Every business is looking to grow and expand its market share at all times. However, “market expansion” and “business growth” are two completely different terms, even though they are used interchangeably during conversations.
Expansion is more strategic than growth; expansion refers to entering new markets, launching products in different regions, or scaling operations geographically. Growth means increasing the overall fundamentals of the business both in new and existing markets.
In this blog, we are going to look at some key challenges of global operations to finally differentiate market expansion with business growth, along with solutions on how to tackle them.
Overcoming Market Barriers With Proxies
Whenever a business starts to expand internationally, they need to do good research on the local customer base. In some regions, the data might not be available due to restrictions. This calls for a need for unrestricted access for global businesses to US-based platforms, market data, and digital services. That’s where US IP proxies can help.
Unlike other proxy locations, US proxies can provide the same local access as if you were browsing from itself. You can access region-specific data, competitor analysis, advertising tools, and financial platforms that often require a US-based IP.
But there might be a question of using VPNs over US proxies. Even though VPNs do a similar job of masking your IP address, they may not be as convenient as US proxies and when it comes to the ease of use proxies excel in that domain, plus they ensure a high level of security. So, they are much better in this case since you are browsing using a US IP address and are secure and compliant with local regulations. The US is a highly competitive and influential market; browsing securely and conducting research without any breaches or leaks is the top priority for any global company.
Adapting To Diverse Consumer Behaviors
A global business needs to understand the consumer behavior of the international country before moving ahead with launching its operations. Different countries have different preferences, purchasing habits, and expectations; all of which the company has to analyze with accurate insights. It’s difficult financially for companies when they expand internationally, as a report from Harvard showed that companies selling abroad have a Return on Asset value of negative 1 for the first five years after their move.
To overcome this, companies need to prioritize building local connections and collecting as much local data as possible. They can use region-specific analytical tools or as mentioned before, take the help of VPNs or US proxies. With this, they can conduct A/B testing or test prototypes with the US consumers to understand what the international consumer likes best.
Scalability Challenges
Since a business expands internationally to scale itself, it comes with a lot more challenges than expected. This is an area where a huge amount of capital and resources gets put into place since expanding internationally requires a strong physical and digital infrastructure. A business has to ensure consistent service to all customers and as they expand, there are chances that their quality can decline.
Cloud-based infrastructure or cloud migration might be the best option to overcome any scalability challenge. This is because you can scale without any problem by adding/removing resources based on the overall demand. When you expand, you are obviously going to be overrun with more demand; cloud solutions provide flexibility and make sure you are consistent 24/7, whether it’s increasing your server capacity or hosting local content for different regions.
Cultural Misalignment
One issue that is often overlooked when expanding globally is cultural misalignment. It’s not just the customers that are being looked into when launching a product; the employees, brand perception, and overall work environment must be based on local customs, preferences, and communication styles.
To avoid such risks, businesses can invest in cultural training and change their overall environment to match the local customs. This can be in the form of designing workspaces and following local decorum, or partnering with local talent to ensure decisions are made with the local culture in mind.
Final Thoughts
As we can see, in the end, it’s all about how a business approaches market expansion and prepares itself beforehand. But with the rise of technology, it’s easier than before to start your operations in a new country; you just need to find the right one and learn how to use it effectively. Of course, this is not enough, and there is more to do to accomplish success, but some key steps we mentioned above, are meant to ensure that companies have a great starting point, and the rest is up to the creativity and flexibility of business people and their local and global partners.
