Wednesday 28th October, 2020 Branching out to rule the world
SCNers
Many thanks once more for the members who connected up to share their knowledge, experience….or simply their curiosity and suggestions in our most recent debate. The initial idea of the debate was to discuss how SME freight forwarders can branch out into new markets and what had been successful (or not) to members who had done so.
First, to the issue of where to expand to, the conversation led to three main reasons:
CLIENTS: Its never a mistake to follow your clients and their needs, so it was not a surprise that some members defined this to be the determining factor behind where they would look to open the next branch of their company. A consolidated and constant flow of traffic gives an instant base from which to develop.
CONTACT: To open a branch, having the right person in a location, turned out to the be determining factor for another series of SCN members. The trust that you have in the correct person is an essential element of being able to delegate the development of the company name in another location
MARKET POSSIBILITES: More of a solution from China (but with their proven track record, who’s to dispute this) in that if a market demand is detected, the setting up of an office in a growing market, if done professionally, will give possibility of trade coming later.
Of course a combination of these is undoubtedly the real correct answer
As to the optimal business set up, we (surprisingly for me) had few supporters of expansion by FRANCHISING, despite it being a proven and successful model in many markets. The advantages of being able to set up new offices quickly with the synergies of IT systems, branding etc., seems to contradict the lack of control over the company as it took the complex step of expanding into a new market. More interest was placed in having a corporate ownership with a partner in place in the new branch, to give both motivation and a level of control over the new venture. Complete corporate ownership and control, giving a more homogeneous growth, with a branch manager also proved to be popular.
These are mearly some notes on a complex issue whereby SCN members wanted to share some ideas and their experiences. Each case is of course unique, but we thank you all for bringing your ideas to the forum of SCN.
We note also that we had some varied comments and ideas regarding the incorporation of VIDEO CALLS into our working life. It seems that between forwarding agents (particularly SCN members ;-)) we are most used to the medium – while with clients its a mixed bag. Established clients are fine with being contacted by video call, whereas almost no new commercial activity and success was reported via video calls.
Why?
Maybe the lack of confidence over video means is still lacking to form trust. We hope to be looking at that matter again, as we look into how we are all being affecting with limited movement and ongoing isolation in workplaces. Connect up next time for that.
If you have any questions regarding this web meeting, or even questions to put to us please do not hesitate in contacting us: hello@securitycargonetwork.com