IT leaders on unlocking global markets

Read time: 6 mins Added date: 27/11/2024

IT leaders with real-world experience of selling services and products overseas share valuable insights for businesses aiming to expand or initiate their export activities.

Leeds’ position as a national and international tech powerhouse is now well established. The annual Leeds Digital Festival is a showcase for the city’s digital economy, which is the fastest growing digital economy outside London, worth £6.5 billion, and the people who have spearheaded its success.

And, with exporting key to Leeds and the wider city region, Lloyds convened a panel of exporting experts for its ‘Unlocking Global Markets’ workshop, held at the University of Leeds innovation hub Nexus. It was an opportunity for businesses with ambitions to grow their exports, or start exporting for the first time, to learn from business leaders and advisers who have been there, done that.

Here’s five key examples of their advice, based on real-world experience of selling services, software and products overseas.

Prioritise target markets

Panellist Zandra Moore is Co-Founder and CEO of Leeds-based analytics software specialist Panintelligence, which exports to markets including the US, Europe and South Africa, with ambitions to enter Asia. Currently 40% of its contracts are with overseas customers, which generate 50% of its annual recurring revenue.

She said: “Don’t try and take on the world straight away; instead, pick one or two markets and do them well. Our product could be used anywhere, so when we started to look at exporting, the potential market was massive and we had to decide where to prioritise first, picking the right countries for us based on market dynamics. We could see a massive influx of capital into the US technology sector, so that’s where we chose to focus our efforts first.”

Liam Walton is Managing Director of Matrix Technology Solutions, the Halifax-based firm, which makes industrial training equipment for education and training providers around the world. More than 50% of its turnover comes from exports, which is their biggest driver of growth and is expected to increase to 70% of revenues within three years.

He said: “We’re looking to enter Africa, and we’ve learnt not to go for the whole continent. Instead, we will probably focus 80% of our efforts on half a dozen countries. It’s a lesson we learn from doing business in the US, where we have focused on a small number of states. By doing our research and talking to people who have already achieved success in Africa, we’ll be able to cherry pick the best opportunities for us.”

Look to your local business community

Panellist Robin Skidmore is CEO of Journey Further, a Leeds-based digital marketing agency with offices in London, Manchester, and as of 2022, New York. Like Liam, he was keen to emphasise the value of informal support from other businesses whose success you seek to emulate.

He said: “Find someone else who has already done what you want to do in your space. You’ll find that people are generally very open to sharing their experiences, even if they are your competitors.

"I spoke to several founders of marketing agencies that had already been successful in the US, which was so valuable and caused me to completely change my approach. They told me ‘If you want this to work, you need to go there yourself’, so I moved to New York, and I don’t think we would have had the same success in the US if I had not done that.”

Innovation creates opportunity

You may need to adapt existing products, or innovate new ones, in order to succeed in your target market.

Liam explained how his company’s products are used to train the scientists, engineers and technicians of the future, so have to be tailored to the education curriculum in the countries where they sell. Creating new products in this way has had a transformative impact on the business.

He said: “About five years ago, we invested heavily in Research and Development to dramatically grow our existing product portfolio. We developed a whole range of new products, and it has had a dramatic outcome, allowing us to open up new markets including the US, which is now our biggest export market.

“And there have been others that we hadn’t anticipated, like Chile, which has consistently been one of our top three markets in recent years. All that innovation really helped us to grow; in the last three years, the company has doubled in size, both in terms of turnover and workforce.”

Choose the right partner

Having a partner on the ground in your target market can help you navigate the local culture, rules and regulations. However, it’s important to do your due diligence to identify potential partners with a proven track record of helping companies like yours do what you want to do.

Catherine Kennedy is Sales & Marketing Director at Leeds-based business software developer Intuitive Business Intelligence. She warned: “While it was initially easy for us to sign up distributors overseas, it was much more challenging to get them generating revenue.

“We had to do plenty of work visiting them in their countries to ensure they were properly engaged. They might be selling a portfolio of products or services, and you might only be a small part of that, so you’ve got to make sure they don’t forget about you. That means understanding what their business priorities are and how you can fit into that. We now fund a person who works at our US distributor who is dedicated to selling our product full time, which has worked really well.”

Access export support

Across the UK, there are a wealth of local and national agencies working to help businesses in all sectors achieve success overseas. It’s worth doing some research to find out what support is available in your area, which could include everything from trade missions to help with language translation.

Zandra continued: “I met people from the Department for Business and Trade who explained we could access a grant to fund 50% of a trade mission to Boston and I thought ‘what have we got to lose?’. When we were there, we set up some meetings, one of which was with a business that is now our largest strategic partner in the US. It was low risk, and it was where it all started for us in America.”

Liam said: “Every time we ship to a new country there are new things we have to learn, such as export documentation. Your Chamber of Commerce can help a lot with that, and I work closely with an International Trade Adviser who has identified opportunities including trade missions, exhibitions, conferences and events. We’ve also learned a lot from the Department for Business and Trade Export Academy. This year, we have joined an Innovate UK programme working with the University of Sheffield, which has opened up more funding and exposure.”

Export organisations

The Workshop went on to hear from some of the organisations delivering export support to technology businesses in Yorkshire and beyond.

Here is a rundown of some of the organisations and initiatives working to encourage exporting:

Lloyds Bank International Trade Portal – a powerful, easy to use gateway to explore domestic and international trade opportunities and detailed market information.
West Yorkshire Combined Authority – supports businesses to internationalise and access new markets. Their West Yorkshire Business Boost: Export programme provides access to workshops and masterclasses, supports businesses to develop export action plans, and grant funding.
British Chambers of Commerce – provider of import and export expertise, including international trade documentation, training, customs helpline and consultancy.
UK Export Finance (UKEF) – the UK’s export credit agency, helping exporters access working capital and manage the risk of not getting paid by providing government guarantees and insurance. UKEF has regional Export Finance Managers on hand to provide free and impartial consultations to local businesses on their export finance needs.
Department for Business and Trade – free government support to help businesses grow through exporting, including digital resources and one-to-one advice. The Department also has an international network with staff in over 100 countries and can help businesses access information, opportunities and contacts.
UK Export Academy – a free training programme, by the Department for Business and Trade, for UK businesses looking to grow their international sales.