International Business

The 21st century global marketplace offers many opportunities for international business expansion. The global market means that many companies now have officers, affiliates, supplies, staff and customers in a wide range of countries and cultures, thus it is unavoidable for business people to communicate with people from different cultures. However, the differences in language, food, dress, attitude toward time, work habit, social behavior from different culture can cause many of our business to be frustrating or even unsuccessful.

Culture is the deposit of knowledge, experience, beliefs, rules, actions, attitudes, meetings, hierarchies, religion, nations of time, roles spatial relation, concepts of the universe, and artifacts acquired by a group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving. Culture and communications are linked: communication makes culture a continuous process, for once cultural habits, principles, valves attitudes and the like and formulated.

People always believe that their culture is the only true culture. They will discriminate people whose cultural norms are different from their own values and behaviors. When we communicate with members of our own culture, we have internalized the cultural rules that govern the behavior and we are able to communicate without giving much thought to these rules. If we communicate with people from different cultural backgrounds according to our own cultural rules, we always encounter a variety of misunderstandings. This is a phenomenon caused by cultural conflict which is becoming universal and unavoidable. Actually, cultural conflict is very common in multinational companies.

Company H is a large company and its products are among the best of the same line in China. They have already extended their business into several regions overseas; however, the Middle East remains blank, as they have no experience in doing business with Arabs.

So the problems come as they do not pay enough attention and also misunderstanding comes also. This also cause the big lose for their business and also set some difficulties for the international business development for them. This example told us we should pay attention to promote the cross-cultural business communication and get enough preparation before take international business negotiation to solve the cultural and continental differences of different people with different nations.

The premier (Article I -in this series) left off with an example from my Russia experiences and observations of how not educating yourself in history, cultures and manners could and will get you expelled from a country! The two salesmen in the first story were real senior level people, oblivious of any international business education and responsibility for their failure. Their company hopefully learned from the Russian expulsion and quickly instituted a change that would better prepare their management and employees for international business. Remember one simple thing; "if it were easy...everyone would be doing it right!". You can not successfully perform International Business (IB) without cultural preparation, readiness education and practice...before...you go! All of the stories presented in the six part series come from my direct observations and experiences while working on multi-company programs or significant business negotiations in each country.

Our next example comes from South Africa where a multi-company program was responsible for surveying land to build an operations center, establish support services and assure security measures. So what went wrong in this seemingly simple task? Simply --untrained, un-managed youth! More specifically, young employees sent away for possibly the first time in their lives, to a foreign country, without any senior management, or corporate training, nor cultural education or strict observances corporate policies. The issue -was not only intoxicated in public- but causing a car accident while driving in the same condition which sent one of the local people to a hospital with a serious injury!

This accident should have never happened. Police were called and once again certain US workers were expelled from a country, heavy fines, restitution and allowances were paid upfront and now qualified replacements had to be made to continue the project. The cost was over $600,000 to fix! The three expelled employees action had a continuing effect on the firm and the mature business responsibilities, between legal and binding parties, than the young technicians fully appreciated. If the incident would have caused a death or permanent handicap, the entire company would have been expelled after massive sums of money and restitution deemed appropriate was paid and jointly closed. If you think about it, for smaller companies this would have immediately shut down the firm or caused a bankruptcy. The eventual newspaper article reference worldwide alone would have caused priceless long term damage.

So, as you will come to learn over the final next 4 installments, International Business (IB) is a serious matter, not to be taken lightly nor without the right education and assurances in place, and in practice, to make all your experiences a growing and rewarding calling. It is always worth it to do things right!

Development of technologies and the ability to quickly move from place to place has created many business opportunities for companies around the world. More and more businesses are becoming global, and therefore an MBA in International Business can be a smart move for further career growth.

Careers in global business requires the ability to maneuver in complex business situations. In the MBA program in International Business you will learn about international finance, accounting, management, business policy and marketing strategies. Getting the MBA makes you more competitive in the labor market and provides opportunities for growth.

This MBA program prepares students for the business climate around the world. Some of such programs can be completed in just a few months, if you select the format of online learning. You'll be ready to work on the international business arena, focusing on the difficulties faced by international and global markets.

You will study subjects such as analysis of international trade and finance, global marketing strategies, management practices in international markets - all of it is okay to prepare you for future career, because apart from this, you will learn a lot about international sales, global distribution, international management and international trade. The main thing is to choose the school with a good reputation.

Global businesses are very important for the success and stability of many companies around the world. It is therefore very important that these companies have worked with professional experience and knowledge of the subject. Employment opportunity after receiving a degree is very high, because the interaction between international companies continues to grow.

If you possess excellent communication skills, love to get acquainted with other cultures, to understand the business, then think - maybe an MBA in International Business is just what you need?

Internet has become a lifeline for most of us. We communicate, shop, study and even date on internet, these days. It has connected people all over the world with each other. A person sitting in China can contact a complete stranger in Hawaii. This is some that couldn't have been possible in pre-internet era.

This is the main reason that millions of people around the world have made internet their source of income. Internet is being seen as a lucrative area to sell products and services worldwide. Entrepreneurs who are planning to expand their business are venturing into internet business world. But can internet really help every business to go international?

Many web designers and search engine consultants believe that internet has become an international market and anybody can find customers on it. They present internet as a golden opportunity that should not be missed.

They may be right but not entirely. Though, internet is helpful in a number of businesses, but you cannot take it for granted. A business can only work on the internet if it is run by a big company that has the capability of spending huge amounts on advertising. Internet has millions of websites selling tons of stuff. If you want to make your website popular then you will need to market it on large scale.

Plus, the product sold by the company must also have a global appeal. If the product is not useful for people around the world, then it can't be sold internationally. For example, if you are selling a technology or gadget that has been introduced in only few countries in the world, then you won't be able to make a huge mark on international basis. The same thing goes with jewellery and garments. Every country has its own style in garments and jewellery which is quite relative.

Another important factor in this is culture. There are many products which cannot be sold globally due to cultural and religious restrictions. For example, some conservative countries do not permit products like lingerie, revealing swim suits or other such products. Most Muslim countries don't buy pork or pork related products.

The same problem comes with the laws and restrictions in various countries. Different countries may have different laws about the same things. For example, countries like England and South Africa permit betting on sports but many countries consider it illegal.

Thus, the saying that internet business can sell everything worldwide is not completely true. But at the same time, some businesses may flourish on international basis. Some products and services have the international appeal to attract global buyers.

Entrepreneur must do extensive research about countries where he or she wants to sell his product. They should also choose the countries in which they want to market their products in. They must start from selling locally and slowly expand their horizons to other international markets.

Finally, we can say that the statement "internet is an international market" is not entirely a myth but we cannot even take it as the absolute truth.

Have you ever noticed that when the space shuttle is landing they often cannot land because of weather at Cape Canaveral, Houston, or in the desert in California? Well, what happens if you are flying in a private space enterprise spacecraft, and the weather in several locations will not let you land. You are going to have to come down eventually and chances are the private spacecraft/aircraft are not going to be large like the space shuttle and they will have limited resources and supplies.

You're only to have so much oxygen. This means you will have to find a time to come down and you are going to need to come down and land. But you may not be able to land in the country from which you took off. This is why it is important that all private enterprise spaceflight enterprises work together, as an international consortium, allowing other spacecraft to land at their facility, as a neutral zone.

Almost like the way we have set up international airport in the world. Spacecraft will need to work about the same way, and we must remember many of the spacecraft will be gliding in without power. They will rely on the skill of the pilot, and the computerized controls to guide them in. They will be dead sticking these spacecraft wherever they land.

So things are very critical, and in the interest of space flight safety, and in the interest of the industry that's just starting out, it only makes sense that everyone works together. One major tragic crash could hit the world media and severely hurt all private spacecraft enterprises. Please consider all this.

To assist you in your research efforts pertaining to this company, this Reliv International review will be providing you with the information that you will need to make an informed and educated decision as to whether Reliv is a good fit as your home based business. Lets begin my Reliv International review.

Reliv International was founded in 1988 by Robert L. and Sandy Montgomery when they became extremely interested in nutritional products due to losing two of their parents in a very short time period. They began their quest for products to maintain good health, and this led to the foundation of Reliv International.

