PAGE 1 Seashell Consulting Inc. | [email protected] | www.seashellconsultinggroup.com You may have been running your company for years dreamt of exporting to the far-east or emerging markets like Brazil, but quickly dismissed the idea because you are faced with one or more of the following challenges common to SMEs: UNABLE TO CHALLENGE BIG COMPANIES With many industries are dominated by large multinational organisations with marketing teams the size of some your entire organisations, may be thinking there is no way to compete. Maybe not, I think the key is to not think competition. These companies have a global presence, spend millions of dollars of marketing and public relations and have extensive distribution. There are advantages of being smaller and the presence of large corporations can create new opportunities for your small company. Though commercials inAluence buyer behaviour, consumers are becoming increasingly discerning and interested in unique, rare and hard to Aind quality brands that still offer personal relationships and Alexible service. You should focus your efforts on providing a niche products and a strong focus on personal service and quality. Creating virtual networks will also assist you in building a resource database and create opportunities to share ideas, interactions with a wider market and opportunities to tap into European Union funding that is sometimes only available to groups of producers/service providers. To survive in this climate you need to have the right networks and support. LACK CLEAR GOALS AND STRATEGIES Many SME’s fail to create a roadmap that will deAinite how their business will grow and who will buy their products and services. Further, many companies during a downturn are quick to slash cost or cut back on marketing and promotion for the company. This may be important in the shortterm but the company must look to ways of increasing revenue and implementing longterm growth and stability measures. Understanding your target audience, product positioning, distribution and pricing strategy and what makes it unique from the offering of competitors, is key to successfully growing your brand locally or in new overseas markets. BARRIERS TO INNOVATION While most founders/owners may have the creative styles to produce the goods and services their not have the Ainancial resources to hire fulltime research and development personnel and marketing strategist that can drive innovation and market growth in the company. Failure to tap into the right resources can have a negative effect on your company’s growth. Though the expertise may be in house for developing the products, a lack of understanding of the market trends and needs combined with inadequate sales skills can have an adverse effect on your business. Today, with the Internet, social media and many outsourcing possibilities, SME’s with a clear road map can tap into the resources they need to like never before. “Today Reaching A Mass Audience Is At Lower Cost Than Ever Before.” THERE IS A DEMAND FOR NICHE BRANDS AROUND THE WORLD