Import/export : How to Take Your Business Across Borders

433 Pages·2008·3.03 MB·English

by  Nelson, Carl A.

IMPORT/EXPORT
Other Books by Carl Nelson
Nonfiction
Your Own Import-Export Business: Winning the Trade Game
Global Success: International Business Tactics of the 1990s
Managing Globally: A Complete Guide to Competing Worldwide
Protocol for Profit: A Manager’s Guide to Competing Worldwide
International Business: A Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Age of Globalism
Exporting: A Manager’s Guide to World Markets
Fiction
The Advisor (Cô-vân) This Vietnam War thriller won the Southern
California Writers Conference’s award for best fiction.
Secret Players A historical saga that won the San Diego Book Awards
Association prize for best thriller of 2003.
Madam President and the Admiral Finalist 2008 National Best Book
Award and nominated for Pulitzer.
IMPORT/EXPORT
How to Take Your Business Across Borders
Fourth Edition
Dr. Carl A. Nelson
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Copyright © 2009 by Carl A. Nelson. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States
Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by
any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the pub-
lisher.
ISBN: 978-0-07-164138-8
MHID: 0-07-164138-6
The material in this eBook also appears in the print version of this title: ISBN: 978-0-07-148255-4,
MHID: 0-07-148255-5.
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This fourth edition is dedicated to my daughter Monica who helped me
bring this book to birth way back in 1987 and watched as it took a life
of its own and remained a bestseller for more than two decades.
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Contents
List ofTables xv
List ofFigures xvii
Foreword xix
Acknowledgments xxi
Introduction xxiii
The Book’s Approach xxvi
Who Is the Book For? xxvii
What’s in the Book? xxviii
The Commonalities xxix
The Differences xxix
Doing Business xxix
What’s New About This Edition? xxx
How to Use the Book xxx
Summary xxxii
1
THE COMMONALITIES
PART
1
CHAPTER WINNING THE TRADE GAME 3
Global Opportunities 3
U.S. Deficits and Surpluses 4
What Is an Import/Export Business? 4
Where Do Importers and Exporters Trade? 8
The World Trade Organization (WTO) 8
Cyber Trading 9
vii
viii Contents
World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) 9
Trade Integrations 9
Why Get into Trade? 10
Success Stories 11
2
LAUNCHING A PROFITABLE
CHAPTER
TRANSACTION 15
Terminology 16
Homework 16
Choosing the Product or Service 16
The Personal Decision 17
The Technical Marketing Decisions 17
What Is World Class? 18
Making Contacts 19
Market Research 21
Exporter Checklist 22
Importer Checklist 24
What’s the Bottom Line? 24
Initial Quotations 25
Terms of Sale 26
The Market Channel 29
Pricing for Profit 30
3
CHAPTER PLANNING AND NEGOTIATING TO WIN 37
The Market Plan 38
Segmenting the Market 39
Macro Segmentation 39
Micro Segmentation 39
Executing the Market Plan 40
Personal Sales 40
Trade Shows (Fairs) 41
Trade Missions 42
Special Missions 42
Seminar Missions 42
Industry-Organized, Government-Approved Trade Missions 42
Contents ix
Catalog Shows and Video/Catalog Exhibitions 42
Trade Show Central 43
Advertising 43
Distributors 43
Overseas Trader’s Checklist 44
Trading Partner’s Checklist 44
Negotiations 45
Preparations 45
Agreeing to a Contract 46
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) 49
Tips and Traps of Culture 50
What Is Culture? 50
The Nine Elements of Business Culture 51
Practical Applications 54
Tips for Women 56
About Jokes 56
Intellectual Property Rights 57
Patent Registration 59
Trademark Registration 61
Communications 61
Travel 66
4
CHAPTER SELLING WITH E-COMMERCE 73
The Internet and Your Business 73
Getting Started 75
Blogging 78
You Can Create Your Own Web Site 79
Getting Out There 82
Finding Foreign Markets 84
Finding Foreign Buyers 85
Government Procurement 86
Pricing and Marketing Your Product 86
Marketing Techniques 86
Communications 87
Getting Paid 87
Keeping in Touch 88