Reliv offers two primary product lines to begin one's journey towards better health. These include Essential Nutrition Formulas, and Weight Loss. Once the foundation of better health has been laid, they offer products that focus around Targeted Solutions to provide additional nutrition support to meet your own individual health needs. Reliv Classic, Reliv Now, Slimplicity Weight Loss System, FibRestore, GlucAffect, ProVantage, SoySentials, Arthaffect, and CardioSentials are many of the products that Reliv International is well-known for.

Reliv offers these products through more than 65,000 Distributors in 15 countries. Distributors are provided with 5 ways to earn income as they are building their Reliv International business. These include:

Retail Profit - Difference between wholesale and retail prices.
Wholesale Profits - Earn compensation on the purchases of personally sponsored Distributors in your business.
Overrides - Earn compensation on the teams of those who you assist in becoming leaders within Reliv International.
Cash Bonuses & Trips - Qualify for travel, merchandise rewards, and cash bonuses as you reach qualifying levels in your business.
Ambassador Program - Earn additional cash bonuses and paid travel when you help others succeed.

In my opinion, Reliv International is a very legitimate company. Reliv has been growing at tremendous rates for over 20 years, proving that they are a solid company that is here to stay. They offer consumable products, giving you the ability to build a substantial residual income from repeat business from loyal customers. It is important to remember that the methods of prospecting amongst your friends and family will still apply in building this business. With that being said, Reliv International offers great potential and rewards for your success.

As always, I wish you success in your search for a home based business for you and your family.

One lesson I learned from the group project was that when one is working in a group with a decent number of people problems will arise. In our case this came in the form of a group member not doing the work that was assigned to them. This was very frustrating to the rest of the group because his shoddy work reflected poorly on the whole group and several times we were stuck with rewriting his portion of the project. Having a member not do their share of the work was new to be and I had to struggle with the rest of the group on how to approach the situation as Christians. By working with the same group for a full semester we got to know each others strengths and weaknesses and then we could appropriately assign tasks to each member. The other main point I learned from the group project was that it takes a lot of work to take a company into another country. This became apparent as the different sections of the project became due. When we had finished all of the information needed for the group project I looked back on all we had done and I was amazed at the work we had put into the project and how it really showed by the amount of data we had gathered. Even though we did not use most of the information in our presentation, we did use all of the information to come to the conclusions that we presented.

I believe was had success in multiple areas of our group project but we had particular success in our financial information. Since it was our goal to come up with an investment opportunity that would make a lot of money we decided that it would take a large investment to generate a large return. We asked the investors for 141 million dollars and we would have been able to pay them back in 2 years with a 12% interest rate. Simply having the financial information fairly realistic and workable I believe was a great success for our team.

There is always room for improvement in a group project and our project was no exception. Our biggest problem was that we did not rehearse the presentation completely as a group, some of our members did meet and review the basics of our presentation but we were never able to get everyone together in time to properly rehearse our sales pitch. This resulted in a bit of confusion during the presentation which took away much of our professional feel. Aside from not practicing together I think that many members of my group did not practice enough on their own, my self included, and our presentation suffered when we rambled in front of the class because they had not gotten their information into a practiced succinct pitch.

Overall I thought our presentation was very professional but we could have taken it to the next level if we had practiced as a group several times and our individual members had taken more time to rehearse their own points. If I were to start this project all over I would make sure that my group had clear communication of what was expected of each member including quality of work and time at which the work should be turned in. Throughout the project I would like to see better communication between my team to make sure that everybody is on the same page. Lastly I would begin to prepare for the presentation in advance so that there would be plenty of time to rehearse as a group and perfect the presentation.

Throughout this class we learned many international business lessons and one of the earliest lessons was that the four Ps, product, price, place, and promotion must also be used at the international level. We also learned that knowing the culture is key to the success of business that are going international, and by giving us examples such as Disneyland in Japan versus Disneyland in France we saw real companies misunderstanding the culture and as a result losing millions of dollars. Learning the difference between P time and M time is very practical and could save large amounts of time if I ever go take my career into a P time society. The most crucial thing I believe I learned in this class was the importance of knowing your target market because this is what will make a business succeed or fail. Knowing ones market in a foreign country can be difficult because one must overcome different languages, social structures, and attitude patters. When I go into my future career I will remember the importance of knowing my target market and respecting their culture.

Over the past few years, there is a rapid level of development that is taking place in the field of the internet and large numbers of jobs are being generated.This jobs have given new lease of life to many people who are able to earn as much as thousands of dollars per month.

There is an international business online that is capable of providing such fabulous income. You will also be enjoying great level of freedom when you are involved in these kinds of jobs.

Some of the popular international businesses that are available online includes multi level marketing jobs, affiliate marketing and website designing jobs. There is also great potential in other niche areas such as SEO services.

Earning money through MLM

You have heard about people who are able to make lots of money through MLM. If you want to start earning a good amount of money through this method and achieve your target earning you have to have good dedication and work smart. One of the powerful factors that will be of good use to enable you to earn a considerable amount of money is to select a good product.

The product that is being chosen should be of great quality and should also be priced in such a manner that it will be of affordable range. Another useful aspect to be ascertained is that the product should be consumable. An effective force of sales network should be developed to attain good profits.

If you are not convinced with MLM, there are other opportunities such as affiliate marketing methods, website designing. In these kinds of jobs, you can work for any clients who are present in any part of the world. You can also work from any part of the world.

The major factor involved in the importance of English in international business is the acceptance of English as the international language of the business community for the purpose of uniformity in communication. Accepting English eliminates the need to explore an alternative language. If not English, then what language works better for the international business community?

English as an International Language

Perspective of English as Global Communication

If English as a global language "means that English has the widest distribution on the most continents, it is true. If it means that English is the language most utilized for international communication between and among language communities, it is true. But if it implies that English is the language of all the peoples of the globe, it is manifestly false" (Harris, 2001, 685). What may be good for the functionality of business may not be accepted as being good for the non-business community. With any new project or venture, research and development of the product or service should be done so that words used to communicate with the new market are not received with offense. Be sensitive and respectful concerning the decisions made in regard to the ways communication is used and worded.

Perspective of English as Learned Communication

"It is crucial that students are equipped with-and be aware of-both the linguistic and strategic repertoire that they can draw from in situations where they use English to communicate with those who do not share their first language and culture. In addition to the development of strategic competence, students also need to be reminded that communication is a two-way road. That is, making one's own message clear and trying to understand others is not the sole responsibility of non-native speakers or speakers of 'less standard' English varieties (however that is defined). Everyone is responsible for overall successful communication, whether it is international or not" (Matsuda and Friedrich, 2011, 340). Be mindful that words can have different meanings in different parts of the same country. Therefore, having words that have different meaning in different parts of the world is a reasonable possibility. There can also be different versions of English in different locations. Business English could also be different from the native English of an English-speaking country. Do not assume; technology has been made available to know for sure what is involved in any given business project or transaction.

English in International Business Communication

"In thinking about the impact of English on international business, there will be two effects: the intra-language effect and the inter-language effect. The intra-language effect would relate to the impact that English has in stimulating international business activity between English-speaking countries" (Hejazi and Ma, 2011, 153). If the native English of each of the two countries is slightly different, it still could have the feel of dealing with a non-English speaking country if time is not spent coming to an agreement defining business English. Business professionals new to a market will benefit by finding out how things work and use the same language the other market stakeholders are using.

"The inter-language, commonly referred to as "lingua franca", effect refers to the impact English would have on stimulating FDI activities between countries which have different official languages. The inter-language effect would have two dimensions: the first involves the use of English by a non-English-speaking country when carrying out international business with English-speaking countries; the second involves the situation in which English is used as a vehicle language between two non-English-speaking countries that use different official languages" (Hejazi and Ma, 2011, 153). Even though cooperation in using English in both cases may result in positive benefits for the countries involved, sensitivity in communication should be exercised to avoid miscommunication that may offend members of the markets involved. Good judgment with word choice is very important.

Conclusion

The importance of English in international business will depend on the purpose of the communication for which English is involved. Since the importance of English will vary depending on whether its use helps to complete business transactions, the deciding factor will depend of the opinion of the users concerning that fact. The success of communication in business will involve other factors. The more English works in communication for international business, the more it will be used. It will then be used because it is used by the people for whom businesses want to communicate.

References

Harris, C.D. (2001, October). English as International Language in Geography: Development and Limitation. The Geographical Review, 91, 4, 675-689.

