by admin - 17 Mar 2021

When getting on a new venture, everyone wishes to work with international clients at some point in their entrepreneurial journey. Though not an immediate goal, it remains one of the long term goals of the entrepreneurs and freelancers, as they are aware of the potential benefits while working with overseas clients. It might be a little daunting at the initial stage to think about working with an international client owing to the varied styles of working and the lack of experience. You might have questions like how do I approach an international client, how to deal with foreign customers, etc. So to make your work easy, here is a short guide on how to attract and work with international clients.
 
HOW TO BOARD CLIENTS FROM ABROAD?
 

1. Research The Target Market

   You cannot randomly approach anyone from any foreign nation without a detailed analysis. You must sit down and thoroughly analyze the services and products you deal with. Understand your targeted consumer market and make a study of businesses in foreign dealing in a similar industry. Find out who require the services that you provide and list only the relevant prospects. This saves your time from approaching irrelevant people and getting inefficient leads.
   After you make a list of the potential people who could turn out to be your clients, contact them personally. Also, try to find potential prospects from your network, as working with them would be comparatively easier than strangers.

    

2. Communication Etiquettes

   When dealing with foreign clients, you must be very careful regarding the communication etiquettes as they might vary a little from your regular communication etiquettes. Most of the times, email would be the best way to approach someone for business unless you know them personally. Prepare the content for the mail and get your sales pitch documents attached to the mail. Make sure you proofread the entire content to avoid even the slightest of mistakes. Check out the sample templates available online to make things simpler. Your mail would set the first impression for your brand, and hence you cannot afford to be careless with it. Include your website address, contact number and other essential details with clear CTAs.
   If you contact them via a call, make sure you have the necessary software installed on your system, and the initial setup is done to avoid wasting time later during the call. You can connect over a Zoom call or Skype, whichever is of your convenience. Keep your internet connection stable so that there are no interruptions during the call. Familiarize yourself with the usage of the calling application so that if there is a need for sharing documents or sharing the screen of your device or any other technical requirements can be easily met.

    

3. Keep Up with the Time Zones

   If there is a follow-up to your mail, and the client wishes to have a phone call, schedule the time of call according to their convenience. Keep a check at their time zone and schedule calls accordingly. Schedule it appropriately such that you are also comfortable with the time as you have to be quite active while explaining to them your services.
   When you are delivering the work or asking a query or any reason for communication, make sure you text/mail them at a specific time when they are available so that the reply doesn’t take long. You have to schedule the tasks in such a brilliant way that none of your time is wasted waiting for approval/response.

    

4. Thoroughly Understand their Requirements

   Before you begin a project or a business relationship with the international clientele, clearly understand their requirements. Sometimes the client might explain important stuff in their language, and you might not be able to understand it. In such cases, seek the help of a translator instead of missing out on important information. Understand their issues, problem statements and convey your solutions to them. Before beginning the work, get the agreements and contracts signed for a smooth business relationship.

    

5. Set realistic deadlines for the deliverables

   What usually happens is you might get overwhelmed initially working for an international client, and owing to the excitement, you might promise quick delivery of the deliverables. But eventually, you might realize that it is not possible to keep up with the deadline and the delay caused might leave a bad impression about you and your company on the client. To avoid such problems, set realistic deadlines that are achievable without a compromise on the quality of work. Also, when you are transparent and genuine with the client regarding the deadlines, they will look forward to extending the business relationship with you. After all, who likes false promises!?

    

6. Payment Guidelines

   When working with clients from other nations, there would be a concern about currency difference. So be pretty sure of the payment structure for your work. Keep up with the exchange rates of the currencies, and be clear on how you’ll be paid, as in what would be the mode of payment. Check the extra charges incurred for the transfer of money, and opt for a payment mode that is suitable for both parties while incurring fewer charges. PayPal could be a better option, but these days there is a myriad of other payment options available, including cryptocurrencies, hence be well aware of the most profitable one.

    

7. Beware of the Taxes

   When working with clients of the same nation, the taxes incurred are known to you, and handling financial formalities becomes easy. But, when working with foreign clientele, you must have a clear understanding of their taxing structure, moreover, hire a financial analyst for better handling of finances. Understand all the legalities to avoid getting into trouble eventually.

    

8. Understand their Culture

   When you offer branding and marketing services to a client in a different geographical zone, you must be aware of their culture and lifestyle. You must have a clearly drafted buyer persona of foreign customers because branding is something that a consumer personally feels about a company. Hence, to make a company connect to their audiences, you have to understand their audience and their interests.

 
These are a few steps that can facilitate a smooth business relationship with your clients from abroad. At EntitledArts, we have personally followed this step-by-step procedure while boarding foreign clients for our branding and marketing services. Hence you can be very much assured that these are the tried and tested tips. Also, if you need more suggestions on working with international clients, connect with us on https://entitledarts.com.