Selling & Marketing 'uk plc'
The Approach
Lower value of sterling means increasing export sales opportunities for 'UK plc' long term success
Many smaller technology and engineering businesses do not have the ability to leverage overseas opportunities.
key manufacturing sectors, such as:
- energy efficiency
- specialist engineering
- electronics/comms specialisation
- consultancies (processes, management, etc)
- medical industries, health
- aerospace, specialist materials (QinetiQ et al)
- eco, environmental etc
- biotech, nanotechnologies, specialist software, etc
Britain is faced with few options over the next few years to counter the UK’s debt, balance of payments and low growth issues. Unless we create the ability to sell significantly more exports in key growth areas how will the UK succeed within an increasingly completive global environment? China now has significantly more R&D than the UK. The writing is on the wall. The UK needs to improve it's exports now & invest in industries that provide a competitive edge.
By using the UK's existing presence in target export countries we can provide direct sales leads to key businesses within the UK.
UK Based Commercial Information
Local Business Link (professional) research teams selects relevant companies with likely technologies and invite all companies to highlight key technologies with the offer of direct export sales help. Research teams provide a one page document outlining opportunity
- key solution to ‘the problem’
- how it works
- why better than any other solution
- costed benefits
The Sales & Marketing Process for Exports
Targeted Export Services - to help smaller businesses in key industries
Professional sales/marketing teams in each targeted overseas embassy
- Develop key export opportunities
- Provide direct export sales and marketing help
- Create effective contracts
- Provide IP protection and patents
- Link export businesses with UK based investor companies
- Provide export product delivery assistance
- Provide help with export payment and funding assistance (credit guarantees)
This whole process has a unique and very powerful by-product – it builds a comprehensive understanding of how to approach and sell to key markets across the world for key emerging UK technologies. Significantly, this does not exist at present. In future years this will make a very significant contribution to Britain’s export efforts and help direct strategies and investment in both education and infrastructure.
marketing people in each country examine and match broad possibilities for each sector. Prioritise against ‘hard nosed’ key factors for success:-
- cost evaluation vs competition
- competitive position - key factors
- market size
- likely success due to local factors
- direct discussions with key local targets at earliest possible stage
Reviewed against specific UK companies available to offer a match to key factors for success
more in depth localised sales materials to enable sensible discussions by sales professionals
- direct marketing to targets for leads
- initial sales discussions with senior people in targets
- letter of intent from targets
- introduction to UK people (if required)
- contracts drawn up (expert assistance required here)
- export delivery help, credit guarantee scheme for sales, (maybe additional funding to enable contracts to be met).
Percentage taken as sales commission and used to provide fund sales provision. ongoing local sales contact and project management to ensure long term success review and ranking of successes across country teams and replication where possible, with cross selling strategies.
The new sales and marketing team must work outside the normal constraints, niceties, politics and cosy environment of any civil service influences or processes. This is the key challenge, it will make or break this endeavor.
