Generated with the assistance of AI.
Market selection often begins with geographic proximity or the overall size of an economy. These are useful starting points, but they do not tell you enough about the opportunity for a particular product. A better decision compares several destinations against the same criteria.
Start with your specific category
Look beyond population and total trade figures to understand the space for your category. Which products are available, who buys them and what needs do they serve? Record the year, scope and source of numerical data, because similar category names may describe different product groups.
Compare access to buyers
Identify possible entry channels: distributors, importers, retailers or direct sales. Consider whether your business can meet each channel’s expectations around scale, service and sales materials.
A list of potential companies is not evidence of demand. Follow it with conversations that test your assumptions.
Assess fit and the cost of serving the market
Consider price positioning, packaging, logistics and the resources required to support the market. Do not compare a shelf price directly with a manufacturer’s price. Record the elements that need separate investigation instead of replacing them with optimistic assumptions.
Build a simple decision matrix
Select a few relevant criteria and weight them according to your objectives. Assess each candidate market consistently. Alongside every score, record the reasoning and how confident you are in the evidence.
The result should not make the decision automatically. Its purpose is to show which markets deserve closer investigation and what new information could change the priorities. Begin with a limited test and develop your plan as you learn.
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