Enter and Win the Indian Market with 6 Planning Tips

In the present times, Indian markets and business sectors are insatiable and sales are on a booming spree. The ever-developing middle class in India are pushing the interest and stipulations for enhanced quality and increased choices in a vast majority of markets starting from infrastructure, water quality to electronics and air travel. The sky-rocketing demands for the international products make them more appealing across a large segment of the market.

However, for successfully selling foreign products in India, there is an imperative necessity to choose a clear-cut market-entry strategy for India as well as a comprehensive business plan.

Therefore, your choice is contingent on a number of key factors that broadly embrace an in-depth planning and analysis like knowing your customers, your products and their mutual acquaintance level, along with a great deal of patience and commitment in terms of how much energy, time and money you can plough in for establishing your sales and succeed in India.

Making a wrong decision can lead to a loss-making venture or your fiscal estimate can go awry.

But what are the golden rules for the most appropriate and favourable market entry for India? Begin with an intensive market analysis!

A rigorous and up-to-the-minute market research is a foremost and compulsory prerequisite. This decides how winsome the Indian market is for your products and services. It also pinpoints the emerging opportunities and threats. An overarching market-entry strategy should incorporate the following pivotal subjects of interest.

• Evaluation of current market size
• Estimation of future market size
• Long-term and short-term budget planning
• Market growth rate
• Latest and futuristic market trends
• Market profitability factors
• Distribution channel framework
• Industry cost structure
• Key success drivers
• Local competitor analysis and review

So what does a decent marketable strategy look like? The responses to a considerable measure of enquiries. Here you have the 6 most vital ones.

1. Right partner planning

India with a current populace of 1.3 billion people is the world’s seventh biggest economy in terms of GDP growth rate. The complexity and the progression in the Indian market often become a taxing proposition for both indigenous and foreign companies alike.

Businesses with a pre-conceived mindset and a paltry exposure to international markets might discover that the trade and commerce culture in India is very intimidating.

Being a new entrant into the Indian market, if you can identify your right partner, you can successfully navigate these complexities of the unseasoned regional business environment. A local accomplice can truly provide you with the much-needed help to comprehend the market sketch.

The partner can impart valuable information pertaining to regulation, competition and many more. They can also get you acquainted with the network to outreach your target prospective clients with a minimal on-the-ground investment.

2. Distribution planning

What is the modus operandi you would follow to sell and distribute your products and services in India? Currently, India has 29 “states” and another 7 “union territories”. This indicates that you would possibly require local wholesalers for the distribution to a humungous number of diverse sized neighbourhood dealers and retailers.

Find out if your products are flexible and resilient enough to put up with the challenging logistics conditions prevalent in India. Assess the preconditions to seek the support of external parties or you own India entry consulting agents. Do you require a distributor who in-turn pitches to retailers or do you have the tenacity and gumption to offer your products directly to the retailers?

Know how the end-users access your products. What sort of help do these wholesalers or retailers need? Basically, you need to acquire a thorough understanding and insight into the Supply Chain Management landscape of India.

3. Personnel planning

In what manner will you motivate your distributors? Galvanizing and boosting the morale of business owners and employees of autonomous distributors call for great levels of effort. While ascertaining your market price for India, remember that customary obligations like taxes, duties etc. vary across the different regions.

4. Sales strategy planning

Meticulous planning of sales strategies and related activities involves techniques to effectively reach your clients, carefully gauge the competitive edge and disparities, efficiently utilize available resources, prudently chalk out long-term goals for sales and distribution and precisely determine the headcount of sales personnel for every identified location.

At the same time, clearly, vocalize the tactics for your daily selling operations. These include identifying and mapping prospects, defining the sales processes and follow-ups. In order to win over a competitive advantage, you have to essentially cogitate over the two sides of the equation namely tactics and strategy.

5. Product modification planning

The Indian market is immensely dynamic in nature. You have to be prepared for potential product modifications and refitting to meet the burgeoning needs. You need to accomplish this by keeping a watchful eye on your pricing strategies and final product price.

It may be advantageous to build your own manufacturing units in India so that you can adapt placidly to these price fluctuations. When it comes to delineating the Market Entry Strategies in India, you can largely encounter the same questions as in other markets, but their answers look for an innovative and unique approach, besides having a profound knowledge of the overall market scenario.

6. Legal and regulatory planning

The Indian legal framework takes after a “common law”, and the Indian constitution has accommodated a solitary integrated assemblage of courts for administering both the union and state laws. You should pay proper attention before signing off a formal agreement.

Decrees and arbitrations by courts are frequently postponed in India on account of a huge backlog of cases. Hence, any worthwhile agreement should be capacitated with the scope or provision for backup conflict resolution mechanisms.

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