Creating (Global) Opportunity One Bite At A Time

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The mission of South African-based Khayelitsha Cookie Company is to create a company that could not only produce the best cookies in South Africa, but which also radically changed the lives of everyone involved in the company.

For customers, they produce the biggest, best range of baked goods: chocolate chunk cookies, ginger snaps, nutty fudge brownies and shortbread biscuits. For employees, they give every opportunity for significant growth and career expansion.

They also hire previously unemployed women from Khayelitsha and then train and skill them in permanent, affirming employment.

Visit the Khayelitsha Cookie Company here.

What's your global cause?

Exports: The Recipe For a Healthy and Prosperous Economy

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Read the article and think along the lines that no matter where you are located in our big flat world that the recipe for fostering a healthy and prosperous economy is to have a vigorous and dynamic export sector ...

Note:  The article may have been removed since the original date of publication.  Go here for more information.  To learn more about exporting, go here.

Going Global: Risks and Rewards

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Interbrand’s annual Best Global Brands study of brand value generates great interest and debate. A recurring question is whether being global affords a brand more benefits than a geographically-focused one. Many brand owners are interested in the attributes shared by successful global brands (i.e., BMW). Interbrand’s work with leading global brands and the conclusions reached through our ranking indicate significant implications for brands that choose to operate globally.

The criteria for the study states that a global brand must achieve more than a third of its sales outside of its home country and have a visible external market presence. A global brand is one that is available in many nations and, though it may differ from country to country, the local versions have common values and a similar identity. The brand’s positioning, advertising strategy, personality, look and feel are, in most respects, the same but allow for regional customization. What remains consistent market-to-market are the values communicated and delivered by the brand.

This paper explores the attraction and risks associated with going global.

And the first question asked: Why go global?

Read the paper here.

Globalization: Synergy and Discontent

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Globalization continues its advance, but is market convergence a net positive for the US and world economies? Who benefits from globalization, and who might suffer?

Read the article here.

Note:  The link may no longer be active.  Try this on for size.

New Generation of Global Entrepreneurship

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Patrick Casserly started small in the business dedicated to the provision of back office processing and call centre services. His primary duty on his first day of operation was to mop the floor. But he was thinking big, building on the advantage of Jamaica as the third largest English speaking country in the hemisphere, and their propensity to talk, and now Patrick has a business that employs 2,100 people, which is likely to grow to 2,600 by year-end. How did he do it?

Hints: Start small. Position globally. Think BIG.

Harvard Professor Who Coined "Globalization" Dies

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One of my favorite people (minds) on the planet and the person who coined the term "globalization" died at age 81: Theodore Levitt. The reason why Professor Levitt became such a force in my life was because in the '80s -- before any individual or company was thinking about going global -- he turned me on to the importance of looking at the world as your market. He also knew how to deconstruct and solve problems by asking the right questions. Something to this day I still find myself doing. Here are some things I will remember the most about Levitt:

• Harvard Business Review -- He holds the record with Peter Drucker for publishing the most articles in HBR.

• What turned me on to Levitt -- "The Globalization of Markets" and five other great articles authored by HBR talents.

Using the term "globalization" in a 1983 Harvard Business Review article about the emergence of standardized, low-priced consumer products. He defined that globalization as the changes in social behaviors and technology which allowed companies to sell the same products around the world.

• Marketing Myopia -- HBR Classic: A groundbreaking article originally published in the Harvard Business Review (1960) in which he asked managers, “What business are you really in?” And that's probably why Starbucks is doing so well with its business model because they figured out early on that they were not just in the "coffee" business but in the "people" business. Levitt would be proud that his ideas were turned into practical solutions. Even Wikipedia features Levitt's work. We all know that focusing too narrowly on anything creates limited results.

Another way Levitt posed a question is like this: “What problem are we trying to solve for our customers?” For tool makers, the implication is that it is not really about the tool. Rather, it is about the resulting condition that customers desire from the use of the tool. That is to say, it is holes in the ground they want, not shovels. Fascinating stuff. So pure. So simple. But so many people just don't get it. Levitt did.

