Are you thinking about exporting your goods and services abroad because you’re being pulled in by international buyer interest? Are you looking to find new cash flow streams? These are some major questions that businesses face, but pulling the trigger to export is not easy for many. We’ve listed five reasons why U.S. companies (small or large) should consider entering the exporting world:
- Exporters Enjoy Higher Productivity
Exporting plants with fewer than 250 employees had 1.9 times more revenue than non-exporting plants, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The U.S. International Trade Commission found that U.S. small and medium-sized manufacturers that exported earned more per firm than non-exporters. Also, labor productivity as measured by revenue per employee was over 70 percent greater.
- Exporters Enjoy Stronger Workforce
In the analysis of 94 of the largest 100 metropolitan areas, for every $1 billion in exports of a metro area industry, workers in that industry earn roughly one to two percent higher wages, including employees without high school diplomas. This wage effect can be seen even adjusting for worker characteristics, occupation or the characteristics of the metropolitan area. Firms that export have been shown to be more skilled and productive, as well as paying higher wages than non-exporting firms, regardless of their size.
- Exporters Grow Faster
The U.S. International Trade Commission, in examining the domestic and global operations of smaller enterprises, found that U.S. exporters outperform their non-exporting counterparts by several measures. Whether they deal in services or manufacturing, exporting businesses show higher total revenues, faster total revenue growth and higher labor productivity than their peers that focus exclusively on domestic markets.
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The Scale of the Export Opportunity is Huge
About 95 percent of consumers and 84 percent of spending power resides outside the U.S. As the middle class grows around the world, an increasing share of spending power will be outside the U.S. The majority of smaller businesses that do export are reactive or passive exporters rather than strategic exporters.
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Exporters Become More Innovative Two Years After Starting to Export
A study done by professors at USC and the University of Minnesota found that two years after exporting, exporters file seven times MORE patents and deliver four times MORE product innovations that their non-exporting peers. That’s because exporters can often access diverse knowledge bases not available in the domestic market.
Please be aware that there is assistance available that can help your company enter the exporting world and help secure international sales. These include services offered by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Small Business Administration, your local business development office and the Export-Import Bank of the U.S.:
Note: the information above is credited to the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce’s World Trade Association