Workshops offer basics of global trade

With $13.4 billion in exports in 2007, Missouri is among the top third of exporting states nationwide.

Several area organizations are banding together to make sure southwest Missouri businesses are armed to capture a slice of the global marketplace.

Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, Southwest Area Manufacturers Association, Greater Ozarks International Trade Association and Missouri State University's Small Business & Technology Development Center are hosting "The Basics of International Trade," a four-seminar series offering tips for companies considering taking their products and services into the global marketplace.

"We're looking for ways to assist small businesses to help them connect to resources and try to be in a position to succeed in this economic downturn," said Brad Bodenhausen, executive vice president for the Springfield chamber. "We look at now as the best time to explore new markets, to be prepared to move forward and take advantage of opportunities as the economy improves."

Bodenhausen also noted that the chamber's year-old International Business Council made increased education and training one of its top priorities, and this seminar series works toward that goal.

The first seminar, held Feb. 5, focused on how companies can decide whether they are ready to export.

Among the speakers was Fred Cox, vice president of sales and marketing for Webb City-based Cardinal/Detecto Scale Co., which was named the 2008 Missouri Exporter of the Year. Cardinal sells truck, medical and food scales throughout the U.S. and to more than 100 countries.

Mark Wine, international business manager for the Missouri Department of Economic Development, said during the seminar that any type or size of business can be a successful exporter - he noted that 97 percent of all U.S. exporters meet the U.S. Small Business Administration's definition of a small- or medium-size business. Medium businesses, according to the SBA, employ 51 to 500 employees, while small businesses are those with fewer than 50 employees. Among exporters, however, Wine noted that 83 percent have 20 or fewer employees.

Exporting in Missouri is big business in a variety of industries; the state's transportation equipment, chemical and machinery industries all racked up more than $1 billion in exports in 2007 - the last year for which data is available from the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center. According to the data, Missouri's biggest exporting partners were Canada, Mexico, South Korea and China.

Knowing the market

Wine said companies that want to sell their wares beyond the United States need to have a keen awareness of their product, know their industry inside and out, and have a clear view of what they have to offer global customers.

Wine noted that people interested in exporting have contacted his office via the Internet, but they don't have a good answer to what product or service they want to provide. Instead, they will ask the DED what they should sell, Wine said, but that's not an approach he recommends.

"You have to have some sort of idea of what you should do. No one is going to lay it in your lap," Wine told the seminar audience of nearly 40. Most of the attendees were students enrolled in Missouri State University's Master of Business Administration program.

It's also important to research the countries targeted for business expansion, according to seminar speaker Kristi Wiggins, international trade specialist with the U.S. Department of Commerce in St. Louis.

"There are multiple basic questions you need to answer before getting started - is it easy to do business there? Do they speak the language?" Wiggins said during the seminar. "Are my types of products accepted there? Some companies, for example, want to resell used equipment or used auto parts, but some markets don't allow used products."

She pointed to several Web sites with free information about different cultures, governments and economies, including the Central Intelligence Agency's World Factbook and Export.gov, the federal government's portal for exporting information.

Using the Internet for business growth is nothing new for Cardinal's Cox, who said the evolution of the Internet and communication technology in general allowed his company to close a Miami, Fla., satellite office in the mid-1990s that it had opened to deal with its Latin American exports.

"Back in the 1970s and 1980s, business was either done by fax, which wasn't great, or the owners would come to Miami, do a deal, give us cash and we'd export the product," Cox said during his presentation. "It was pretty clear with the Internet that there was no necessity to spend $1 million a year to keep an office open in Miami. So we closed down the Miami office and brought the international operations back to Webb City, where they are today."

Adaptability

Cox said one of the keys to his company's continued international business has been willingness to adapt to the local customers; training manuals are translated into the local language, measuring units are converted from pounds to kilograms, and prices are listed in the local currency.

DED's Wine said the ability to do some of the work for the international customer makes all the difference.

"I've had companies say, 'Well, we quote in pounds, and they can convert it if they want,'" Wine said. "They're probably not going to have much success if they're not willing to go that extra step. It doesn't cost much to do that. Willingness to adapt the style and the approach to particular markets is crucial."

That ability and desire to "go the extra step" is indicative of what Wine reiterated is the most important part of exporting: commitment.

"When you make a decision to export, it has to be determined that it will be an integral part of your business and not something you'll focus on this month and forget about next month," he said.

Seminar organizers are hopeful that more businesses will tap into the knowledge offered by the series.

SAMA Executive Director Rita Needham said via e-mail that companies should look seriously at whether international business is a possibility; she notes that the National Association of Manufacturers says exporters create jobs 20 percent faster than non-exporting companies and pay their workers 15 percent more on average. Those exporters are also 10 percent less likely to close their doors.

"In today's economic climate, it is imperative that all companies investigate every option to maximize their potential, including becoming involved in the global market through exporting their products," Needham said.

"In a highly competitive global environment, companies need to capture every potential advantage available to them," she added.[[In-content Ad]]