Alright, youve built a decent product.
But… your growth rate is starting to stagnate.
In essence, what this means is that youre starting to hit the ceiling in your operating region.
So, its probably time to expand your business geographically and this is exactly what happened to my company.
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Except for the fact that these silver bullets dont exist.
But going through this whole process has taught me some valuable lessons that can be of help to you.
We aim to get rid of that hassle for our customers.
Weve been quite successful with growing our business over the last few years.
We started with Packhelp Studio, our SMB business segment that offers low quantity orders of customized packaging.
Later on, we had enough interest in larger, more complex orders to launch and grow Packhelp Plus.
Thus, relatively quickly, we decided to create the Expansion Chapter.
Hiring:There is no magical source of suitable candidates.
First of all, write strong job descriptions.
Be clear, be specific, and be genuine.
If you half-ass it, youll get half-assed applications.
Then, identify the top three to five recruiting portals in a particular market and post paid job descriptions.
These can run from a few hundred euros per month to 1500.
If all goes well, one or two months is all you need.
Source directly, as well.
Dig through LinkedIn, your online grid, and get your colleagues to help the search.
If youre having a particularly hard time, hire an agency to help.
Not any agency though, be picky and precise.
Still, be aware that they often dont take responsibility after you hire so be picky!
In terms of selection, optimize for talent and cultural fit.
Remember that many low performers manage to join good companies and anyone can make their CV look impressive.
Last, but not least, ensure a great candidate experience.
Be quick, be respectful, and be honest.
This alone often makes or breaks the result.
Focus:Expansion is not a side project
Dedicate a person to own business expansion.
This expansion should be the persons number one priority at any given time.
Moreover, this Head of Expansion should be separate from the core business.
Dont go deep with stuff you cant plan for, but be specific with things you do know already.
But the most important thing is to over-communicate!
Ensure that everyone knows what the plan is, what needs to be done, and if anything changes.
And regularly remind them of these things.
Results:Dont get too excited about the launch
Noticeable effects of expansion will depend heavily on your business.
It may take some time to move the needle.
This is fine; just be ready to fix them.
Have resources ready in your products, development, operations, and marketing teams.
Building a brand takes time and hard work.
Its pretty likely that nobody really knows you in the new market.
A couple of paid ad campaigns or a few blog posts will not make you a well-known player.
Hit every possible channel, and keep it up for a few months.
So I dont mean to assume that these learnings apply to everyone.
So, let me leave you with the following.
Treat it like a sizable investment.
Story byMaciej Walczewski
Maciej works on building tech companies in Europe.
Currently expanding Packhelp, previously Uber Eats, Google, among others.Maciej works on building tech companies in Europe.
Currently expanding Packhelp, previously Uber Eats, Google, among others.