Hejazi, W. and Ma, J. (2011). Gravity, the English language and international business. The Multinational Business Review, 19, 2, 152-167.

Matsuda, A. and Friedrich, P. (2011). English as an international language: a curriculum blueprint. World Englishes, 30, 3, 332-344.

The reason why some people carry out international business is to obtain the goods that they don't possess. In exchange with what you have, you will get possession of different commodities that are scarce in your country.

International trade has forced the most influential men in the world to organize meetings in which they have to settle the growing conflicts between countries which have carried out international business together in the past.

Many points have to be put into consideration if you are willing to carry out international business. The way you are going to communicate with your foreign business partners should cross your mind because the cultures are different.

Your brain should be working most of the time because the people you are going to deal with have been in the business for some good time. You must be able to balance your books perfectly because any slight mistake you make, you will lose out completely.

Nowadays the government has no say concerning the number of people who are supposed to trade outside the boarders. This has been brought about by the internet which has many sites dealing in international business. This makes it easy for the people to carry out their business without the knowledge of the government.

The different sites make it easy for the people to find out the number of products available on the market. This means that an individual finds it easy to make the best selection from which they make the deal and the goods are shipped into the country as soon as possible.

You can't just jump into this sort of business when you have no experience at it.Thus, you will profit from it as long as you have good connections with the best international business people on the globe.

International business will benefit you if you take some time to check out more information concerning the world markets and the different countries taking part. This will kick start you as you head for glory.

International Business Case: An Extreme Counter Offer

Dr. Ling, SingCast Cable's V.P. of Products, was in full control of the meeting. He sensed it was time to push for more concessions from CyberWave's negotiating team. CyberWave, the four year incumbent e-mail platform provider, had been very uncooperative in renegotiating the current contract. But with eWeb's (a Singapore start-up company) competitive offer on the table, Dr. Ling had a real opportunity to significantly cut his growing e-mail operational costs.

Dr. Ling looked directly at Mr. Hua, CyberWave's Sales Director, and stated in a quiet, gentle tone "Mr. Hua, we cannot afford any longer to supplement CyberWave's licensing fees for subscribers who sign up for free accounts. As you will see in the counter-proposal in front of you, we expect your company to charge nothing for these subscribers going forward, but of course we will pay for those subscribers who opt for a 'for fee' package."

Trying to mask his displeasure, Mr. Hua interjected "Dr. Ling, this is most difficult to comprehend."

Barely pausing, Dr. Ling did not respond and continued, "We are also leaning towards outsourcing the entire e-mail hosting operations to the selected vendor. We expect 'all' operational and technical costs to be included: hardware and software, telecommunications bandwidth, and any direct or indirect costs associated with the migration of the subscribers to the selected vendor's facility. Furthermore, we we will go through a formal RFP process if we cannot reach a mutual agreement that meets our satisfaction."

Dr. Ling glanced at the only American in the room. He was surprised that Mr. Hua's manager had not reacted. He knew he was asking for a lot, but it was his job to ask for as much as possible. Dr. Ling knew that incumbent vendors detested formal RFP's. He really did not have the time to orchestrate the RFP process, but he would do so if he thought he could put more pressure on CyberWave to lower their prices. For all he knew, CyberWave might just be desperate enough to agree.

Dr. Ling continued, "Mr. Hua, I am sure you are aware that a new vendor has emerged -- eWeb. They have crafted a very creative business proposition that many within our company view as a long-term business commitment. Obviously I am not at liberty to provide you with the details of their proposal, but I would encourage you to be very creative and aggressive with your business model. We are looking to award this contract for a three year term."

Dr.Ling was not sure how is subtle threat would be received. He liked CyberWave's technology and their ingenuity, but he thought that they were starting to take his business for granted.

He continued, "CyberWave and SingCast have had a good business relationship over the last four years. But as discussed in our last meeting, SingCast feels that your company has not been proactive enough in finding a business model to lower our total cost of ownership. If you value our business, now is the time to demonstrate your commitment."

Patrick Wilson, the American and Mr. Hua's manager, could not believe what he was hearing. Patrick could not remember the last time he heard such an "extreme" opening position for a contract re-negotiation with a customer. Threats, massive price concessions, and a competitive RFP was a lot to digest. It took all of his mental strength to refrain from interrupting, but today he was going to take his cues from Mr. Hua. Since Mr. Hua remained stone faced, he did the same. This was Patrick's second trip to Singapore. After twelve years of selling globally, he knew better than to let his "American emotion" take control of his tongue. Instead of talking, he decided to write Dr. Ling's points down on his note pad. He wrote:

SingCast Counter:

1. Charge nothing for any new subscriber that does not sign up for a "for fee" account

* Reaction - Ridiculous! We have no control of "how" SingCast charges for their packages. Whether they charge or not, a subscriber is using our software, we need to get paid.

2. Outsource entire e-mail operations

*Reaction - Could be a great opportunity to generate new fees and leverage services from a 3rd party outsourced sub-contractor

3. Outsourcing costs would have to include: hardware and software costs, monthly telecommunications bandwidth costs, and all costs associated with the migration of the consumer accounts

* Reaction - Need more fact finding. A model like this has revenue potential, but many risks (we could financially lose our shirts). Not sure how we would account for and control bandwidth costs

4. eWeb is the competitive vendor - Is Dr. Ling threatening us?

* Reaction - Very scary! The CEO, James Li, is an ex-CyberWave VP of Engineering. James was with the company for three years and was responsible for the e-mail solution product development. He took three of the best developers with him to start the company in Singapore.

* James knows our product inside and out and if he has built a new product - it is probably very good.

5. Three year term for the contract. Looking for a new business model that lowers total cost of ownership

* Reaction - Since he said new, probably safe to assume that we have to change all of our pricing terms and the model.

SingCast was Singapore's number two market share broadband vendor. After only two years from receiving its government license to offer consumer services, SingCast was on pace to surpass MediaOne, the market share leader for broadband connectivity and consumer e-mail subscribers. SingCast's multi-million dollar bet of wiring fiber-optic cable directly to consumers' homes was paying off. Consumers in droves were cutting the cord with MediaOne, primarily due to its poor customer service, high prices, and aging technology infrastructure. SingCast's stock was hot, up 42% in 9 months. The shareholders were pleased with SingCast's new strategic emphasis on consumers versus its previous strategy of primarily targeting enterprises.

Dr. Ling was uncomfortable with all of the praise and attention he was receiving. He was the visionary leader who convinced SingCast's CEO and board to bet big on wiring the fiber-optic cable directly to consumers' homes. But with the corporate success, two significant challenges were emerging. First, SingCast's server farm was not keeping pace with subscriber growth as SingCast underestimated just how popular their solution would be with the Singapore consumers. Second, the initial contract pricing model with CyberWave was netting CyberWave millions of dollars of licensing fees for "new" subscribers who could sign up for the SingCast service for free.

Dr. Ling knew early in the project that the licensing fees paid to CyberWave could become a financial issue, but he lost the argument with the marketing department. They were adamant that the only way to get MediaOne subscribers to change vendors was to offer "free" accounts. Hence, hundreds of thousands of subscribers had converted their basic personal email account, but less than the predicted amount opted for the "for fee" packages. To the financial markets and shareholders, the appearance of all these new subscribers was a positive, but in reality SingCast profit margins on these subscribers was very small and the cost of acquisition very high.

Case Questions:

1. Construct two possible reactions to Dr. Ling's opening offer and support each with pro's and con's of each reaction.

i. List new possible pricing models.

ii. List ideas to control costs.

iii.Suggest new ideas for Dr. Ling to propose to the marketing department regarding SingCast product packages.

2. List two possible approaches in dealing with eWeb Wizard and support each with pro's and con's.

3. List any relevant issues that may pertain to this customer being in Singapore.

Safety is a concern no matter where you travel in the world. Of course, some countries and cities will be safer than others will, but it is always important to be alert and to keep personal safety in mind when you travel.
Before You Leave Home

Before you go, make a photocopy of your passport and visas. Keep them with you, but separate from your actual passport. Also leave a set at home with someone you can contact easily. If you lose your passport, go in person to the nearest American Embassy or Consulate, and apply for a new one. If your passport has been stolen, file a police report, as you will need it when you reapply for a new passport. Having a copy of your passport will save time. If you are traveling with another person, have them come with you to help verify that you are an American citizen. Bring your U.S. driver's license or other identification with you. If the consulate cannot verify your identification, you'll be given a limited validity passport and when you get back to the U.S. you will need to reapply.

