Top 3 Tips for Expanding Your SaaS Business Internationally

90% of companies missed these crucial steps when it comes to localization.

Many businesses that plan to expand to new regions start with some level of translation work.

Not long ago, they hired freelance translators from freelance sites such as Fiverr and more recently they turned to Artificial Intelligence tools such as ChatGPT.

This however is only 20% of the work and just having this won't get you selling their product or services quickly.

Below are the 3 most common issues that most companies run into after they try to launch.

Business Expansion with Wrong Local Technical Terminology in Localization

Translations were often done poorly, and technical terminologies were not translated correctly because the $15 freelancer they hired was often someone just studying the language but not from a technical background.

Therefore, a lot of terminology or explanations didn't make sense to the target audience.

The First Tips when expanding your SaaS business internationally is to make sure you hire another freelancer who has the technical knowledge to read through the translations.

Don't let your company bring a bad first impression - make sure to invest the time and effort to do the necessary deep localization before investing heavily in marketing your product.

By acknowledging and strategically addressing these issues and collaborating with the right business growth experts like ToAsia.biz, SaaS business can enhance its chances of success in the Asian market and longevity in this vibrant yet challenging market.

Business Expansion with Local Currency Dealing

Of course, getting paid in your own currency or USD is convenient for you, but is it for your customers?

Do you have local pricing that is not just an exchange rate from USD?

These are the questions that you need to answer when you deal with international customers.

The Second Tips when expanding your SaaS business internationally is to make sure you have a local reseller who can help you deal locally.

If you want to do direct selling, you will need to set up your local entity.

This is often a complex issue that requires a lot of business expansion planning and thought before you have the right structure in place.

Most CEOs or CFOs struggle with this when they lack international experience.

However, if you find the right consultancy like ToAsia.biz, your expansion journey becomes much easier.

Business Expansion with Support in the local timezone

You spent hours preparing for a killer demo, your customers loved the product and what they saw.

But the very first question they will ask you is:

"What happens when I run into a problem? Where do I get support from?"

If you respond that "we will support you during our HQ's office hours", then the chance of you closing the deal will be heavily reduced.

The third tip for expanding your SaaS business internationally is that many owners and CEOs believe they need deals in place before setting up local support.

However, this creates a classic chicken-and-egg situation. It's difficult to recruit local talent to support your business without a local entity.

Fortunately, talent recruitment solutions like Glints can help you hire local talent in Asia even without a business entity set up yet.

Chances are, you will get some small or single-user deals, but bigger customers need local support, period!

Related Asia business insights and blogs that you may also like:

Uniqlo: The Symphony of Innovation, Quality, and Customer Focus

IKEA's Global Success: Mastering the Art of Localization

7 Reasons Why Startups Fail in Asia

Your Golden Key to Asia: Business Relationship

Alan Wong is founder of ToAsia.biz and a startup mentor with over 20 years of professional experience managing software, Saas and consulting services MNCs.

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