TJ’s Insights

A confession: for years my teeth would grate anytime I heard colleagues brag about how much business they received from word-of-mouth referral.

I wasn�t getting referrals. Why?

My clients seemed to love me; they told me I was great. The evaluations I received were effusive with praise. Clients wrote to me about how I had fundamentally altered their careers for the better. Plus, I know my clients loved me because they would come back to me; I got lots of repeat business. My business was growing, growing and growing�yet very little of my new business came from referrals.

These days, to be in business is to be in international business. My own small company has either performed trainings or sold training products in more than two-dozen countries in the past year. And I am by no means exceptional in that regard. It has never been easier for any corporation to do international business.

But when you are selling to and speaking with people from other cultures, you face additional challenges. Yes, people may all be alike in some regards such as love of family and abhorrence for murder. But different cultures have different customs when it comes to communicating. You may be acceptable in every way when speaking to customers and clients in your own country, but are you sure you aren’t doing something that is hurting you with your international prospects?