showing you can make people money while operating with integrity.

The hardest part of working across cultures isn't the big differences. It's the tiny ones nobody warns you about. Take the humble escalator. In Hong Kong, you stand on the right and walk on the left. In Singapore, you stand on the left and walk on the right. Same machine, opposite rules, and not a single sign telling you whose logic you're standing in. Get it wrong and you feel it instantly. A tut, a sigh, or impatient words from an irate traveler trapped by your boorish lack of local escalator etiquette. You haven't broken any law. You've just quietly announced that you're not from here, the prototypical clueless foreigner. The corporate onboarding decks prepare you for all the headline stuff. Hierarchy, business cards, whether to bring a gift. They never mention the escalator. Or, how long a silence is allowed to last before it turns awkward. Or which way the room expects you to lean, or who to address first. Which seat at the table is yours to claim, vs the Big Boss'. Those small things are the ones that actually matter. Not only are the stakes deceptively high, they quietly reveal whether you're paying attention. If you can't manage these little potholes, can you handle the bigger issues? Many years and a few cities later, here's what I've (finally) learned. Cross-cultural fluency isn't memorizing the big rules. It's the humility to assume your "obviously correct" is just a local habit, and the curiosity to watch others before you walk or talk. The escalator taught me more than most orientation onboarding or cultural sensitivity decks ever did. So, which side are you on? #culture #leadership #internationalbusiness