World Open for Business: $2.34 Trillion

Companies that export are 17% more profitable than those that do not. No company is too small to go global; 30% of all U.S. exporters had fewer than 19 employees; many fewer than 5 employees. You can learn about the Global Entrepreneurship Ecosystem. For example, Shane Cooper is president of DeFeet International, a maker of socks for cyclists and has distributors in 35 countries. He and his wife were bike racers back in the early 1990s. His father was a sock knitting machine technician and sold the machine’s parts. One day, Cooper the younger decided to make socks to pay for his bike racing hobby & it just kind of happened from there.  American-made means quality, value and jobs. International trade can be profitable. For example, U.S. exported $29.2 million to Albania from Jan to May 2019 and imported $26.6 million. Keep in mind that in 2019 Albania has a population of about 2.8 million and U.S. has population of about 329.2 million.

Worldwide Business to Consumer (99): B2C e-commerce will double to $2.2 trillion with the fastest growth in the Asia-Pacific. If you have a web presence, you have a global marketing and order-taking platform. For a few more dollars, you can process credit card payments for buyers in Australia or translate key pages into Spanish and other languages to further your reach. U.S. government agencies can find buyers for you and arrange introductions in more than 100 countries using customized business matchmaking. This is one of the most frequently asked questions we receive at the U.S. network of U.S. Commercial Service offices. You probably do not need an export license; 95% of exports do not.

Small Companies Can Export (99): But fear of the unknown must be overcome. Selling to a buyer in Canada may seem easier for many reasons. But selling to buyers in Croatia or Myanmar is perceived to be more risky even though many U.S. companies are doing good business around the world today. The “secret sauce” boils down to careful planning, relying on assistance provided by government export promotion agencies, good basic business fundamentals including excellent customer service, and a willingness if needed to get on a plane to visit a prospective customer. The opportunity for selling into a single region, such as Central America, and taking advantage of free trade agreements is substantial. A Basic Guide to Exporting can help expand your thinking & your sales. Think of this help as your Global Entrepreneurship Ecosystem; a social network of key contacts that can help you grow your international sales. 

Cultural Knowledge & Business Etiquette (99): helpful, but you can pick these things up as you go. The English language will take you a very long way, and help is readily available for situations in which interpreters and translators are necessary. We Americans regularly lampoon ourselves for being “ugly.” A level of introspection and culturally specific knowledge can help prevent potentially deal breaking faux pas, but a friendly disposition and willingness to learn can make up for a multitude of unintended mistakes.

Note 1 (99): World Is Open for Business—Your Business Today, it’s easier than ever for a company like yours, regardless of size, to sell goods and services across the globe. Small and medium-sized companies in the United States are exporting more than ever before. In 2013, more than 300,000 small and medium-sized U.S. companies exported to at least one international market—nearly 28 percent more than in 2005, the year in which the 10th Edition of this book was first published. In 2013, the value of goods and services exports was an impressive $2.28 trillion, nearly a 25 percent increase since 2010. And 2014 topped the previous year, with exports valued at $2.34 trillion.

Note 2 (99): U.S. Commercial Service "A Basic Guide to Exporting." When this edition of A Basic Guide to Exporting went to press, the United States was in an advanced stage of negotiating trade agreements with the European Union and countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including the large market of Japan. Together, these markets represent 50% of total global GDP and 30% of global trade. These agreements, if ratified, will join agreements already in place, including the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Central America and Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR). More than reducing the duties on imported goods by member countries and thus making these products cheaper for consumers, the agreements also generate additional business opportunities by strengthening intellectual property protections, simplifying regulations, opening up the service sectors and government contracting procedures, and generally treating foreign companies the same as domestic companies. For more information on free trade agreements see our publication Free Trade Agreements: 20 Ways to Grow Your Business (International Trade Administration, 2013).

Note 3 (99): U.S. Commercial Service ? A Basic Guide to Exporting: Channels can include but is not limited to: ? Direct to end-user ? Distributors in country ? Supplier to the U.S. government in a foreign country ? Your e-commerce website ? A third-party e-commerce platform where you handle fulfillment ? A third-party e-commerce where they handle fulfillment ? Supplier to a large U.S. company with international sales ? Franchise your business.

(99) World Is Open for Business: https://www.export.gov/article?id=Finding-Buyers AND https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/index.html