Diversification is crucial, even more so in the current global business climate where instability is increasing. When looking at new markets to pursue, the African continent offers many opportunities through its various markets, regions, and growing economy.

FITT and Africa Business Venture have partnered to help the international trade community gain knowledge and prepare to launch or grow their businesses with confidence anywhere in the world. Together we will be launching new initiatives to help businesses diversify and learn about valuable market opportunities within the 54 African markets and beyond.

Sonia Galat, Director of Africa Business Venture and Founder of Pacific Trade Global Carolina Vasquez, discuss the key elements to consider when entering new markets, and explore valuable countries in Africa for businesses to consider as they determine their next move.

Sonia: Let’s start with diversification. What does it mean and why is it so important for businesses especially right now?

Carolina: It’s a risk reduction strategy that involves adding products, services, customers and markets to the business portfolio of the company. It’s important to remember, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. If for some reason, one single market fails – success in others elements of our business portfolio will reduce the impact on the business, especially in situations like COVID-19. It’s very important to have a diversification strategy.

Watch Sonia and Carolina’s full interview

Sonia: Can you give me a bit of insight into what the starting point is? And how should businesses prepare to enter new markets?

Carolina: Well, entering a new market requires time, research and a lot of patience for businesses to be successful. Market research is the most important task. Don’t make assumptions and take the time to do a detailed market analysis or else your product or service could fail in a new market.

Understand the cultural taste preferences, the laws and regulations, and where your product will have a competitive advantage. Consider all the factors that might affect your business in order to mediate and to reduce the risk in that new business venture.

The business owner needs to be familiar with the entire process, and the more they understand the whole process for the product to get to that new market, the better they will be aware of the challenges and how to deal with them.

You don’t have to learn all these things the hard way, and that’s why training is so important.

Sonia: What are some of the strategies businesses can use to enter new markets, and how can they select the right strategy, especially when they want to go to emerging markets such as Africa?

Carolina: Businesses can build all their product service offering using their own resources in that target market, or they can collaborate with partners that are already established in that market to form a strategic alliance. They can also work with a representation agency or distributors. And the advantage of that is that those partners are already there and know the market and the regulations that may apply to your company’s product.

Carolina: Sonia, I understand you advise clients on entering African markets. What are the most common myths that you hear from people about doing business in Africa?

Sonia: There are some persistent myths indeed when it comes to Africa. The first myth is that Africa is a country.

People tend to forget that it’s actually 54 countries, with 54 different markets and sets of regulations. So every time a company is looking to go to Africa, I always ask, where exactly do you want to go?

The other myth I want to talk about is that it’s too complicated to do business in Africa. Yes, it’s not always easy to do business in Africa, but this is the same thing as going to any emerging market. You will have some challenges that you need to learn about to mitigate the risks. So those are the main myths, which can be easily mitigated with good preparation and a willingness to learn.

Carolina: In your opinion, how can companies prepare to export specifically to Africa? How can they select the country/market to enter?

Sonia: I think the first thing that companies have to do is educate themselves. There are lots of great resources out there to do that with. On the Africa Business Venture website, we’ve got a lot of articles, industry insights, podcasts and other resources that can really give a deep understanding of and knowledge about Africa and the way to do business in Africa. Another great resource is the World Bank’s website, where they provide reports on the ease of doing business in African countries.

The second element to how to get prepared to export to Africa is to tap into your local network. Reach out to your local chamber of commerce or a foreign chamber of commerce near you, or simply reach out to your state agencies.

A lot of people don’t know that they can contact embassies abroad and simply ask them, “how can I enter that specific market?”

The final element is, more than in any other region in the world, you need to develop a local network. This is where intermediary research such as Africa Business Venture resources, but also local firms or consultancy firms can really help you with the local knowledge that can really help you in terms of implementing any project.

Carolina: In which markets in Africa are you seeing opportunities for businesses today?

