Export: a gamble worth taking
Two pieces of good news: despite the health crisis, almost all the managers surveyed (97%) remain confident in their company's future.
And 41% of the companies surveyed are already exporters, with international business accounting for an average of 12% of their sales. Among non-exporters, 85% have not tried to move beyond their borders.
Among exporting company managers, more than one in two (55%) consider that the health crisis has had an impact on international development, with the main consequence being the postponement of projects for the more or less long term.
Whether they are already exporters or not, company directors have contrasting perceptions of international business, which paradoxically is seen as both positive and negative. For 68%, it's a motivating, profitable and unifying strategy, while for 63%, the gamble appears complex, risky and costly.
Among the factors facilitating a company's international development, interviewees cite the willingness of the management team (96%), followed by mastery of foreign languages and codes (95%) and digital tools (94%). Close behind are technical skills and offering (quality or differentiation of product or service), and the experience of teams dedicated to export.
International expansion is a key short- and medium-term strategic focus for companies already present in this market: 60% of them want to strengthen their international presence, while 39% want to maintain their current level. The aim is to spread risk and find new sources of growth.
What are the strategies favored by exporting companies?
Europe is the geographic zone of choice for 63% of those surveyed, with a marked preference (45%) for Western Europe. Far behind come Asia (10%), the Americas (9%, including 5% for North America) and Africa (9%, including 6% for North Africa). For the SME and ETI managers questioned, the countries often perceived as Eldorados for growth are not: 40% do not wish to develop in Asia, 28% reject Africa and 13% the Americas.
Exporting companies (63%) favor the use of a distributor, reseller or agent. Setting up a sales office or subsidiary, which require more funds, is favored by only one in four. Considered more risky, the acquisition of foreign companies is only envisaged by 16% of those interviewed.
How to overcome the obstacles to internationalization?
The main difficulty for export managers is related to payment delays or risks for foreign customers (50%), followed by identifying foreign customers or business partners (49%); customs barriers (48%), an insufficiently competitive or innovative offer (43%) and logistics costs (42%) round out the top five, followed by language problems (36%) and intercultural understanding (34%).
The need for support is therefore tangible. One in two of the managers questioned believes that a company cannot expand internationally without the help of experts (48%) or local contacts in the target countries (53%). Moreover, four out of ten have already used, or could use, the services of export professionals.
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