Travel Safety

It is important to be on guard at airports, train and bus stations. These are areas where petty theft can easily occur. These areas are easily accessed by the public and have a lot of activity, which helps a thief work unobserved. Interestingly, most business people report that it isn't the locals that you need to worry about, it's other people who may be traveling. Don't assume that a country generally perceived as safe, such as Japan, has no crime problems and let down your guard.

If you have luggage, use covered luggage tags, and use an office instead of a home address. Lock your suitcase before putting it into overhead bins and keep your purse with you when you go to the rest room on the airplane or train. Don't wear loud jewelry that will make you stand out as a wealthy target or tourist to a thief. It is always best to blend in as much as you can without calling attention to yourself. Some women suggest that traveling dressed down is a safer way to go. However, others caution that you may not be viewed or treated as a professional if you are not dressed in smart attire when you travel.

Hotel Safety

You can reduce your risk of theft and assault by staying in a quality hotel that has safety features such doormen, bellmen, and night staff. Choose popular, business travelers' hotels in tourist areas, not in residential areas where the streets tend to quiet down in the evening. Some women recommend staying in a hotel that is large so there are people actively coming and going and you won't be alone. Others prefer a small hotel where the lobby is under the watchful eye of the desk clerk and where a loiterer would be obvious.

When you check in, make sure that your room number is not announced for nearby guests to hear. Lock your valuables in the hotel safety deposit box or the safe in your room. Use the peephole in your door to help identify visitors. If someone knocks on your door at night stating they are night staff, call the hotel lobby to confirm and verify their purpose before opening the door. Most modern hotels have voicemail. If you are not expecting a late night call, let the caller leave a voicemail message. You can call the person back; it is worth a two-minute delay to ensure it is not a crank caller.

Street Safety

Being Followed

I have received reports from women on business in London, Paris, Tokyo, Rome and other cities that they have been followed by men they do not know. Since you do not know the intent of the man following you in such a situation, it is best not to interact with the person but try to lose him as quickly as possible.

Here are some tips to avoid being followed and how to confront someone who is following you:

o Walk in populated areas so that you have other people around you.

o If you are being followed, turn off into a department store, a hotel, or other public area where you might find someone to help you if needed.

o Try ignoring the individual. He may eventually go away. If your follower knows that it bothers you, he may turn it into a game.

o Take a taxi to get away, even if it is just for a few blocks.

o Confront the person with a stare-down if you think that will cause him to run off (although if not done aggressively, many times this will encourage conversation).

Pickpockets and Petty Theft

Many businesswomen who travel internationally have experienced petty theft, such as purse-snatchings and pickpockets on the street, in restaurants, and in dark garages. Some cities have more incidents than others do. Here are some tips on how to avoid a pickpocket:

o Avoid dense crowds, as this is usually where a pickpocket will linger.

o Crowded buses, train stations and airports are prime spots for pickpockets. If you are wearing pants in these places, keep your money in your front pocket.

o On sidewalks, do not walk close to street traffic, as passing motorbike thieves often snatch purses.

o Sling your handbag over your shoulder and body so that it is more secure and harder to snatch.

o Do not hang your handbag on the inside of a restroom door handle or set it on the floor where it can be easily lifted.

o In a restaurant, wrap your handbag around your leg or keep it on your lap. Do not hang it over the back of your chair.

o Study city maps in your room before you venture out so that you have a clear sense of where you are going and don't look like a tourist.

o Be aware that people may be watching you dial your phone-card number in a phone booth. Such people may memorize the numbers for later use.

o Avoid ATM's in lonely areas. If it does not appear to be safe, exchange money at the hotel to avoid risk.

There seems to be an unending debate about the validity of pass-up programs, also known as the "Aussie Two."  This method of compensation appears to be widely used in "top tier" marketing programs such as Liberty League International.  But how does this Aussie Two-up work and can it actually help you as an internet marketer?

A typical pass-up program such as Liberty League International will cost you anywhere between $1000-$15,000 or more to join.  The initial start-up cost will depend upon the company and the particular packages they offer.  When a person starts in a business like this the main goal will be to market the products or business package and teach others to do the same.

But that is where the simplicity ends and the confusion begins.  Liberty League international requires each new member to "pass up" their first two sales to their sponsor. What this means is that when you do manage to make your first sale, you will then be required to give up or "pass up" that sale and commission to your sponsor. The person who you made your first sale to will then become enrolled by your sponsor and not yourself and you will have nothing to do with their future success in the business.  You will repeat this with your second sale, passing up the sale and commission to your sponsor, so that work you did to sign up your first two members will be of no benefit to yourself directly.

So because of the fact that you passed-up your first two Liberty League International sales you are still behind instead of what could have happened had you been able to keep those first two sales to make your investment back!

The next step in a pass-up program is that after you have passed up your first two sales, you then "break away" from your sponsor and are now qualified to keep your next sales.  One of the main challenges with this program is that if you are new to this industry and in need of training to get started and have success, your sponsor will no longer be motivated to help you because they will no longer benefit financially from helping you to succeed.  Of course they will reassure you that they will keep helping and coaching you, but like any other business person they will put the majority of their efforts into the activities that will give them the most financial return!

So as you continue you will get to keep the first two sales of everyone that you bring into your team.  But what if one of your new people happens to be extremely motivated like myself, selling an average of one package a day or more?  You will still only receive the first two of that person's sales instead of other compensation plans which would be able to pay you on each and every sale that your team members make!

While Liberty League International is not a scam, it is the sort of program that only truly experienced marketers are likely to succeed with and which would be very difficult for any newcomer to the industry.  I recommend finding a program with a business and compensation structure that encourages teamwork where you will be continually supported and able to achieve significant success with phenomenal training and support!

An emerging technological trend, gamification is the process of integrating game dynamics into an online portal, web content, services or campaign. Essentially a brand new concept, it utilizes game mechanics in a non-gaming enterprise, with the purpose of boosting audience engagement and driving brand loyalty.

Also considered as a playful yet intelligent way of solving enterprise problems and achieving desired business results, gamification may consist of the use of badges, progress bars, or virtual prizes. When integrated into an organization's process portfolio, intelligent gamification is expected to change behavior, trigger innovation and alter engagement altitudes, effecting high level of participation.

The term "gamification," is dangled as the next frontier in mobile and web marketing. The concept is based on the principle that the present and younger generation is more attuned to games as compared with the earlier age groups. Currently, gamification is adopted in a broad range of applications, such as employee programs; wellness or personal activities; online shopping; financial services; primary education; project management; extreme sports; as well as loyalty and brand sustainability programs.

A recent Gartner, Inc. report is predicting that by 2014, "gamified services" will become the name of the game for customer retention and marketing of consumer goods. By 2015, over 50 percent of organizations will be routing their business and software strategies toward the gamification of their innovation processes. With over 70 percent of Global 2000 firms having one gamified application at the least, the significance of the concept will be tantamount to that of eBay, Facebook and Amazon.

Discussions during the September 2011 Gamification Summit in New York also ascertained that gamification is used to improve performance of employees. Startups and large businesses that are seeking to attract, train, retain or incentivize employees are increasingly turning to the trend, and are involving virtual badges and rewards as innovative ways of evaluating top-employee performance.

Research firm Upstream Systems found that 78 percent of the 100 London-based companies it polled believe in the merits of utilizing gamification techniques for campaigns, and 64 percent of them were convinced that the tactic will enhance their relationship with customers. However, only 27 percent of these organizations actually utilize gamification in the enterprise, as they are unclear about what it is and what it does.

Pushing for the integration of gamification into companies' business and software strategies, a network of websites representing the largest gamification community created Gamification.org, a website aimed at providing information resources and services regarding the trend. It is set to introduce Gamify.com, a project focusing on the creation of virtual spaces to be discovered and explored to find interesting things and people.

Involving the usage of tools to create playful methods of customer interaction with respect to a brand, gamification is believed to add value to online and international business marketing efforts. It allows businesses to involve customer and crowd source innovation in a much more engaging fashion. In this regard, enterprise architects are increasingly incorporating gamification processes as an essential part of planning for commercial context.

Before you decide to start an international business opportunity, you should analyze a number of areas. Many home based business expectations have possible overseas potential.