Sonia: I could spend hours talking about that, but because as I said, its 54 countries, it really depends on your industry. So, if you’re in consumer goods, you will tend to go to the largest consumer markets in Africa, which are Nigeria and South Africa. But in general, for consumer goods, you’ve got a rise of the middle class, but they are underserved in terms of products that they can purchase.

If you are in renewable agribusiness and infrastructure development in general, well Africa is game on in the sense that all of the African countries do have the same issues, which are a poor network, poor infrastructure and low access to electricity. So there are plenty of opportunities for companies, and one way to tap into that potential is to go through tenders that are issued by local governments.

If you have a company that is involved in agribusiness, for instance, you will also be more than welcomed.

A trend we see in African countries is the necessity to transform agricultural products into finished goods. So there’s more and more willingness to welcome foreign investors to create local manufacturing.

East Africa including Kenya and Rwanda are hubs for FinTech and tech solutions opportunities. What a lot of people don’t know is that Rwanda would like to become the laboratory of Africa, and very welcoming to new tech solutions.

Carolina: There is also an Africa Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA). What is this area? And what does it mean for businesses?

Sonia: In terms of international business development, ACFTA is the biggest trade deal that has ever been signed. It has been signed by 54 countries and the purpose of it is to create a trade bloc similar to the European Union, but for the African continent. It was signed in 2019, but currently there are about 30 countries that have ratified the agreement. What is amazing with this trade agreement is that governments finally recognized the need to have a common set of rules regarding the transport of goods and individuals among each other.

Africa is a continent that is exporting a lot, but actually the trade within the continent is minimal. And this is because, as I mentioned, it’s 54 countries with 54 different sets of regulations and that makes it very complicated for businesses to tap into opportunities. Now with this trade agreement, they are definitively targeting those issues, integrating the markets. And that will make it even more interesting for businesses that position themselves right now to tap into those new markets.

Africa Business Venture is an organization dedicated to working with businesses entering African markets, connecting them with local expertise, advice and solutions. They allow companies to take advantage of new opportunities in Africa using their exclusive online platform and deliver a secure environment to help companies manage risks and unlock Africa’s value.

Want to know more?

Learn how to plan for market entry and explore opportunities for your business in Africa.

The post Looking to diversify? Here’s how and why you should consider entering African markets appeared first on Trade Ready.

Should you stay in touch with your former work colleagues? In Helen Graham’s experience, the answer is unequivocally yes. If it wasn’t for one of her former supervisors, she may have never ended up enjoying a career in international trade.

“I was working as a Marketing Coordinator for the Canadian federal government when a former boss became the head of the international business department for the Nova Scotia government. He didn’t have any specific trade staff in my area, and asked if I would be interested in working with his staff to make sure Cape Breton Island companies were aware of all the trade opportunities.”

“I learned a lot from my mentor and his staff, and I developed a very close working relationship with the province. From that point on, I was hooked on international business and I became the go to person for international trade in Cape Breton.”

Helen continued to work there for eight years, from 1997-2005. During this time, she went back to school and earned her MBA, with a specialization in marketing.

Guiding a new generation of trade professionals in the classroom

After leaving her position with the Nova Scotia government in Cape Breton, Helen began teaching at Nova Scotia Community College, one of FITT’s educational partners. She continues to teach there today, and is also a professor at Cape Breton University’s MBA program.

“Getting students to take FITTskills courses and see international business as a viable career is very rewarding. I have helped a number of students get international business jobs.”

In 2007, she also gained her CITP®|FIBP® designation, and views it as a crucial addition to her qualifications, affirming her experience and knowledge in international trade.

It’s a professional designation that helps me to stand out, and I was very happy to earn it. As an instructor who teaches international business courses, having the CITP®|FIBP® designation has helped me validate my education and practice.

Throughout her teaching, Helen has found that examples and stories from her own career have been a helpful way to bring ideas to life in a real-world context, in both positive and negative situations.

