One business I advised had succeeded in winning business in the Ukraine, and this was turning into a significant opportunity. The sales team were getting very excited!
The finance team were getting worried – payments were erratic, and very slow.
The Ukrainian government had imposed currency controls – you could not pay in “hryvnia” outside the Ukraine, and to pay in US Dollars you needed to get finance ministry approval for each payment.
That wasn’t easy for our customers, and was hampering our business growth. We established a subsidiary company in the Ukraine, so our local customers could pay us in the local currency. Business boomed and the customers were paying much more frequently.
Have you ever tried to buy something on-line, and noticed that your preferred payment method isn’t available? I’ve certainly gone elsewhere when that has happened to me.
Another client was having trouble collecting money from his US customers. We worked with the banks, and setup a special account, in the US, to take wire transfers from US customers. They didn’t have to make international payments….
How easy do you make it for your customers to do business with you, and how easy do you make it for them to pay you?