International business plan for growth: Strategies and best practices

Sustainable international business development doesn’t happen by chance. It requires a strategic growth plan that aligns with evolving market trends, shifting customer needs, and a company’s operational capabilities. Brands planning for growth must account for every facet of global expansion, from goal-setting and decision-making to translation and localization.

This guide explores essential steps and proven strategies to help companies grow internationally, increase revenue, and achieve long-term success. It explains the framework of a practical business growth plan, as well as tools and best practices for global leaders.

What is a growth plan for global business? Definition and key elements

A business growth plan is a comprehensive roadmap that outlines a company’s expansion goals and strategies to achieve them. These goals might include a larger global market presence, increased revenue, or improved operational capabilities. 

Whereas a general business plan addresses core elements like the company’s mission, a business growth strategy emphasizes the specific tactics, innovations, and investments required to scale operations sustainably.

A business growth plan includes nine essential items:

1. Executive summary

This section offers a snapshot of the overall growth plan, summarizing objectives, key metrics, and projected outcomes. It’s a high-level pitch that quickly informs internal stakeholders and potential investors.

A compelling executive summary should include:

• The company’s growth goals
• Geographic and demographic targets
• A brief overview of product or service innovations
• Financial requirements, projections, and expected ROI

2. Customer analysis

In-depth customer analysis identifies a company’s ideal customer base, segments its audience, develops personas, and maps buyer journeys. By understanding customers’ behaviors and motivations, businesses can drive higher engagement and retention.

A robust customer analysis does the following:

• Identify customer motivations and pain points
• Track behavioral data and feedback
• Evaluate localization preferences and expectations
• Recommend targeted marketing and outreach strategies

3. Market analysis and competitor analysis

Market research reveals customer demand, market size, and price tolerance in a given region. Meanwhile, competitor analysis examines existing companies with similar offerings and attempts to identify gaps in the market. Together, they help the business leverage competitive advantages and develop a successful market positioning.

Global businesses should also investigate relevant legal, cultural, and logistical considerations in international target markets.

Expand your analyses with these activities:

• Monitor macroeconomic conditions in new markets
• Map barriers to entry, such as tariffs or licensing
• Analyze local digital maturity and tech adoption rates
• Benchmark pricing strategies and brand reputation

4. Growth objectives

Growth objectives are the core of a business growth plan. Expanding organizations should set SMART goals—specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound—based on information uncovered during the earlier stages. Leaders should be able to explain each objective, why it matters, and how they will measure success.

Tie objectives to tangible KPIs, such as:

• Customer acquisition cost (CAC)
• Retention rate
• Market penetration rate
• Average revenue per user (ARPU)

5. Strategies and processes

This section outlines methods and processes for implementing the growth plan. It clarifies which departments own each initiative and defines the required workflows and tools for effective execution.

Strategies and processes may include:

• Digital transformation plans
• Hiring local teams or agencies
• Sales and distribution channel expansion
• Localization using tools like Smartling
• CRM integration and customer support scaling

6. Resource requirements

Global brands must set realistic and specific estimates regarding the tools, people, and hours needed to achieve their strategic goals. This section evaluates whether the current team has adequate expertise and bandwidth—or if they’ll need to hire or outsource key roles.

The following resources may increase your expenses during international growth:

• Shipping costs
• Recruiting consultants, designers, or planners
• Subscription-based software for localization, analytics, and CRM

7. Financial projections

To fund expansion, businesses need a detailed budget that outlines revenue goals, cost estimates, and ROI expectations. Sensitivity analyses for various scenarios (e.g., market delays, tariff hikes, exchange rate fluctuations) help prepare for uncertainty.

Consider these financial management measures:

• Setting multiple budget tiers (e.g., conservative vs. expected vs. aggressive)
• Forecasting based on market trends and competitor benchmarks
• Lowering expenses through AI-driven translation and localization from Smartling

8. Risk factors

No plan is risk-free. The business growth strategy should address potential risks, such as regulatory changes, supply chain disruptions, cultural misalignments, and customer churn. Each significant risk requires a mitigation plan with contingency strategies.

Global market challenges might include:

• Intense competition
• Supply chain distribution issues
• Poor (or volatile) economic conditions

9. Timeline

Leaders typically separate a growth strategy timeline into phases with unique goals, success metrics, and tactics. Checkpoints and regular reviews ensure the business plan stays on track.

Each milestone should include:

• Key deliverables
• Assigned stakeholders
• Metrics for success
• Budget check-ins

Lay the groundwork for international expansion

Download this free business strategy template to help you kickstart key projects for global success. 