“There are so many stories…mostly good. There are a few that I use to illustrate to my students for the ‘never do this’ category as well. International business practices have always been of great interest to me. Having the opportunity to attend trade shows/missions in many countries, it is amazing the new things you learn.”

“What is perfectly acceptable in one country may be considered very inappropriate in others. For example, I was attending a building products trade show in Germany a number of years ago and one of the German companies did a display of painting a brick design on a naked lady. ”

To illustrate a more positive example, at the same show, one of my companies met some potential customers at a party hosted by CMHC. Three years later, the company called me and said they got an order from someone they met at the party, even though they had not even kept in contact since then.”

Given the important role that international business travel plays in the careers of many professionals, she has also orchestrated annual international trips for her students as learning experiences.

“Every trip is a learning opportunity, especially with students. They often tell me that our international trip was the highlight of their business administration diploma studies.”

“I recently took a group of students to China and our Chinese tour coordinator hosted a dinner for us. We were all looking forward to trying the Peking duck until our tour guide on the bus gave us every detail about how the duck was prepared, including, unfortunately, force feeding. This really killed our appetite.”

Working with businesses to find the information they need to make the right decisions

Since 2008, Helen has also owned and operated her own consulting company, Graham Global Management Services. Specializing in research, her goal is to help clients understand the challenges and opportunities of engaging in international markets, assess their various market and project options, and make the best decision for their needs and long-term vision.

As implied by her company motto “If it is out there, we can find it”, Helen stresses the value and importance of staying informed and finding all the information needed to come to the right conclusions.

When I was getting started in international trade, the internet was only just getting started. It may now be easier than ever to find information, but that should only place even greater importance on doing your homework and ensuring you have all the research you need.

After operating her business for almost a decade, she has worked on a wide variety of projects. These have ranged from researching new markets and developing business profiles for companies to acquiring feedback from businesses and special interest groups on community-based projects.

“I have worked on so many different and interesting projects that it is hard to pick one thing that stands out above the others. Whatever I’m working on, I know that international business means constantly researching, whether it be for a new country or a new product. There is always something new to learn.”

As she continues to learn and pass along her knowledge to students and business professionals alike, Helen plays an important role in building the capacity for trade.

The post Helen Graham, CITP|FIBP – International Trade Consultant and Professor appeared first on Trade Ready.

Market intelligence can answer several questions, including:

• In which market will our new product be most likely to succeed?
• What is the best way to enter this market?
• Do customers in this market need our product?
• Are there customer needs that are not being met by existing products or services?
• What is the market potential for this product?
• Can we establish a cost-effective overseas production plant?
• Why is our product not selling effectively?

In one example, an international medical products manufacturer had been trying without success for four years to find a partner that could help it gain entry to the U.S. market. The company commissioned an in-depth market intelligence report that developed a comprehensive picture of the U.S. medical products market.

This knowledge answered the question, “What are the critical success factors for this market?” The answer was that potential partners needed to mitigate the risks of launching new products.

Armed with this knowledge, the company demonstrated to potential partners that it was capable of mitigating the risks associated with licensing of new products in the U.S. With this new approach, the client founded a successful partnership and began generating substantial revenue.

Don’t jump to conclusions without knowing a market’s geography

Market intelligence about geographic and climatic conditions will help companies assess how easy or difficult it will be to exploit a new opportunity.

The size of a country, its distance from the company’s distribution centres and the nature of the terrain will affect distribution costs and the ease of communication.

It will also indicate the types of goods that can be traded and how goods must be packaged. For example, processed food products in countries such as Japan that have a regular rainy season, often require special packaging.

Perishable goods might not be suitable for export to a country where an inefficient distribution system might lead to delays of many weeks. Intelligence about the geography and environment of a region is also critical for decision making when a company is contemplating locating production or distribution facilities in another country, as the case study below illustrates.

