Startup CXO

Chapter 79Geographic Expansion

Geographic expansion comes across as a glamorous aspect of business. The idea of international travel, business dinners, meeting new people, and learning about new cultures are things that a lot of people want in their career. The reality is that it's a grind. The planning phase is mostly quantitative and model‐/assumption‐driven and the flag planting can be tedious. There are countless red‐eye flights, meetings all day (including breakfast, lunch, and dinner meetings to make the most of your time away from home) and nights spent either doing your regular “day” job or sleepless with jetlag. Don't get me wrong, I made great friends and I've been able to go to places I wouldn't have gone to otherwise because of geographic expansion, but the work you put in, the physical and emotional toll, the time away from your family, hobbies, and friends, is significant.

The reality is that not all companies need to expand into new geographies. Markets are fragmented, they have their own unique nuances and very well may have significant regulatory requirements you need to be cognizant of, and the Internet is global, no matter where you are. And for those companies that should expand their footprint, there isn't a magic metric that tells you when you should actually make that investment. The decision to enter a new geography is one that requires coordination and alignment from the entire management team. It will require a significant amount of market research ...