Ever talk to a lead from another country, and suddenly you realize… prospecting is definitely not the same across the globe! Should you be formal or relaxed? What are the local laws on cold emailing? Which engagement technique works best? How do they react to salespeople in X country? We talked to CEOs, VP Sales and CMOs for the answers to these questions and more in 5 key countries: France, Germany, Italy, the U.S. and the U.K.

1. CROSS-BORDER
PROSPECTING:
A C R A S H C O U R S E F O R T H E G L O B A L S A L E S P E R S O N .
Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 10:30am UK Time
Presented by: Robin Nichols - Head of EMEA Marketing Content
F R A N C E - G E R M A N Y - I T A L Y - U . S . - U . K .

2. www.iko-system.com
For inbound or outbound leads, engagement automation
helps sales reps achieve 5x more meetings.
Helping over 200 international clients automate their prospecting.

3. Why this webinar?
Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/rawnshah/2014/10/06/the-culture-map-shows-us-how-we-work-worldwide/#61805e236e4f
Like it or not, cultural awareness across nations is becoming
a must for all, managers and employees alike.”
- Rawn Shah, Forbes.com, 2014

4. …it’s all too common to rely on clichés, stereotyping
people from different cultures…This can lead to
oversimplified and erroneous assumptions….”
- Erin Meyer, Harvard Business Review, May 2014
Thank you:
Sources: https://hbr.org/2014/05/navigating-the-cultural-minefield/ar/1?referral=00134

5. France
ItalyU.S.
U.K.
Germany

6. How should you pitch?
Time between follow ups
Length of sales cycle
Decision-making process
Formality?
Cold calling
Etc…

7. FRANCE
F R A N C E - I T A L Y - G E R M A N Y - U . S . - U . K .

8. FRANCE

9. Start off formal (Dear Mr./Mrs….)
Avoid overly salesy words, i.e. value, great, best, !!!
Bottom-up approach less effective?
Nadia Crobeddu, Global Account Manager
TIP: Put boss in copy
Depends on industry
French “no” is often invitation to debate
France

10. Chris Stock, President & CEO
France
“As salespeople, we have been taught to ask
impactful business questions and listen. When
selling in France, it is important to spend even
more time listening to the client because of the
cultural difference. We must encourage the
customer to talk more, with an aim to have them
relax and feel comfortable. French customers do
not like to be pushed into making a decision.”

11. France
Source: The Culture Map, Erin Meyer, 2014
These 8 Scales Reveal Everything You Should Know About Different Cultures, Business Insider 2015

12. France

13. IKO System Automated Engagement
Analytics
France

14. Jean-Baptiste Roux, VP Sales
Try calling between 1:30 and 2:00pm, Friday afternoon
In big cities, work starts later (9am – 10am) & ends later
May has many long weekends
Check vacation zones
France

15. GERMANY
F R A N C E - I T A L Y - G E R M A N Y - U . S . - U . K .

16. GERMANY

17. Be direct and data-driven (ROI, case studies…)
“Germans tend to measure a lot of numbers and KPIs (we come from an
engineering and production history) and therefore I recommend to show
clear ROIs.”
- Uwe Goethert, Founder and CEO
Germany

18. “Cold emailing laws in Germany are strict and complex - double opt-in with
an easy unsubscribe button is certainly recommended, if not required. Given
these restrictions, prospectors tend to reach out first using cold calling
instead of cold emailing to new prospects.”
- Erin McBrayer, Social Media and Marketing Manager
Very regulated (cold emailing/calling):
The Legal Situation for Email Marketing in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, CSA
Best Practice: Prepare! Target appropriately. High MAP threshold.
“In Germany, preparation is key. Get straight to the point, and make sure you are
targeting appropriately, whether by phone, email etc. We set our MAP thresholds
higher for the German market than say, for the U.S., to make sure we talk to the right
person at the right time instead of making them feel bombarded by emails.”
- Jean-Baptiste Roux, VP Sales
“For the Dutch market, build relationships with conference or event organizers, for
example, who have access to opt-in lists. You need to know a group that has
authorization to be in touch.”
- Jordy Brazier, Senior Director of Sales Operations
Germany