It is important not to jump to conclusions when making decisions based on geographic characteristics. For example, distribution in many African countries relies on a complex system of riverboats, trains and even carts. However, this system is often very cost effective and reliable when compared to modern infrastructures.

Geographic and climatic factors can also provide important indications of the market potential for products related to weather and climate conditions, such as snowmobiles, snow blowers, ski equipment, jet skis, sunglasses, swimwear, air-conditioning units and electric fans.

One U.S. food processor built a pineapple cannery on a river delta site in Mexico. A pineapple plantation was located upstream, and the plan was to float the ripe pineapples downriver on barges. This would have been an efficient and cost-effective transportation method; however, at harvest time, the river was flowing too rapidly for barges to be used safely.

There was no other feasible method of transporting the fruit, so the company closed the plant. The equipment was sold to a Mexican competitor for a fraction of the original cost, and the competing company immediately relocated the plant.

Effective market intelligence could have helped the food processing company avoid this costly mistake.

Add demographics to your market intelligence for the full perspective

Demographic figures provide important indications about the size of a market, but how these figures are applied and interpreted will vary depending on the product or service.

For example, China, with a population of 1.3 billion, seems at first sight to be a huge potential market for many goods and has attracted the attention of many exporters. However, even after recent economic growth, income levels of most Chinese people are extremely low.

According to Chinese government figures, 10 percent of the Chinese population lives below the official poverty line of $87 a year. It is estimated that at least half the population lives on less than $2 a day. This means that, while the potential market does seem very large, many goods might be beyond the means of ordinary Chinese people to afford.

Use your information about economic characteristics

Analysis of economic characteristics can provide companies with an idea of the affluence, stability and potential for growth of a market. Less affluent markets will not be attractive options for marketing luxury goods such as consumer electronics, designer goods, jewellery and high-end automobiles.

However, some large markets such as India have very affluent sub-markets that can be targeted effectively.

How tech-savvy is your potential new market?

Market intelligence about technological indicators will help companies decide whether there is likely to be sufficient market potential for sophisticated products and services such as personal computers, electronic games, books and training programs.

For example, a company that produces online software will research the number of companies in a target market with substantial sales forces, the frequency of Internet use in industries with sales forces, the availability of computers and mobile devices and the amount of software that is currently available in the market.

Information about the level of technological education in a foreign market will also help companies decide whether to invest in the market and locate company facilities there. It is usually very expensive to support expatriate managers and employees, so the presence of a skilled indigenous workforce will be an important factor in determining whether a proposed investment will be cost effective.

What can socio-cultural characteristics tell you about how customers will respond?

Information collected about cultural values, lifestyle patterns, linguistic variation and cultural and ethnic patterns in a market is essential for helping companies decide what the market response will be to a product or service.

This information is especially important for companies considering whether to export products such as food, clothing and beverages, because the use of these products is highly dependent on cultural views. For example, in countries such as Korea, consumption of dairy products is uncommon.

Information about the range of languages spoken in a country or about the alphabets used will help a company determine whether translation will be a potential problem and whether products will require different packaging for regions in the same market. For example, Serbs and Croats speak a similar language but use two different alphabets.

Add all your market intelligence together to see the true market potential

Market potential represents the maximum amount of sales all suppliers of a particular product or service can make in a target market in a stated time with a defined level of marketing effort and under defined conditions. The market potential is determined by analyzing a variety of market factors, including socio-political aspects, market access, size and characteristics of the market and growth factors.

An idea of market potential can be determined by gathering and analyzing the following data:

• The amount of product that is consumed or purchased in the target market
• Supply figures, including domestic production figures
• Export and import figures
• Factors affecting imports
• Competing products and sales
• Market share trends
• Price trends
• Demographic trends
• Trends in purchasing power

The size and growth of product imports can be an important indicator. If import numbers are small relative to the potential market size, this might be a sign that the market is unreceptive to the product or that the market is not adequately supplied.

If imports of a product are growing more slowly than consumption in general, this would suggest that the market is not interested in the product.

