Planning To Tap Overseas Market? Here Are Few Tip For You Here is a list of essential points to keep in mind while foraying into overseas market.
By Samiksha Jain •
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It was a trip that took Nakul, Anmol and Aneesh from Japan to America, and finally Australia, which made them realize that how travelers and commuters could benefit from a product such as Instago.
"Subsequently, when my co-founder, Anmol and I travelled throughout London, Dublin and Hong Kong, we found ourselves constantly shuffling between apps. It was then we realize that we need to build Instago for the international market as well. Our third co-founder, Aneesh validated the need for it in the US as he spent a significant time there," shares Nakul Khanna, Co-founder, Instago.
As the trio forayed into Indian market in April this year, they kept their focus towards entering into overseas market at a much rapid speed.
To test their strategy, they compared their app with cab companies and public transportation functioning in the United States.
Often startups find it difficult to take their venture to global arena. Thereby, here is a list of essential points to keep in mind while foraying into overseas market.
Do people want it or need it?
"We felt our product was more of a need, and not a want," said Khanna. It is important to be unbiased and take this call as entrepreneurs can fall in love with their ideas. Everyone wants to save money, even if it's a few dollars hence it made sense to try and grab a slice of the overseas market because the product is needed.
Are you comparing Apples and Oranges?
To decide to launch in another market, you need to make a fair comparison. "What works in New Delhi will not work in New York and vice versa. So it is important to study the habits, trends and behaviors of your customers and that of the industry you are targeting because they can be very different once you cross borders," said Khanna.
Next Best Alternative
It is important to figure out if not for your product, what do people use in place of it? Does it fulfill their requirements? Where does it fall short of user expectations? Once you do this comprehensive analysis of your international competition, you will be in a better position to differentiate.
"If the value proposition is not strong enough, people are not likely to switch. However, if you can offer a radical solution or an overhaul and not just an incremental improvement you may be surprised to find users flocking to your platform. While that competitive advantage may not be sustainable for a long time, it can allow for customer loyalty to develop," said Khanna.
Markets vary significantly, especially when you cross oceans to get there. For businesses that are lucky to expand to other markets, especially product based businesses it can be a worthwhile experiment to try out which can predict future success or failure without spending too much time, money and developmental effort.
