How to go Global
This article is written by Clinton James, a Contributor Author at Startup Turkey.
Yousef Hamiddan of the MENA Company supposes in Startup Istanbul’s event that creating relevance in a startup is a crucial part in its growth and one of the ways to do this is by going global. Some scholars have stated that compared to Silicon Valley, most countries are about a quarter century behind and this really puts into perspective the importance and need for becoming global. However, many startups don’t do this or rather fail in doing so as a result of many factors that they overlook and disregard.
Going global requires the identification of opportunities available in the country and then translating those opportunities into a global view. There are a number of ways in which opportunities manifest themselves and it is vital that businesses identify them and use to their advantage.
Previous turmoil in a country is one of the opportunities for global growth because it allows for creating of new innovations in this state of uncertainty. Volatility which is a strong element for growth is a state where conditions constantly change allowing for continuous development in ideas. This means that there is need for startups to be as fluid as the region hence making use of this opportunity.
Logistics is also another opportunity, this is because countries where wars and natural disasters disrupt local supply chains are a chance for global growth for a business by seizing this opportunity and offering a solution to the problem at hand. In addition, many countries lack expertise in terms of human resources and specific skill set and this allows us the opportunity to do something that is relevant due to lack of it.
Startups need to identify themselves according to a specific element because the more the idea is a solution to a universal problem, the more the business can go global. Moreover, the need for research and development cannot be left aside. Research and development allows the startup to ask the right questions in order to deliver a strategic solution or rather seize a strategic opportunity for example; is the solution only country-specific or global? Or how much consumer purchase will the proposition generate in the market place?
Furthermore, critical mass, which is the number of adopters of an innovation in a social system so that the rate of adoption becomes self-sustaining and creates further growth, has to be taken into account before going global.
To actualize this and ensure success, startups need to:
1. Define global. Global perspective is different from one business to another, hence, it is important to have a clear picture of what defines global to the business.
2. Validate for a roll out. This is by validating an idea locally then translating it into global validation.
3. Develop a global strategy. How will you win in new markets?
4. Identify blue oceans. What are the areas you want to invest in and make a difference?
5. Establish the financial outlook by developing strategy for raising capital.
6. Build your exit market.
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