If import numbers are large relative to the potential market size, this might be an indication of strong demand or of very strong competition.

Import figures rising more rapidly than domestic consumption does suggest an intense and successful marketing effort, but can also indicate the potential for weakening long-term products when the market becomes saturated.

The post Grow your business now by making the most of your market intelligence appeared first on Trade Ready.

You will need to know a great deal about the competitors, the consumers, the government, and how to connect your supply chain to this market. In other words, there is a lot of research that must be conducted before any further steps can be taken.

When it comes to market research, some sources are of much higher quality than others. Here are five of the best sources to use for your initial market research.

1. BBC News Country Profiles

This site provides in-depth reports and profiles on every country in the world. These profiles outline the political, economic, geographical, social, and historical aspects of each country. They also provide important information such as population, life expectancy, currency, and the major languages spoken in each nation.

All of this information can be imperative for a company considering a future expansion market.

BBC News provides a brief report on each country, as well as full overviews that go into greater detail. Reading these profiles can quickly catch any international trade professional up to speed on important facts about the country. This can lead to a much better understanding of the business environment, as well as the consumers in the region.

2. International Trade Center

The International Trade Center is an organization whose goal is to support the internationalization of small and medium sized businesses. The site for this organization, intracen.org, is a fantastic resource for international market research, providing a wide variety of incredible research tools.

For example, you can find trade statistics, tariff and market requirement information, foreign direct investment data, voluntary standards, market analysis studies, and lots of other market information for various countries.

Given the depth of information and the importance of this type of market data, the website will be indispensable for companies looking to expand into new international markets.

3. The CIA World Factbook

The World Factbook provides detailed reports about countries all around the world. Like the BBC News Country Profiles site, it explains each country’s government, economy, languages, military power, communications, and transnational issues.

Because this information comes from one of the most powerful intelligence agencies in the world, it is likely to be highly accurate and up to date.

Those who wish to use the World Factbook to gain information on new markets can search through an alphabetical list of countries to find the one they are looking for, then simply peruse all the useful information provided.

4. The International Trade Administration – Trade.gov

The International Trade Administration is an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, and their website designed to promote competitiveness for American global trade. Fortunately, anyone can access it and benefit from it.

This site is incredibly useful for market research because it provides a large volume of trade statistics and information, such as the top imports and exports by country. It also provides trade leads, licensing information, industry analyses, competitiveness information, and much more.

In addition to this information, the ITA allows you to conduct a search by industry. The industry specific searches are a particularly useful feature for companies working in niche or very competitive industries, with many companies already fighting over the same market share.

5. Internet World Stats

This website provides data about internet usage by country. It can be very helpful for any company that makes electronic equipment designed for internet use, such as computers, smartphones, tablets, wearable electronic devices, and others.

It is also vital for any company planning to enter a market via e-commerce to get a better sense of the size of their potential market.

In addition, this website also gives details about national populations, and provides other market statistics. There are also a number of informative articles, including pieces detailing Facebook growth by country, the top ten languages used on the internet, countries with the highest mobile internet usage, and more.

Get ready to start searching and reading

Effective research can be pivotal for understanding new markets. Failing to do effective research means the chances of successful expansion into a new market will be much lower.

In other words, it is oftentimes not enough to have a great product, an efficient supply chain, and a profitable business in order to succeed in market expansion.

You also have to understand the culture, the people, the government, the tariffs, the regulations, the competition, and other factors involved with this new market.

In order to gain this critical information, trade professionals can use the five websites already listed to get high quality market research.

If you have any others you have used for initial market research and would recommend to others, please mention them in the comments below.

The post 5 of the best sources to use for your initial market research appeared first on Trade Ready.

Researchers must consider four questions when designing an export research project:

1. What information needs to be known?
2. How accurate must the information be?
3. What is the available timetable?
4. What is the available budget?

