TAKE YOUR COMPANY GLOBAL

Kelly provides guidance on expanding a business into international markets in this strategy guide.

“Today, your business is global from the moment you create a website,” notes the author, currently the chief growth officer of the global software company Rebrandly. Turning this instant international presence into a profitable business expansion, however, requires careful assessment, particularly regarding which countries to venture into first. In this book, Kelly offers her “MARACA” model to help businesses make such determinations by evaluating three key areas of measurement. The acronym breaks down thusly: MA for the market availability, or the size of the market opportunity, within a given country; RA for real-time analytics of how a company is currently performing in that market; and CA for customer addressability, assessing how easily (or not) the business can serve customers in that market, given language barriers and other considerations. The author discusses how companies should build and embrace a “Global-First” culture, including assembling a steering committee to guide and promote international strategy, as well as the importance of achieving a globally equitable organization, in which employees and customers have equitable experiences “without geography being a barrier to access.” The book includes case studies of successful global expansions, including those of Canva, Facebook, and Airbnb. Kelly offers an illuminating overview of issues to consider before taking the leap into international markets—her MARACA model is a useful rubric by which businesses can conduct their market research “homework,” and her repeated emphasis on localization, or the need to delve into and address each country’s market differences and needs, is an important message for eager expanders to heed. While not all companies may be able to scale up as extensively as those in the included case studies have, this book offers a visionary road map of how any company can—and should—expand its market horizons.

An insightful, data-driven approach for businesses pursuing international growth opportunities.