Want to Export But Have Cold Feet?

Large companies often trade globally via their own corporate presence overseas or the reliance on an international partner network. Small and medium-sized businesses, on the other hand, sometimes do not have the know-how or resources to develop their international business. What is the solution for these companies? The core value Export Management Companies (EMC) provide is to allow companies to focus on manufacturing and the US market, while their partner EMC develops their international business for them.

EMCs are approached for a variety of reasons. “Typically, companies get a foreign contact wanting to do business. Usually, the owner or sales manager, with no experience doing international business, will handle overseas markets,” Chris Harris of CH Trade (based in North Dakota with 15 employees) said. They may not know all the rules and regulations that go into conducting international business. Aside from that, “It is more cost-effective for a small- to medium-sized company who cannot afford to have an in-house international department,” Betsy Olim of Olim International, a “one-woman” shop based in Tennessee, said. “You would have to go down a pretty rocky road of learning and mistakes,” Harris said. “Whereas someone who works with us is instantly getting a foot up because we have years of experience of managing markets around the world. We have navigated differences in culture, time zones, politics, legal structure, language, and shipping – there is a lot of stuff that you must be prepared for when you are doing international business.” 

What do EMCs do on a given day? It varies. Olim describes her typical day as acting like the “International Department” for her clients. Whether it is answering sales leads, assisting with pricing requests, or putting out fires, she does all things international for her clients. According to Edward Dorian, Jr. of Dorian Drake international, Inc., their “25 sales managers and their group managers spend their time negotiating and closing sales, looking for new customers, and supporting and servicing the accounts they manage.” 

But it is not simply the knowledge and expertise of international markets that they offer, but a breadth of services tailored to every one of their clients. Dorian Drake provides a wide array of international services, including field sales, customer service, marketing, traffic and logistics, credit and collection, and strategic planning. One of Olim’s many services is analyzing the efficiency of a company’s export program to find sources of inefficiency to improve the overall logistical structure of the client. Harris uses his ViPER methodology for creating an export plan: Vision, Planning, Execution, and Review.

Though Export Management Companies work with a mix of clients, they do often have industry specialties. Dorian Drake deploys stand-alone sales and customer service teams in five distinct markets: automotive aftermarket, foodservice equipment and supplies, hardware and lawn & garden, industrial and environmental, and medical. They have represented Hamilton Beach commercial products, PEAK Anti-Freeze, Crary Bearcat wood chippers, to name just a few. Olim’s industry specialties are Green Building and Waste-to-Energy, biomass, renewable technologies, and eco-industrial park projects. Chris Harris, headquartered in Fargo, specializes in agricultural machinery. 

Due to decades of experience, these EMCs have a variety of tips for exporters on best practices. A simple tip Harris would advise any company is to be ready to say “No.” Don’t try to and hope that a bad plan will work itself out - it’s not going to happen. I think it is important to visit your region regularly, too. I think that face-to-face contact is critical. Being on the premises or in the customer’s premises, working with the customers directly, is invaluable. With that, you have one hundred percent of their bandwidth,” said Harris. Edward Dorian, Jr. agrees, “E-marketing, including social media marketing, has become an important part of our business, supported by a database we have developed over the last 75 years, but we still rely heavily on face-to-face visits to develop relationships and drive sales. Personal relationships remain our biggest competitive advantage.” Olim also recommends due diligence, “What is important is careful research on the front end, particularly with regard to qualifying potential dealers, distributors, and buyers. Unfortunately, there are many fraudulent players on the world stage,” Olim said. For more best practices and tips, Betsy Olim has created a podcast curating often humorous to enlightening exporting experiences into a series entitled, “Export Stories.” 

Through the varied services from training to market research spanning diverse industries, Export Management Companies aid many American companies in the global marketplace. 

Interested in working with an EMC? The U.S. Commercial Service North Dakota and the USCS Rural Export Center have been developing and vetting a database of Export Management Companies from around the United States.

Explore the Export Management Company (EMC) Directory. 

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