1. What information needs to be known?

Researchers must determine which research objectives can be included in the research project, and if any must be left out because of time constraints or budgetary restraints, or because obtaining the information to meet the objectives might not be possible.

While researchers are considering the objectives, they should be thinking about how they can obtain the information to meet them and whether this information is likely to be already available in some form. This will help guide the research design.

Here are some examples of the type of information required and how it might influence a company’s research design:

• The number of units of a product sold in a potential new market over the past five years is quantitative data that is likely to be available in some form. It can be gained through secondary research; for example, a market research report or a trade report obtained online.
• The number of customers in a new target market who are dissatisfied with a service the company is considering replacing would be quantitative data that is unlikely to be available. To acquire this information, you would need to perform primary research; for example, a survey asking a sample selection of customers to see if they are satisfied or dissatisfied.
• The features of a car that are most appealing to consumers in a new international market are qualitative data that might be available in some form. To acquire it, you can start secondary research into the characteristics of the best-selling cars in the market, if available, followed or enhanced by primary research to determine customer preferences.
• The regulations for selling pharmaceutical products in a potential new market is descriptive data that is likely to be available in some form. It can be found through secondary research; for example, government regulations posted online.

2. How accurate must the information be?

It seems logical that company decision makers will want information provided by international trade research to be as accurate as possible.

However, ensuring accuracy in some cases can mean that research costs become prohibitively expensive. For some research projects, a research objective can be met without needing a high level of accuracy. For example, when a company wants to know the size of a potential new market and general data indicate that it is very large, conducting in-depth research to determine the exact market size might be an unnecessary expense.

The need for accuracy will always be linked to how the data obtained by the international trade research will be used and the financial implications of using the data. Researchers must always consider the reliability of information they can obtain when considering the research design.

3. What is the available timetable?

The two factors that influence the research project’s timetable are the deadline and how long the planned research activities will take to conduct. Researchers will only be able to make a realistic estimate of timelines for conducting research when they have experience with similar research projects. For small and medium-sized enterprises, estimating the time required for research might therefore be difficult.

In many cases, the deadline for research will be driven by external events. If a research project must be completed within only a few weeks to meet a deadline, such as signing a contract with a foreign exporter, the research will necessarily have to be completed quickly.

4. What is the available budget?

In an ideal world, a company would have an unlimited budget for conducting accurate and essential international trade research. However, many companies will have to allocate research funds from a marketing budget, which might be small. Company decision makers will have to decide which funds are available and balance the need for the research against other pressing business needs.

Decision makers must also consider the financial implications of actions that will be taken on the basis of the research. If a potential business venture will have relatively low financial returns in the short term, it will not be worthwhile for a company to spend large amounts on researching the most appropriate method for marketing a product in the new market.

The post 4 questions you need to ask when designing your next export research project appeared first on Trade Ready.

I have had a passion for learning foreign languages since childhood, and I enjoy travelling, meeting people from different places, and learning about their cultures and traditions.

At one point in my life, while I was a Market Analyst in a dynamic international business consulting company in Eastern Europe, I felt I was lacking knowledge and understanding of international business specifics outside of that region of the world.

[Tweet “I decided to fill in this gap with education, and perhaps some work experience abroad.”]

Filling gaps to reach my international trade career objectives

The FITT-accredited International Business Management program offered through Fanshawe College seemed to be a perfect fit for me.

First, its curriculum covered all the topics that I required for my career development. Second, I was tempted with the idea of receiving professional credentials from FITT along with my college diploma.

During the transition period I rushed through all stages of culture shock. In the first month everything was new and fascinating: new food, colourful and diverse culture, and great people. Every time total strangers greeted me on the street with the most sincere smile, it made me feel welcomed and inspired!

Ironically, I then started to feel overwhelmed and frustrated for the same reasons: new food, unfamiliar culture, and a lack of personal communication and close friends.

Once the school year started, I realized that there was simply no time for being homesick. Together with the very high workload, our curriculum was so catching that I dove into studying from the start and quickly adjusted to my new routine.