Vigilantly consider all the aspects associated with such an endeavor. All the options should be weighed like it is done with any new business venture. Only there will be much more to investigate. Given below are some points that are essential to consider before embarking upon such an international home based business.

The start-up capital:

The first and the most important thing to look at are your financial resources. If you do not have enough funds required as start-up capital, you'll need to find the funds from some other sources, like venture capital, business partner, loans but only with caution. Always remember that the start-up money is crucial for your business to take off and to keep going until it is time for you to start drawing personal profit out of your business.

Create a buffer:

Do not anticipate immediate benefits from your international business opportunity. Initially the going may be tough. You need to remain self-motivated through the difficult times. Besides, you will need to keep some money separately as a cushion to tide you and your family over the pre-profit period which could last for a year, two or more.

This is essential since it may take a long time to break even. You should prepare and apprise your family about the financial hurdles that they may have to face in the days ahead.

Be prepared for a long-drawn-out journey:

Any new home based business demands a lot of hard work and a great deal of obligations towards not only your clients but also your family. Starting a business is certainly not as easy as many online scammers claim. Besides being motivated, you will need the support of your family and friends. Your physical and emotional capabilities will be put to the test.

After you have done a thorough research on the kind of international business opportunity you will undertake, be prepared for a long-drawn-out battle. You are going to stay with your business for a considerable period of time. Therefore it is of paramount importance to thoroughly analyze all the pros and cons before taking a plunge. Being strong on why you want a business of your own rather than a job, being lazar focused and specific on this goal, will really help carry you through the growth all businesses go through.

Know the nitty-gritty of the business:

It is necessary to know about the taxation rules and copyright laws of an international venture. Find out if there is any restriction from your local of enforcing authorities. Example: the gambling websites might be legal in some countries but it might be illegal in yours.

You'll need to dig out a lot of information before you actually decide to spend your time and money on any international business opportunity.

Design a clear plan about the advertising of your product or service on the Internet or other media. If you are thinking of taking an international franchise, look at its stature. Make sure that you do not associate with dishonest and dubious companies.

You must conduct an investigation on the following:

o Availability of the market for the product or service that you propose to sell
o What are import and export laws of where you plan to market
o What will be the market be like in four to five years time - do some research
o The kind of competition you will face in your proposed area of specialization

You may not have thought before of your business going international, but in today's market, many companies that were only in the US now market overseas. It's a bold new world out there and available for your expansion.

The above-mentioned steps will guide you to achieve success in your international business opportunity. Research as due diligence, focused business plan, unending commitment and passion for your chosen sector of home based business and lead you down the golden walk of success.

One day, a delegation from Dubai visited Company H. Mr. L, the chief representative of the company, received them. As the negotiation went on, Mr. L felt confused and bored because the Arabs asked for a break every hour. Then they went to toilet to wash their hands and faces. When they came back, they knelt down to pray. As there was no towel in the toilet, the Arabs prayed with wet hands and faces. Mr. L found himself in a dilemma, because he did not know whether he should withdraw from the scene or not.

When it was time for lunch, the Arabs were treated to a rich dinner. When everyone was seated, the waitress started introducing the different dishes in English to the Arab visitors. They all looked surprised and pleased at the variety. When the waitress mentioned some specially cooked pork, the smiles disappeared from all those visitors' face and all of them looked angry. No one said a word. Quickly they stood up and left the dinner without saying goodbye to anyone, though there were some important Chinese local guests present. The same day, this Dubai delegation left the city without notifying Company H.

In this case, the staff in Company H is unfamiliar with the Muslim culture. Thus a sharp conflict destroyed their business. In Muslim culture, people pray for five times every day; they are extremely sensitive to pig or any topic related to pig and do not eat pork in their life time. Therefore, people should be very careful when doing business with people from Muslim culture.

From this case, we can also learn that people in doing business are often faced with employees, partners and colleagues of different cultural background. Multiculturalism in the workplace has increased, thus cultural conflict becomes very common. It means depression, serious physical reactions, anger, aggression toward the new culture, and even total failure. All of these reactions would obviously hamper cross-cultural communication. Therefore, to be successful in cross-cultural communication, we should know not only our own cultural rules but also other's cultural rules. Knowing cultural differences, business people could manage the problem of cultural conflict and the consequent frustration.

When traveling abroad for business, there are several more essentials than usual that you should bear in mind than when traveling domestic. Learning about cultural expectations is the key to successful international travel. Chiefly, you should take time to acquaint yourself with the cultural norms and expectations of the country you're traveling to, in order to avoid starting off on the wrong foot with any inadvertently negative first impressions. For instance, knowing when and where to tip versus when and where not to, is vital. If you obliviously fail to tip the maitre d' when necessary, you could cause a negative impact on your stay, while if you offer a well-meaning tip in China or Tahiti, you're likely to offend your recipient. Knowing when and where to - and when and where not to - offer or accept gifts or food or payment on one's behalf is also pretty important. Sometimes, the matters that are of the greatest importance may be matters you'd never think to look into specifically, so be sure to check in with other travelers from your home country who have visited your destination, for a sense of their past experiences and their guidance.

Make sure to develop a plan for contacting home. Before departure, contact your cell phone carrier to determine whether your phone will still operate overseas if you replace your phone's SIM card with one from your travel destination, what your international call rates will be like, whether there are any international roaming plans that you can add to your current plan in order to keep costs down, or whether there are any other options you could consider for staying in touch while you're gone. Otherwise, you may want to acquire an international travel phone, which you can buy or rent at a discount with a little shopping around. Other options you may want to explore and compare for pricing are international calling cards or an inexpensive internet phone service like Skype. Make sure that important colleagues and clients will be aware of the temporary changes in how you may be reached, if there are any who may vitally need that information.

Since you definitely don't want to leave anything important behind at home when it comes to international travel - seeing as how it can be much more difficult to acquire the things you need in another country than in your own if you happen to forget something - make yourself a special packing checklist for international travel to keep on hand, stored in your computer, for when international travel plans arise. Be sure to include on this list items like passport, driver's license, visa (if required), and travel adapters.

Another essential thing to do is to cover your financial bases. Be sure to bring along credit cards from multiple providers, since some locations will accept one type of card but not another. American Express is most commonly welcome abroad, and it also offers convenience when it comes to currency exchanges since foreign AmEx offices will allow you to unload your foreign currency there to pay toward your bill, whether you have a balance or not. However, in some parts of Europe and Asia, Visa is accepted in more places than American Express - yet some other places will only accept Master Card - so be prepared. It is also probably best to keep some methods of payment in a separate place from your others in case anything gets lost or stolen. Credit cards can be extremely difficult to replace while traveling in another country. However, do leave behind, in a safe place, credit cards that you know you won't be utilizing overseas, such as store credit cards. That way, if anything does get lost or stolen, there will be fewer items you'll need to worry about replacing upon your return home. Common sense ideas such as these can help you to stand out as a valuable employee and lead to corporate recognition in the future.

When you are coming to a new country, for work or vacation, you will for sure find things that will cause you to react. I am no exception, I still recall when I first came to Bangkok and witnessed the business women heading for their offices sitting on the backseat on two-wheeled motorcycles.

For an overprotected Swede it was so different to see and initially I considered it as totally mad.

But then I started to ask myself two questions every time I faced similar situations. These questions have helped me accept and enjoy the international environment and today things have to be completely dangerous before I react. These two questions are:

Is my home country (in my case Sweden) so perfect about everything?

As long as it works, and apparently it does, isn't it OK then?

Beside these questions I have also the consciousness that in a new country I am always guest and regardless from my level of tolerance, I should not expect to understand exactly everything.

Another useful knowledge is that you have to say things in different ways to different nationalities. What means one thing for one nationality can mean something completely different to someone else. "Put on the life-jackets and jump into the water," said the captain of a ship that was about to sink and no passenger obeyed his order. The passengers where namely international businessmen and for them the order meant something else. Slightly frustrated the captain returned to the bridge and explained the dilemma for the crewmembers. "Captain, I will take care of it," said one of the officers and left. Some minutes later he returned to the bridge and reported to the captain that all the passengers had now put on the life-jackets and jumped into the water.
"Well done," said the captain. "But what did you say to them?"