 

 

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4 business growth plan examples: Strategies for global success

Leadership can pursue business growth goals via three distinct paths:

• Organic growth: Achieved through internal optimizations, such as expanding production, cutting wasteful spending, or automating key processes. This approach tends to be slower but more sustainable over time.
• Strategic growth: Focused on innovation, entering new verticals, or exploring untapped markets. Smartling’s localization services can speed up international market entry strategies by producing fast, affordable, high-quality translations. Seamless integrations and automated AI tools accelerate the process while saving precious resources.
• Mergers, partnerships, and acquisitions: The fastest way to enter markets or acquire capabilities. This approach is risky and high-cost, but it provides immediate access to new infrastructure, customers, and intellectual property.

The proper approach depends on a business’s size, financial situation, and specific goals. A global company’s business growth plan may set a variety of goals, including successful entry into international markets, new product launches, or cross-channel expansion. These growth goals inform the company’s global strategy, which typically falls into one of the following categories:

Revenue growth strategy

A revenue growth strategy aims to increase income over a set period. Businesses pursuing larger profits must assess cash flows, leverage sales forecasts, and streamline expenditures to improve their bottom line. Consider upselling and cross-selling opportunities to increase revenue from existing customers—a more cost-effective strategy than new lead acquisition.

Customer growth strategy

A customer growth strategy prioritizes customer acquisition, even if it cuts into profits. It’s especially important when entering a promising new market where the brand is largely unknown. Strategic investments, promotions, and partnerships can help businesses attract and retain more customers in target regions.

Marketing growth strategy

Marketing growth strategies target broader brand visibility and lead generation. They might include localized social media and search campaigns or rebranding initiatives that appeal to entirely new customer bases. Organizations often implement this type of growth strategy when launching new products to attract different buyers.

Smartling’s multilingual marketing translation services help companies meet the growing demands of global markets. They can launch affordable campaigns in new languages that support their distinct brand identity.

Product growth strategy

A product growth strategy focuses on product expansion (i.e., introducing new product lines), as well as innovation and optimization of existing products to retain loyal users. Global brands should gather user feedback in target markets to shape future offerings and updates.

Build a strategic growth plan for global expansion: 7 best practices

Entering international markets demands a thoughtful, structured plan. These best practices will help you build a strategic growth blueprint for successful globalization.

1. Audit your status quo

One of the most straightforward ways to promote growth is minimizing waste. Holistically assess your current operations, sales performance, and customer feedback to identify inefficiencies and areas for improvement. Identify customer expectations and areas where your business may be falling short.

2. Stay on brand

A strong and consistent brand builds trust, which leads to higher sales and loyalty—critical when entering new markets. By making it easy to access style guides and brand glossaries, Smartling’s translation management system can help brands maintain their voice across languages with localized content for each region’s unique cultural contexts.

3. Set growth goals

Define objectives that contribute to the specific business growth ideas you want to achieve and your growth timeline. Establish KPIs and align them with your broader business mission to ensure the entire team pulls in the same direction.

4. Invest in automation

Digital tools free up human capital to focus on innovation and customer satisfaction. Invest in systems and technology that allow you to automate workflows and account management. Global brands should also leverage AI-powered localization platforms like Smartling to increase efficiency and improve speed to market.

5. Use a growth strategy template

Develop a growth plan template with sections dedicated to market analysis, audience research, budgeting, KPIs, a tactical roadmap, and review cycles. Use this template to ensure each aspect of your growth strategy is well-defined and acted upon.

6. Prioritize marketing and sales

Marketing helps define the brand’s values and build relationships that drive sales, referrals, and long-term loyalty. Advanced translation services, like Smartling, help brands reach international audiences faster while guaranteeing global marketing messages convey the correct tone and substance. 

7. Tweak your growth plan as necessary

A business growth plan should be a living document that evolves based on performance insights. Gather data by communicating closely with regional teams and monitoring KPIs and global market conditions. An adaptive plan lets you pivot when required and stay resilient during challenges.

Breid uw bedrijfsontwikkeling uit naar wereldwijde markten met Smartling

A well-executed growth strategy is essential for long-term, scalable business development. With clear objectives, continuous refinement, and the right tech stack, businesses can turn their global vision into reality.

Smartling’s robust, AI-driven localization platform accelerates expansion while reducing cost and complexity. From translating marketing content to managing multilingual customer support, Smartling empowers brands to communicate clearly and consistently worldwide.

Ready to scale your global growth? Download Smartling's International Business Strategy Template and lay the groundwork for your global expansion.