19. Germany
Calling after 5pm not recommended
Probably unreachable after working hours

20. Germany
Be punctual
Source: The Culture Map, Erin Meyer, 2014
These 8 Scales Reveal Everything You Should Know About Different Cultures, Business Insider 2015

21. ITALY
F R A N C E - I T A L Y - G E R M A N Y - U . S . - U . K .

22. Interdependent: many involved in decision-making process
Build relationships: Check LinkedIn, name drop…
If using IKO: 1 hour to personalize 1st email
ITALY

23. Use proper titles (Dr., Mr/Mrs…)
Formal tone
Italy

24. IKO System Automated Engagement Analytics
Subject:
mee+ng
request
Italy

25. Try calling at around 10am or 7pm
Lunch break between noon and 3pm (depends on region)
Off period: August, 2 weeks for Christmas, week off for Easter
Italy

26. UNITED
STATES
F R A N C E - I T A L Y - G E R M A N Y - U . S . - U . K .

27. United States
“In
the
U.S.
you
can
be
very
conversa+onal,
like
“
Hey,
I
just
thought
I’d
drop
you
a
line.”
In
Germany,
the
UK
and
especially
France,
it’s
much
more
formal.
In
the
U.S.
you
can
take
more
liber+es,
grab
someone’s
aGen+on
by
being
fun
or
playful.”
- Jordy Brazier, Senior Director of Sales Operations

28. U.S.
Source: The Culture Map, Erin Meyer, 2014
These 8 Scales Reveal Everything You Should Know About Different Cultures, Business Insider 2015

29. U.S.
“American business culture is very pragmatic and value-
minded. It’s all about how relevant your message is. If you have
a good elevator pitch for the first 10 or 20 seconds, an
American will listen to you no matter if they’re commuting, at
work or at home. But if you’re not clear, nothing will happen.
But in Europe, you need to introduce yourself, make small talk,
warm people up – and the first 30 seconds are spent doing
this.”
- Jean Baptiste Roux, VP Sales

31. Risk oriented = Prefer rapid decision-making and quick results
Easier to make a deal without physical meeting
U.S.
Bottom-up approach could be useful

32. “Be ready to deal with more rejection and non-answers than usual if you try
to cold call in the U.S. The U.S. is incredibly oversaturated and overexposed
to cold calling tactics, so getting sent to voicemail is much more common.
Targeted emails, in my experience, are a more effective tactic.”
Roel Jansen, Chief Commercial Officer
U.S.

33. UNITED KINGDOM
F R A N C E - I T A L Y - G E R M A N Y - U . S . - U . K .

34. United Kingdom

35. United Kingdom
Source: NewVoiceMedia blog, The real cost of poor prospecting to US & UK businesses (GIFOGRAPHIC), 2015
41
65
68
50
79
11
34
54
86
64
86
24
0
20
40
60
80
100
Would
open
emails
from
a
sender
they
don’t
recognize
(%)
Would
answer
a
call
with
a
local
area
code
(%)
Say
calls
with
relevant
informa+on
make
the
difference
(%)
Frustrated
by
sales
reps
that
doesn’t
recall
info
previously
offered
(%)
More
likely
to
make
a
purchase
if
the
caller
showed
evidence
of
5
minutes
of
research
(%)
%
Respondents
completely
dissa+sfied
with
sales
approaches
they’ve
received
(%)
U.S.
U.K.

36. Cross-Border Prospecting
Be prepared to build relationships in France and Italy
Be especially aware of cold emailing regulations in Germany
The American market is saturated with cold outreach – try
being fun, direct and attempting many touches
Think about investing in native speakers (sales reps) – train in
English first
Source:
www.fla+con.com

37. www.iko-system.com
Let’s be in touch!
contact@iko-system.com
robin@iko-system.com
Helping over 200 international clients automate their prospecting.