"To the German I said that "it's an order, to put on the life-jacket and jump into the water."
"To the Englishman I said "it's a sport," to the Frenchman I said "it's a fashion," to the Russian I said "it's revolutionary,"and to the Italian I said "it's forbidden."
"Ok," said the captain. "But what did you say to the American?"
"You are fully insured."

With this article I have given you some ideas how to deal with international business. As a member of an international business community, I have seen many evidences that these ideas works. Similar to the passengers on the ship, we use the same tools and achieve similar goals while we say things in different ways. And the most important difference is that our "ship" doesn't sink. It's is sailing safely and successfully over the ocean of success.

Arbonne International is a California based multi level marketing company that specializes in a variety of skin care and cosmetic products. With over 200 skin care products for both men, women and babies Arbonne has created great market position in a highly competitive industry. With 20 years experience in the industry and annual sales now exceeding $35 million a year Arbonne has become a major player.

The company uses a network-marketing platform to distribute and sell their merchandise and by all accounts the compensation plan presents real potential for distributor success. To start an Arbonne business costs a minimum of about $35 This will get you started selling products and earning money, however the big dollars in Arbonne are in building you business.

If you want to make big money in any network marketing venture you need to recruit and build a downline. While you can achieve success with warm market leads the fastest way to grow your Arbonne International business is by recruiting online. Your probably thinking, but Arbonne doesn't allow us to do that.

To sell products online Arbonne requires reps to purchase a customised company website. While it may look great, replicated sites with duplicate content do not get ranked in the search engines, meaning they are not going to generate traffic outside of links developed through your advertising. So unless you have a big pay per click marketing budget your going to struggle.

Your probably thinking what's the point of having one, but rather than looking at what appears to be a negative, lets look at it from a positive professional online marketing perspective. If Arbonne International insists you must sell through their replicated sites then you absolutely need to have one and you definitely need one. Here's why and this is how you market effectively online without breaking any of Arbonne International's online marketing policies.

If your marketing your Arbonne International opportunity online and your sending people straight to your Arbonne opportunity page, you're doing it all wrong. Every top MLM marketer will tell you directing people straight to your company website does not work. Marketers who are serious about their business, including the big earners in Arbonne International build their teams using attraction marketing.

Attraction marketing systems operate outside of your Arbonne international business and are designed to brand you as an MLM leader. The truth is people join MLM leaders not MLM companies. Understand this and learn the tricks of the trade and you could soon be signing more distributors than you ever thought possible. This is what separates the big earners in from those who struggle.

Given the strict policies of Arbonne with regard to online marketing and understanding that Arbonne's corporate, duplicated websites don't rank in the search engines or attract traffic you really need a marketing system above and beyond your Arbonne website. You need a separate system to generate website traffic and capture online leads. Once you have captured leads through such a system you can easily direct them to your corporate website. This is not only how you get around Arbonne's policies but it is also the strategy used by every MLM leader I know to build massive distributor teams

By using a personally branded attraction marketing system that brands you not your business you are not breaching the company's strict online marketing policies. Simply put, attract people to you first, use the system to develop trust then send your prospects to your Arbonne International website.

Attraction marketing may sound complicated but in practice it is not difficult at all. Anyone can do it with the right tools and strategies. Using attraction marketing you could easily be generating 30 - 50 leads a day for your Arbonne International business within the next 90 days. The simple truth is these are the types on numbers you need to be pulling if you really want success.

MLM Statistics show that at a maximum 3 out of every 100 people you show your MLM opportunity will join. I ask you how many people have you shown your Arbonne International business this week and how many distributors did you sign?

Max International, a network marketing company, was launched in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 2006. The founders of this company are Greg Fulton, Fred Ninow and Kevin Scott. The company has enlisted itself as a part of the health and fitness industry. It is known to make top-quality health and wellness nutritional products to cater to the needs of the people. The products are to be marketed well by the distributors of Max International Business. The company was launched with the aim to provide high standard products consisting of good quality ingredients.

The array of products

Max International offers a range of nutritional supplements and MAXGXL is regarded as its flagship product. It is a supplement that empowers the body with a good dose of glutathione, effectively controlling the body's production of glutathione. By slowing down the rate of glutathione production in the body, the supplement acts as a cardiovascular support, providing more tenacity to the immune system. A person is infused with lots of energy. He becomes animated with his concentration increasing manifold.

Max N-Fuse, a nutritional supplement, containing a fine blend of herbs, vitamins and minerals, is a popular product. It activates our cells to carry out the cellular functions efficiently.

Another product which is popular among the potential consumers is the weight loss supplement, Max WLX. This supplement delivers celeptin, a hormone, which acts as the communicator in transferring the message directly to the brain to make a person know that he had his fill and cannot eat anymore.

The compensation plan

No other network marketing company can provide so much profit to the distributors other than Max International. You can start your business relationship with the company with $49 at one level or with $559 at the other level. The distributors receive a handsome twenty-five percent discount on retail. The distributors are also entitled to get different sorts of discounts for marketing and selling the products when they scale up different levels in the business.

Max International has a hybrid binary compensation plan. In this model, the downlines, or the new associates that you recruit for the business organization, need to work hard to have regular sales. The increase and decrease of the overall commissions of the distributors depend on the sales of their downline.

The procedure to make money and establish the company's credibility

The best way that you can earn profit is by buying the products at wholesale prices and selling them at the retail price. As distributors you need to recruit people to the organization, build a long chain of downline. By using the products yourself you can expose the potentiality of Max International Business to the new associates and prospective recruits. The money-back guarantee in case of joining or buying products acts as a great stimulus for Max International Business to flourish.

The bonus

Max International Business rewards the most efficient person working to help the company grow, on a monthly basis via Global Bonus pool. The other perks offered by the company are on the bonuses on car, travel, health insurance, wholesale, retail and other areas.

The global nature of business and finance means that studying a business degree becomes an international experience. One of the most recognised and reputable learning environments to study an international business degree is London.

Behind every brilliant career is the right choice of university and degree, and London-based business institutions offer a great blend in terms of learning facilities, expert teaching, professional placements and the opportunity to broaden your horizons and study abroad.

It is hard to imagine a better location for a business school, with close links to the City of London, arguably the world's leading financial centre. On the other hand, students have the infinite variety of London's cultural, entertainment and sporting possibilities.

Every year, students come to London to study an international business degree, with great access to all the support and facilities enjoyed by UK-born students. Meanwhile, in today's global business environment international exposure gives undergraduates a vital edge in the job market.

London-based business education degrees give students the chance to spend as much as a year studying at partner institutions, in far flung destinations such as Hong Kong, Singapore and America. They also welcome incoming exchange students which creates a vibrant, multicultural hub, offering a different perspective on life and business.

There are an enviable number of undergraduate courses equipping students for the increasingly competitive world of financial markets, and offering flexibility to reflect the speed of change in business every day.

Business graduates are employed across a broad range of professions, including investment, accountancy, sales, marketing, stockbroking, foreign currency dealing and management consultancy.

We all know that if your business grows large enough that someday you will have to expand past the borders of your city, state or country. If you run a business online you know your customers can come from anywhere. When you enter the World Market you compete with other entrepreneurs all over the planet, and this can be quite humbling, as competitors pop-up all over the net. The world is connected and everything affects everything else.

Now then, I would like to introduce a universal truth about the reality of pollution. You see, when businesses pollute that pollution, just like your online competition does not stop just because there is a man-made borderline drawn in the sand or an ocean separating the land. Your world-wide competition may have an advantage over you; such as cheaper labor or perhaps lax environmental regulations. Still, you are affected no matter where they are.

Currently, California has set limits to the part-per-million (ppm) of pollution particulate in the air. When it increases California will increase the regulations on transportation items, business facilities, and even BBQs in the local park (no kidding). But did you know that the pollution from China is blowing across the Pacific Ocean into California increasing the ppm in the air, thus, even if California curbs all their pollution, China's pollution is growing and the California Air cannot get any cleaner, even if some day in the future they stop all commerce.

California has warned their Chinese counterparts that this pollution is unacceptable and if it continues China may not be able to unload Chinese products at California Ports, much to the chagrin of the Longshoremen's Union and the railroad workers unions. You can see how international business relationships with our preferred trade nations are tested to the limits and why folks have discussed a world-wide carbon credit trading scheme to solve this dilemma, without more political impasse at the WTO?