• Design Sense magazine No. 26 -- And I bet you didn't know Levitt contributed to this publication. Here's the title his work went under:

"How Major Companies Change Their Names"

An analysis of successful -- and not-so-successful -- name changes by New York Stock Exchange-listed corporations in the late 1950s and early '60s. Also: excerpts from Innovation in Marketing, by Harvard Business School Professor Theodore Levitt.

• Marketing Imagination by Theodore M.Levitt -- My absolute favorite book (and according to my notes in the inside cover, I read it in 1984) on marketing that I still refer to today. It's so relevant that you never want to put it away.

• Two favorite remarks by Levitt that were made in "The Marketing Imagination" -- Henry Ford's: "They can have any color car they want, so long as it's black." -- Page 142. And Levitt's: "The purpose of a business is to create and keep a customer." -- Page 5.

HBR obituary on Professor Levitt can be found here. My sympathies go out to the Levitt family during this time of great sadness.

May Professor Levitt rest in peace in our brave new world and I thank him for helping me and millions of other people understand (global) marketing.

Abridged Borderbuster: 7/5/06

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CONTENTS

If you are not a subscriber to Borderbuster, here's a glimpse of what you missed this month:

1. Welcome From The Publisher
2. Feedback From Our Readers
3. Exploring the International Market for Data*
4. Business and Cultural Tips: Have Some Fun!*
5. Lost in Translation*
6. How I Went Global: Ongoing Series
7. A Reader Asks: Q&A*
8. Everybody Loves a Freebie*
9. The Starbucks Effect*
10. Innocents Abroad*
11. The Soft Skills of Global Managers*
12. Blog World: MarketingProfs*
13. Laurel’s New e-Book: “GODZILLA Global Marketing!”
14. Take A Walk On The Wild Side (TAWOTWS)*
15. Wind Behind Your Sail*
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

*Indicates exclusive to Borderbuster subscribers only.

Sample section:

11. THE SOFT SKILLS OF GLOBAL MANAGERS
*Subscriber Exclusive*

Despite nearly two decades of corporate globalization efforts, many organizations still struggle to find managers who are comfortable and effective in the increasingly global economy. Most suffer both from a lack of cultural awareness when dealing with employees and partners overseas and from a lack of experience managing increasingly complex processes over long distances.

To read the lead story, visit here.

###

To subscribe to Borderbuster, visit:
Sign Up For Borderbuster!

Gates Goes Global

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Gates recently announced plans to ease out of his chief executive position at Microsoft over the next couple of years and dedicate more time to his $30 billion (now $60 billion thanks to Buffett) Gates Foundation.

Read the article here to find out how Gates is going to conquer the world on health problems.

Earn More by Exporting

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Martha Montoya has found a way to grow her small business: She exports. While "exporting" conjures up images of vast shipyards and warehouses, Montoya, a comic-strip artist in Santa Ana, Calif., sells her colorful cartoon characters (shown in B/W) for use on snack packages in China, Ecuador, Colombia and other far-away places. She tells other entrepreneurs — no matter their business — to think about going global.

Read the inspiring article here.

Top 10 Best Blogs and Best Podcast of 2006

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Although we did not win, we sure were happy to be nominated and make the cut. Thank you to all of you who voted for us. Your support means the world to us. Maybe next year MarketingSherpa will include a new category on "Global Marketing." Congratulations to all the winners. (Note:  link may have changed since the original publication of this post.)  Way to go!

It's a Small Business World After All

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Lou Hoffman used to share the common misperception that overseas markets are only open to the big guys like McDonalds, Coca-Cola and Proctor & Gamble. Not anymore. It's the little guys who are slowly taking over the planet.

Learn more about Lou's story and how you can go global too. Read the article here.

P.S. Voting ends today at midnight for the MarketingSherpa Reader's Choice Blog and Podcasting Awards ... see our nomination in category No. 9!