A global trade learning experience that exceeded my expectations

The program was very multicultural and enabled us as students to build strong cultural-competency and sensitivity while working on various group assignments. The program brought together more than 40 students from around the world: India, China, Western Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and of course Canada.  Where can you gain more knowledge on international business culture than from actual foreign professionals?

The program also supplied us with a toolbox for each stage of the international business life cycle.

This includes analysis of market fitness and choosing the proper market entry strategy, to managing marketing and legal aspects, finance and logistics.

Not only do the FITTskills textbooks cover valuable and up-to-date concepts of international business, but as students, we also had the chance to work on a number of realistic projects on topics such as international trade research, business planning, financial planning and marketing planning.

Coming from the Ukraine—a civil law country—the Legal Aspects of International Trade course was something that I required to augment my skills. It helped me become knowledgeable about regulatory specifics in common law and international business relations.

The International Trade Finance course helped me to expand my vision of international financial markets and the various tools available for cross-border transactions.

My previous role as a market analyst involved consulting with businesses that were seeking growth, either internationally or locally. They were very limited in terms of resources, and they were operating in a highly unfavourable business environment with practically no access to project or trade financing.

With my newly acquired knowledge, I know I would now be able to provide quality advice on some of the instruments that are available to such organizations abroad.

Applying my new international trade skills in the real world

After the first semester, several students in the program who demonstrated their dedication and achieved the highest GPAs were invited to apply their skills to real business situations. Being one of them, I volunteered to conduct a market feasibility study for a European medical device manufacturer seeking expansion into the North American market.

My research was structured based on two projects, including one based specifically on international trade research, and the other on international business planning. These projects were required in order to finish the FITT-accredited program and earn the FITT Diploma in International Trade.

Working on the study provided meaningful industry insights, demonstrated the real advantages of Canada over the U.S. as a viable market, and offered practical recommendations for possible market-entry and partnership opportunities.

This experience prepared me and gave me the skills to be able to gather, analyze and interpret data through primary and secondary research. It also gave me the skills to develop concrete recommendations for practically any industry.

A helping hand to guide my career in the right direction

In addition to this, the program’s teaching staff had their own incredible international business experience and perspectives, which they shared willingly. The personal and professional support we received from the professors was limitless.

With a genuine interest in international market research, there were many times when I turned for advice to my International Trade Research and International Trade Management professor and mentor, Murray Morgan.

In order to complete an international trade research project I was working on for a waste management solution company, I was expected to do primary research in the target market. I initially attempted to conduct primary research several times through various questionnaires and surveys.

However, the response rates were too low to draw conclusions. When I expressed my concerns to Professor Morgan, he pointed out that it was not so much about the instrument itself; but rather it was about asking the right questions to the right people.

Instead of addressing my survey to administrative offices in targeted organizations, I invested a great deal of time to obtain direct contact with people who were related to custodial services or facility management. The outcome was amazing! I received answers from most of the respondents within hours, and I was able to confirm my preliminary conclusions.

Professor Morgan’s natural talent for teaching and remarkable work experience motivated me to continue my career path in international business. Even after graduation, he has supported and guided me in my career development and he continues to help me build my professional network in Canada.

For this purpose, I am planning to work towards my CITP®|FIBP® designation. I believe that this will give me more credibility and exposure to the community of international trade professionals, and will truly unlock my potential.

Looking forward to my growth opportunities in international trade research

In the international market research field, I see myself providing practical business development consulting to internationally focused companies that are exploring new horizons.

Since I am now more educated on different aspects of international business management, I will be able to look at my future research projects from a totally different and broader angle.

I think this will enable me to become a more insightful specialist.

In this world where information quickly becomes obsolete, being able to transform data into intelligence and draw practical business recommendations is a valuable skill that I’m glad I possess!

The post How I unlocked my career potential in international market research appeared first on Trade Ready.