It turns out that the Chinese are very good entrepreneurs, and one would have thought living in such a stressed out and strict society in the past, would have prevented that from happening. But times have changed and the Chinese are actually often considered better capitalists than the people of the United States of America. There have been many entrepreneurs rise from rags to riches and become billionaires in China.

However, the greatest thing that is happen now and coming faster than ever before, growing at an exponential rate is the rise of China's small business class. They are starting small businesses online, small businesses on the streets, and many are fearless in their pursuit of profits. This is a great time for China to capitalize on their small business strength.

Many people do not realize it but in the United States of America 75% of all the people are employed by small-business and 10% of our population owns a small-business. America is small-business, and it really is the backbone of our economy. Some people believe that the large corporations are the ones that make our economy so strong, but that is not really true. It is the small businesses that make the difference.

Any time you want your economy to be strong US foster small business. And small local-businesses keep the money circulating locally, unlike many large corporate multinational conglomerates. China is doing a very wise thing by promoting its small-business-class and as they grow, so too will China's economy until one day China surpasses United States of America a GDP. This will be in about 20 years or less. Please consider all this.

"To have respect for ourselves guides our morals; and to have a deference for others governs our manners." Lawrence Sterne, Irish novelist & satirist (1713 - 1768)

Etiquette, or good manners, is an important part of our day to day lives. Whether we realise it or not we are always subconsciously adhering to rules of etiquette. Much of the time these are unwritten; for example giving up your seat to a lady or elderly person, queuing for a bus in an orderly fashion according to who arrived first or simply saying "please" or "thank you". All are examples of etiquette; complex unwritten rules that reflect a culture's values.

Etiquette accomplishes many tasks. However, the one noteworthy function that etiquette does perform is that it shows respect and deference to another. By doing so it maintains good interpersonal relationships. Ultimately, it could be argued, etiquette is about making sure that when people mix together there are rules of interaction in place that ensure their communication, transaction or whatever it may be goes smoothly.

We all now how we or others feel when a lack of etiquette is shown. If someone jumps the queue, does not thank you for holding the door open for them or forgets to shake your hand, we naturally feel disrespected and perturbed.

International Business Etiquette

Keeping the above points in mind, now consider the complexities of working on the international stage. Modern business is global and demands people travel to foreign countries and mix with foreign clients, colleagues or customers. Each one of those cultures will also have their own etiquette rules, many of them unwritten. When two or more different cultures mix, it is easy for small etiquette mistakes to be made that could have negative consequences. Just as you may have felt annoyed when a foreign businessman did not shake your hands upon greeting you, imagine how your Chinese client must have felt when you wrote on his business card or your Indian colleague reacted when you flatly rejected an offer of a meal. Sometimes, not understanding the etiquette of another culture means you show a lack of manners and as Lawrence Sterne said, a lack of deference. This can and does lead to soured relationships, lost deals and in the end poor business results. Anyone working on the international stage needs to understand international business etiquette.

International business etiquette manifests in many shapes and sizes. Throughout the world people from different cultures have varying etiquette rules around areas such as personal space, communication, gift giving, food, business meetings and much more. For those wanting to make a good impression and understanding of international business etiquette is crucial. By way of introducing some of the key areas within international business etiquette we shall look at the following common areas...

Business Card Etiquette:

When you exchange business cards (even if you exchange them) do you simply pass it over and forget about it? In many countries the business card has certain etiquette rules. For example in the Arab world you would never give or receive a business card with your left hand. In China and Japan you should try and use both hands to give and receive. In addition it is always good etiquette to examine the card and make a positive comment on it. Whereas in the UK it may be OK to sling the business card into a pocket, in many countries you should always treat it with much more respect such as storing it in a business card holder.

The Etiquette of Personal Space:

How close do you stand to people? Is it impolite to touch somebody? What about gender differences? In the Middle East you may get very touchy-feely with the men, yet one should never touch a woman. A slap on the back may be OK in Mexico but in China it is a serious no-no. Touch someone on the head in Thailand or Indonesia and you would have caused great insult. Without an appreciation of international business etiquette, these things would never be known.

The Etiquette of Gift Giving:

Many countries such as China and Japan have many etiquette rules surrounding the exchange of business gifts. International business etiquette allows you an insight into what to buy, how to give a gift, how to receive, whether to open in front of the giver and what gifts not to buy. Great examples of gifts to avoid are anything alcoholic in Muslim countries, anything with four of anything in Japan and clocks in China.

The Etiquette of Communication:

Some cultures like to talk loudly (US and Germany), some softly (India and China); some speak directly (Holland and Denmark) others indirectly (UK and Japan); some tolerate interrupting others while speaking (Brazil) others not (Canada); some are very blunt (Greece) and some very flowery (Middle East). All will believe the way they are communicating is fine, but when transferred into an international context this no longer applies. Without the right international business etiquette it is easy to offend.

By way of conclusion we can state that etiquette helps maintain good relations with people. When dealing with people from a shared culture, everyone knows the rules and there is not much to think about. Those that lack etiquette are branded as uncouth and rude. However, this is not the same when working on the international stage. Someone may very well come across as being rude through a lack of etiquette but this may be because in their culture that behaviour is normal. As a result international business etiquette is a key skill for those wanting to be successful when working abroad. Through a great appreciation and understanding of others' cultures you build stronger and longer lasting business relationships.

International Business is a multi-billion dollar industry in the United Kingdom alone and international trade is increasing by the year. If you think your future lies in the international trade industry, here are some tips to help you establish your own international business successfully.

The first step towards doing international business is deciding on what you want to do. You will need to decide on what product or item you are going to trade in and the countries you want to trade with. If you are not sure about these two things, contact the embassies and consulates of different countries and research the trade that takes place between your country and theirs to help you identify the commodity that is most in demand. Most consulates will be based in the capital city of most nations, but you are also likely to find information you need on their website online.

Research your own governmental laws to ensure that there are no trading restrictions with the country you are interested to trade with. Should there be restrictions make sure that your plans comply with them. Study your country's licensing requirements, if any. A number of commodities require a license to trade, and depending upon the product that you have chosen, this may apply to you as well. You should also be well informed on the tax procedure involved for your international business and may have to contact your country's taxation department for any registration requirement they may have for an international import-export business.

Once you are aware of the regulations and licensing requirements involved in your international business, evaluate payment methods that you would need to use to transact financially and ensure that you choose a payment method convenient for both you and your international partners. Ensure that you understand exactly how they work and the risks involved.

Consider using a custom broker. Ideally, issues that may arise at country borders are best handled by experts who know the local authorities and the procedure involved. If you are considering an export business, you may also want to consider using a freight forwarding service. The service provided by freight forwarding agents include shipping and custom of goods exported to other countries.

Lastly, participate in international trade forums, use resources like the International Chamber Of Commerce website and locate and use other resources online that will come in handy in international import-export trade. Study the business culture of the country that you wish to transact for better business relations.

Get sufficient insurance coverage for your goods involved in international trade. Finally, remember that you need to be patient. International trade does not yield results immediately. Once you have set up the basic infrastructure and established contacts on both sides, it may even take you months to earn your first dollar from international import-export trade.

New business consultants are often near sighted (can't see anything far away) with their belief in their ability to reach and positively impact companies around the world. That's usually because they falsely believe that much of the world is too far behind the technology curve or that many countries have different laws, cultures and business practices they do not know and that scares them.

Let's take each one of the fears mentioned above one at a time, first is the false belief that other countries are too far behind the technology curve.

OK let's say that might be true for a percentage of the world, there's still the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and Europe as well. Each of these countries has a strong knowledge and fluency in the English language. In addition you will find each of these countries also have high speed internet, credit cards (so you can get paid online), and millions of prospects each.

Next how to overcome the differences in laws, culture, and business practices. Once you have started a conversation with a prospect, either through email or a request for a phone consultation you can narrow what their needs are and than just ask them.

Ask them if there is any business practices within this project that they know of that are different than those in the U.S. If they say yes, than ask them what they are, next ask them what they believe is the best way to address theses issues. If they offer you suggestions you're in business, if they say they don't know, inform them that you may need to consult experts in those areas in which you have no expertise.

This will not weaken your credibility; if anything it shows them that you are the right person. You are a true international business consultant, someone who understands the complexities involved with international business. Moreover you will have demonstrated your ability to identify those areas in which you need to bring in other team members, to provide the best results you can for the client.