French Blogging: Why (Global) Marketers Should Start Paying Attention

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It was when The Global Small Business Blog was nominated and made the cut for the BIG MarketingSherpa Reader's Choice Blog and Podcasting Awards -- yes you read that right! -- for best in its class for category No. 9 Small Business Marketing (cast your vote of "Excellent!" for us ... deadline is Monday, June 26 at midnight) that I discovered Eric Kintz's The Marketing Excellence Blog. And what a blog it is. Here's an entry I particularly liked: French blogging -- why marketers should start paying attention.

The only thing missing from both the contest and Kintz's entry is this: global. Someday, everyone will have a worldview.

P.S. Since we are Chicago-based, we are trying to work with Oprah to see if Pontiac or maybe Peugeot will give each of you a new car for voting EXCELLENT for The Global Small Business Blog! There are no guarantees ... stay tuned.

Global Marketing 101 Lesson

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Your global marketing test for today consists of two questions.

1). Why do most companies want to globalize their operations?
2). What’s the best way to reach global markets?

Find the answers here.

How to Take Your Small Business Global

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Okay ... every once in a while I have to do a little shameless self-promotion and this is one of those times. Jennifer LeClaire did such a great job with this article for E-Commerce Times that I had to share it with you. It sings the gospel on globalization!

Read it here and then take action!

Make Globalization Work For You

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The outsourcing trend almost killed Kalexsyn -- until its founders made globalization work in their favor.

The timing could not have been worse for Robert Gadwood and David Zimmermann. After being laid off by drug giant Pfizer in 2003, the scientists founded Kalexsyn, a chemical research company in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Kalexsyn's plan was to help large pharmaceutical companies create new drugs by examining thousands of molecules to pinpoint the ones that had medicinal potential.

But by the time Gadwood and Zimmermann built a lab, bought equipment, and hired 10 employees, the strategy had become obsolete. "All of our customers disappeared," Gadwood says.

What did they do? Find out here.

The Thinking Man's Outsourcing

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Globe Trotter CEO Brian Reale (center) outsourced his R&D (and himself) to Bolivia.

A surprising number of U.S. companies are sending their most complex activities overseas. Read the article here.

A Quest for the Global Best: America

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Globalization has been a boon for some U.S. service companies. Last year, a surplus of $58 billion in services was outsourced overseas. Here is a selection of recent data on cross-border trade from the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Read the article here: America, At Your Service.

Opportunities in Globalization

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Smart innovation is key to long-term prosperity. Nations won't thrive by just accepting low pay.

The seed of globalization germinated 60 years ago at the University of Pennsylvania, where ENIAC, the first operational general-purpose electronic digital computer, was unveiled in 1946. That single 11-ton machine has spawned more than 200 million computers worldwide, a number growing at 20 percent per year. Its stepchild, the cell phone, has grown to more than 1 billion units in one-quarter the time, and that number will at least double in the next 10 years. We can now connect with anyone, anywhere, at any time. This on-demand world fulfills the vision of a "global village" Marshall McLuhan put forward in 1964.

Read Rocco Leonard Martino's provocative article in its entirety here.

Stop Fakes, That Is, Global Intellectual Ones

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Are you a small business? Well I sure hope so if you are reading this blog. As we are learning, success in a global economy depends more and more on intellectual property (IP) assets. In fact, IP-based businesses and entrepreneurs drive more economic growth in the United States than any other single sector.

Unfortunately, intellectual property has captured the attention of pirates and organized crime. Today, piracy, counterfeiting and the theft of intellectual property pose a serious threat to all U.S. businesses. Industry estimates of the cost of such theft range from $250 billion to 750,000 jobs per year. These threats to ongoing invention and innovation make it important to consider securing IP protection, whether you're a major multinational firm or a 1-person home business.

Stop fakes (fraud) and start taking action. Visit the site here.

Web Sites for Discerning Global Finance Students

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John Wachowicz, Jr., Ph.D., CPA and Professor of Finance at The University of Tennessee contacted me in response to a letter I wrote in February to the editor of CEO Magazine. (Wo)Man did I sound off! He apparently liked the horn-blowing so much that he decided to link it -- Globetrade.com not the letter! -- to his own educational financial management website. Seeing that John is a Ph.D. and CPA, I paid a visit to his site and found it to be quite good. You might like it too.

Wachowicz's Web World

Thanks John!