A post by our Junior Consultant, Laura Pérez, on strategic intelligence as an essential element to export in the international market and which are the key points to develop it.
Competition is gradually increasing in this globalized world, which poses a series of challenges for all businesses. Once the decision of opening up to the international market and to start exporting and increasing the company’s activity has been made up it is essential to do it in the best way possible. Strategic intelligence is a very valuable tool which allows us to make decisions with full knowledge of several important variables such as the context or the competition.
In order to act with strategic intelligence, it is essential to define a strategic direction and carry out strategic planning, keeping always the final objective in mind in every small step we take.
International competitive intelligence
In the case of international trade, one of the variables that must be taken into account is the international competitive intelligence. This process begins by gathering relevant data from similar companies and adapting it so that we can use this information to improve our own company and reduce risks when making decisions.
In this way we can acquire useful skills and gather essential data without having to go through the “trial and error” process. It is also a good way to analyze what is missing in the market and to find something different from what the rest of the companies are offering in order to differentiate from them and gain a huge competitive advantage.
Potential markets
Secondly, we can also study the potential markets in which we will expand our business activity. We must choose the target based on various criteria such as the target audience, the type of company we are moving internationally, the market niche, etc.
It is also vital to have a precise and exhaustive knowledge of the country where exports are going to take place, and this knowledge can be categorized schematically with a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats), which will help us not only to understand what we are facing but also to predict possible setbacks.
It is also undoubtedly essential to have a broad knowledge of the product or service we want to export, and to be aware of its strengths while emphasizing them and of its weaknesses so that we can find solutions for them.
Analyses: the foundation of strategic intelligence
As we can see, one of the keys to the development of strategic intelligence is the collection of numerous analyses: analysis of the socio-cultural intelligence to be able to further develop intercultural negotiations, analysis of the competitors, analysis of the sector and the product, analysis of the risks, analysis of the possible results and setbacks…
The key to moving into action as efficiently as possible is planning ahead. The international environment is becoming increasingly complex and being prepared to deal with it can make a huge difference to your success.
Are you interested in developing international strategic and competitive intelligence? We can help you! Our experience with more than 1,000 internationalization projects backs us up – strategic intelligence is one of our strengths. Contact us to know more!