Remember the client wants results; they don't usually care how you get them just that you get them. Just stay legal and give what you promise, and do it with confidence of someone who can do the job even if you don't have the answer to every problem, let them know you know how to get it. If you do that you'll succeed beyond your wildest dreams.

Max International is a company founded on the mission of bringing health and nutritional supplements to the consumer via distribution using the network marketing business model. The founders were passionate about the maintenance and improvement of health and they had a vision to bring beneficial health products to the global market place.

The group of founders for Max International entered the network marketing landscape because they wanted to change the lives of thousands through their products not only physically, but financially as well. They knew they had a product that would have mass appeal and health-changing benefits.

Max International entered the market place with a product called MAX GXL, which is beneficial in increasing an individual's intracellular Glutathione. This extremely powerful antioxidant, Glutathione, is most effective with protecting the cells in the body resulting in increased energy and boosting your immune system. It has been determined through various studies that once an individual reaches the age of 20 years old, Glutathione decreases 12% every ten years. What can cause a further decrease are high levels of stress, illness, infection and the environment. In addition to Glutathione, this company has created many other health-related products.

This company has chosen a binary compensation plan, which allows a distributor to build a two-sided organization. In other words, you can build two sales organizations simultaneously. In the network marketing industry, a binary compensation plan is typically illustrated by having two legs within your organization; one on your left and one the right side of your business. Each organization is called a "leg". The payout for the less productive leg is 10% of the sales, which is paid on a monthly basis. In addition, Max International has a seven-level pay structure, bonuses, company pools, top salesperson bonuses, and the standard commissions earned on the profits of the retail products sold.

Max International can be an excellent opportunity for someone who enjoys the network marketing business model and has the ability to recruit many people and can sell various products. However, if recruiting friends, family and associates is uncomfortable, I would continue to look for alternate ways to create income in your life.

With the huge amounts of business transacted online, there is a growing concern amongst businesses about managing payments. Business to business (B2B) payments at the international level are a major concern since the amounts tend to be larger and the charges are appreciable. This results in some loss in profits, which makes global commerce less attractive. From the smallest business operating on the web to huge conglomerates that transfer large amounts of funds internationally, everyone wants cost efficiency in their payment system. The issue is, of course, larger in the international payment segment because there is the currency rate to consider as well. So both types of losses, in currency and in transfer charges, need to be kept to a minimum.

Third party ePayment systems -

These are popular but require the user to open an account, similar to a bank account. Finding the most efficient one for your size of company is also a little tricky. They come in many sizes from consumer-oriented PayPal and 2checkout.com to Orbian for large businesses. These e-Payment systems work fairly well and charge up to 5% of funds transferred.

Wire transfer -

This is the good, old fashioned method of transferring money directly from bank account to bank account. It is completed by the bank and requires the swift code of the recipient's bank and their account number. This is considered to be a safe and fairly efficient way to make international B2B payments. However, banks can charge quite a hefty amount in fees and charges. You must find out the currency rate as well, if that is a concern. Additionally one thing that is required to be kept in mind is to make absolutely certain that the company to whom the payment is being made is a legitimate and an authentic company as once the funds have left your account, they are not recoverable.

Credit cards/ corporate credit cards -

Many companies are less than willing to hand out corporate credit cards and employees will not use their personal ones for company business. So, unless you are a small business, the use of credit cards is rare in international business to business payments. It can also be fairly expensive.

Check -

Unless you have an already existing relationship with the businesses you are selling to, a check may not be the best way to receive payments from B2B sales on the internet. There are hardly any successful online businesses that are known to conduct business with this method of payment. However, this form of payment can be viable where a low transaction fee is important and the product does not have to be delivered immediately. Remember, you can never be certain of receiving the payment until the check is cleared and payment is credited to your account.

If you have an online business, be sure to check which form of payment integrates best with your business. For example, if you are selling online software, the consumer may want to make payment and download the product right away. A wire transfer may not be the best option. For subscription based or recurring payments, a platform like PayPal offers incomparable functionality. It allows you to automatically charge customers on a monthly basis and also sends you intimations of payment failures.

There are many options for receiving international payments. Your best bet would be to keep a couple of options open and decide on a case by case basis which suits you best for a particular B2B transaction.

Are German business executives more likely to frown, than smile? Will international business meetings with Germans turn into a debate? When negotiating with Germans, you must first understand the culture traits that make them so serious and so successful.

Germany is emerging as a European leader in driving growth. Few countries have accomplished so much on the international business front. There are companies that avoid the Germans believing they are too abrupt; too likely to argue; and too skeptical. Some perceive other European countries to be friendlier and easier to conduct business.

Perceptions are not necessarily reality. Smiles are over-rated. For over five years, I worked for German executives. They are excellent negotiators and outstanding international business drivers. By better understanding, the culture issues that are behind German business mannerisms, your meetings, relations, and opportunities will improve.

Here are some German business culture concepts:

• Germans stay on schedule. It is a culture that gets disturbed when a train is one minute late. Punctuality is in their DNA. Meetings will begin and end on time, no matter how abrupt it may appear;
• A German business expression is, "Dienst ist Dienst und Schnapps ist Schnapps," or work is work and drink is drink. In other words, there is a clear line between a German executive's business and personal lives. Some small talk creeps into their personal discomfort, so they tend to minimize it;
• Most German executives have great senses of humor. After a good laugh, their smiles quickly fade. Sitting in public with a grin on your face appears odd, like there is some type of mental issue. This is a common trait in many European countries, not just Deutschland;
• Germans ask many direct questions, and appear quick to enter a business debate. In Germany, questions and debates tend to improve understanding and help create more ideas and options. Even when a German executive likes a proposal, they will push you to assure it is robust;
• Duty and commitment are important with Germans. When an American says, "I will do my best," they mean they will try, but they are not committing to success. When German executives promise to do their best, they will apply their greatest efforts and likely succeed. Germans expect unambiguous commitment to a plan.

Once you understand the cultural issues, it is easier to adapt to the business discussions. Be on time and be ready to start at the appointed hour. Minimize small talk and do not ask personal questions. They will enjoy a joke, but do not expect a continued grin. Be prepared for a good debate with back-up data. Do not take challenges personally. Push back, when you disagree. Be assertive and clear about commitments

There are countries in Europe and around the world that appear friendlier and more fun for business. Friendly and fun may lead to delays, ambiguity, and failure. Comfort aside, German business people: mean what they say; say what they mean; and deliver their commitments on time.

Few countries find the same success roaming the international business world as Germany. They are an important partner. Adapt to German cultural business styles. It will drive success for you and your company. At the end of the day, your German partner is more likely to smile and share a beer or schnapps with you. Prosit!

Ardyss International is a company that markets 3 major product lines in the health and wellness industry. These products include figure reshaping, nutrition, and skin care for both men and women. Ardyss has merged with a Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) business opportunity for willing members to join and distribute their products, and expand the Ardyss International brand of products and opportunity around the world.

As you might be aware, Ardyss International encourages their distributors to promote their business via word of mouth, meaning that you share your experiences of their products with others, hoping that this effort will attract sales and new distributors to your business. They will train you to market your business to your warm market, meaning your family and friends. This alone is all that they will teach you to become successful within Ardyss International.

In my opinion, sharing your products with family and friends with the hope that they will buy your product, and sign up for your business, is not an effective way to create a rewarding and profitable home based business. In other words, this should not be 100% of your daily efforts. You will find that your warm market will not have the same beliefs and goals that you have, and will not have the same excitement for your opportunity. Online or home based businesses many times have a stigma surrounding them. They can be conceived by many as being a pyramid or get rich quick scheme, and this will be no different with many of your family and friends.

This is why you need to branch out in your marketing efforts and include the internet. Home based businesses have now become the number one searched for topic on the internet today. What does this mean for you and your business? This means that there are a multitude of people out there who have the same entrepreneurial spirit as you, and share your goals. They are actively searching for opportunities where they can fire their boss, and end their daily commute to a thankless 9 to 5 type job. This gives you the opportunity to introduce your business to these same like-minded individuals, and prove to them that you have the answer that they are looking for.

I am not saying that the traditional methods of network marketing don't work. You may very well attract a couple of family members, and a few of your friends to join you, but I encourage you to not spend more than 10% of your time pursuing these efforts. Include the internet, and market to people who are actually searching for what you have to offer. If you do, you will see a flood of new interest and curiosity pouring into your Ardyss International business, or any other business that you might participate in.