5 Tips for a Successful US Market Entry

With the US owning over 55% (or $71.5B) of the $130B data, insights, and analytics industry, it’s no wonder that many international firms look at the US market as the true measure of global success.  However, an undercapitalized company can face downfall due to a poorly planned or under-resourced entry into this market.

With over 25 years of business experience in the US as a founder of firms that successfully expanded into new geographic markets and having spent the last eight years largely advising internationalization projects, specifically with firms entering the US for the first time, I have witnessed numerous triumphs and failures of foreign companies in their entry efforts. As a result, I have a unique understanding of the keys to a successful US market entry, which can also be extrapolated to internationalization in other countries.

I CAN'T STRESS ENOUGH THE IMPORTANCE OF ENTERING A MARKET LIKE THE US WITH A REALISTIC UNDERSTANDING OF THE TIME REQUIRED TO ESTABLISH BRAND AWARENESS AND MARKET PENETRATION, ALONG WITH THE ASSOCIATED COSTS.

Ensure you Truly Understand your Target Market and it's Geography

The US is a massive market in terms of market share AND geography. Buyer personas and societal norms can fluctuate not only by sector but also by geographic region. Although many B2B service and software companies today function as remote or hybrid office cultures, if you intend to set up a physical office space, set it up in proximity to the sectors you most wish to engage with, as traveling from coast to coast consumes time and money. Serving the entertainment industry? You'll want to set up shop in Los Angeles or New York. Consumer packaged goods? Chicago, Cincinnati, or New Jersey. Tech? Look at San Francisco, Seattle, Austin, or Salt Lake City (now affectionately called “Silicon Slopes”).

Understand the Cultural, Legal, and Work Environment

Peter Drucker said, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast,” and that means not only hiring the right team (see below) but ensuring you understand US culture such that your internal AND external communications are appropriate and you have the infrastructure in place to scale a US business entity. A good in-country corporate attorney is worth their weight in gold. Ping me if you need recommendations for the US…I am a big fan (and long time client) of Stoel Rives.

Adapt your Strategy, Marketing, and Communications…and Continuously Iterate

Ensure your strategy, marketing, and communications have been crafted or, at a minimum, reviewed by someone IN MARKET. Case in point: when my firm Decipher was in the early stages of entering the UK, we were preparing to run a print advertisement for an event where dancing was on the evening agenda. The head of our UK office, Richard Collins, suggested substituting the word "dancing" for the phrase “throwing shapes” (which apparently means dancing in the UK) in the ad….which no one in marketing in our US office would have known! Don’t downplay the importance of localization, and always be open to iteration. Looking for expertise from a marketing pro that has multiple US market entries under their belt (including Toluna and Voxpopme), you can't do any better than Jennifer Mancusi of Growgetter. 

Define Realistic Timelines and Budgets

It's paramount to enter a market like the US with a realistic understanding of the time required to establish brand awareness and market penetration, along with the associated costs. Underbudgeting or budgeting within excessively short timeframes can make market entry a bust or, in some cases, so catastrophic that it literally takes the entire company down.

Hire the Right Team

I can’t stress enough how important the right team is to the success of ANY new market entry. The US is a highly competitive hiring market; as such, too many firms bypass essential resources such as recruitment agencies in favor of quick hiring “wins.” Hiring the right people, particularly in the early stages of a market entry, is essential for ensuring a positive brand reputation and access to key prospects in the verticals you’re pursuing. Need recruitment assistance? My go to is Karen Morgan of Morgan Search.