Creating an international export plan is important for defining your company's present status and internal goals and commitment. It is also required if you plan to seek export financing assistance. Prepare a plan prior to requesting bank loans. This can save both time and money. Completing an international business plan helps you to anticipate future goals, assemble facts, identify constraints and create an action statement. It should also set forth specific objectives and an implementation timetable and milestones.
Last Published: 10/21/2016

Developing an Export Plan
⦁ Conduct an "audit" of your company to determine how exporting will impact your operations.
⦁ Understand the key components of an effective, actionable export plan.
⦁ Have a clear idea of the information you need to collect and sources where you might find that information.
⦁ Begin developing your export plan.

Tools & Resources
Preliminary considerations: before writing your international sales plan, you should understand exactly what exporting will mean for your company. More specifically, you should consider the management issues for exporting, approaches to exporting, distribution channels and other important considerations that will impact your business. Just as no two companies are alike, there is no one-size-fits-all export plan. However, your export plan should be an extension of your overall business plan, if not infused completely into your business plan. Many of the same questions for your international sales strategies will apply to your domestic sales plan.

Click here to see a Sample Export Plan

Prepared by the International Trade Administration. With its network of 108 offices across the United States and in more than 75 countries, the International Trade Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce utilizes its global presence and international marketing expertise to help U.S. companies sell their products and services worldwide. Locate the trade specialist in the U.S. nearest you by visiting http://export.gov/usoffices.


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