A Simple Export Country-Market Screening Technique for Small Us Businesses: A Packaged Good Illustration

Abstract

US small businesses are in need of processes and techniques that help them alleviate the difficult experience of choosing foreign markets. Using a generic screening process, this paper explains the stages, the screening criteria, and the ranking techniques for selecting country-markets. The paper illustrates the application of Shift-Share Analysis (SSA) as a simple technique to rank country-market potentials. Results from an analysis of a packaged good show that SSA is an adequate ranking technique to identify preliminary country prospects. Implications for small businesses and future research are given.