The world of exporting offers many opportunities. However, you need to uphold the “seller beware” motto, especially as you begin. Too many times export sales prospects are not what they appear, particularly if they are not qualified. A new exporter often receives queries and or orders that if not analyzed appropriately can be at best a waste of time and at worst a real problem. So, what can you do about it?

Firstly, you need to have a distinct strategy for exporting (see 7 Steps For Creating An Export Strategy That Works).  Within this strategy, you should designate the countries, prospect profiles and sales volumes you are targeting. When you have this information, you are better able to qualify ad-hoc queries and or orders. I know that it seems hard to turn away a potential client, however, “seller beware” all that glitters is not gold!

Secondly, you need to have a sales structure that is organized based on your strategy (country, type of client, volume potential). You should train your sales team to get leads for the kind of clients your business has specifically targeted (i.e., your buyer personas should be well defined).

Thirdly, utilizing inbound selling strategies is one of the best ways to actively find your buyers. If you have a marketing team, then this team should be connected to your sales team and efforts coordinated to ensure the best, efficient and quickest results.

Fourthly, always check qualified leads. There are many ways to do initial checks on international entities or people. One very efficient way is to contact the United States Embassy Commercial Service’s department in the country that your prospect is in, another way is to do a detailed search online that can verify business presence. Once a preliminary search is done on your potential prospect, and you decide to move forward, then a way to protect your resources (time, payment and legal costs) is to contact a reputable credit insurance company to verify your buyer further, especially if you are planning on providing any payment terms. If this sounds like a lot of work, I promise you it is worth every bit of it.  Remember All That Glitters Is Not Gold but Diamonds Last Forever!!