10) Improve your English skills.
In Asian cultures, if you can’t speak English for example perfectly, they won’t even try. It is important to break out of this shyness and speak English as much as possible so that Startups can go global. This will help in all forms of global expansion from networking to forming partnerships.
9) Go to global conferences
The key is to just go to your local meetups or local events/conferences. Go to global conferences like Slush, Rise, StartupGrind, or the new Startup Festival. There you will be able to meet the right partners in order to expand your company whether they be investors, media, or other startups.
8) Solve a problem that applies globally.
This should be a no-brainer. The problem you are trying to solve might work locally but might not apply globally. This is why market research is key before ever entering a new market. The research will be key to entering any new market outside of Asia.
7) When planning business trips, set up a lot of meetings.
When Asian startups plan trips out of Asia, it is important to make that trip count. Most companies can only afford to make 1-2 trips per year so it is very important to set up as many meetings as you can. When planning a trip to the states, for example, startups need to book back to back meetings for the entire time they are there. Most likely you will have some cancelations so don’t worry if you feel you are overbooked.
6) Always be networking.
Whether you are networking on a platform like LinkedIn or social media site like Facebook. Always look to try to grow your network outside of Asia. Networking is essential for business development and breaking into the United States. This could be the single most important tool you will have.
5) Listen to your customers.
They are going to be the ones defining your product and startups need to listen to them to see the differences in customers in different markets. A client in the U.K. might think differently about your product than a client in Korea, Singapore, China, etc.
4) Look for help from your government.
There are many government programs that can help Asian startups go global. Most countries like Japan, Korea, etc have programs already in place to bring in Global investors, startups, etc to help local startups go Global.
3) Join a global incubator/accelerator programs.
Most won’t be able to get into Y-Combinator, however, there are hundreds if not thousands of accelerators outside of Asia that could really benefit your startup. They can become a great resource for creating partnerships and help with the transition into that market.
2) Form a global team.
This will not be easy as the cultures will be very different. Most Asian companies like to work a certain way which can differ from foreign workers. It is very hard for Foreign workers to attempt to a working environment of a Korean, Japanese, or Chinese company. However, in order to go global, you have to have a global team so startups need to adapt to a more global working environment and go away from the traditional Asian working environment.
1)Look at your competitors.
This is very key when trying to go global. You must look at who if any are dominating your market and see if you can do it better. There have been so many cases where a startup who has been successful locally does not do the proper research into their competition before expanding to a new market. Knowing your competitors and the advantages you have over them is crucial.
