Businesses attending an International Conference in Donegal on April 12 and 13 are being urged to submit a short market entry plan that could see them win a massive €5,000 in consultancy to help them develop their plan.
The Beyond Local conference takes place in Solis Lough Eske and sets out to explain why taking business into the global marketplace makes perfect sense for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
A mixture of keynote talks, workshops and business to business meetings, the two day international conference organised by Local Enterprise Office, Donegal, draws on national and international experience so those attending will get the best possible insight into the benefits of looking beyond local markets for their business.
“Our Small and Medium Enterprises are much more likely to survive in the globally competitive business climate if they internationalise their business.
“We also know that those businesses that do internationalise and enter export markets, tend to be more innovative than their stay-at-home cousins and they are more resistant to local and national crises,” Michael Tunney, Head of Enterprise in Donegal said.
He explained that speakers from Denmark, Poland and Italy will join a host of speakers from Ireland and Northern Ireland to highlight how internationally active businesses are more innovative and perform better than those who have not embraced internationalisation.
“Now, more then ever – in a time of major political and market changes – it is time for businesses to adopt an international outlook, but it would appear that many don’t have the ambition, the information or the knowledge to do so.
This conference, aims to increase awareness of the benefits of internationalisation among SMEs and provide easier access to the information businesses need,” Mr Tunney said.
As an added incentive, businesses thinking about going beyond local for their markets are also being offered the chance to win €5,000 worth of consultancy, simply by filling in a short form and attending the conference.
The market entry plan form, available to download from the Local Enterprise Website – www.localenterprise.ie/donegal – is a short and simple document and businesses wishing to enter should simply complete the document, submit it to michael.tunney@leo.donegalcoco.ie by midnight on Friday April 6th and then be in attendance at the conference.
“Taking business into the global marketplace makes perfect sense for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) – and it means they are much more likely to survive in the globally competitive business climate. The conference is a great opportunity for businesses to learn how they can do that and I really do hope they make the best of the opportunity and come along to listen and to learn,” Mr Tunney concluded.
Local Enterprise Office Donegal is supported through co-funding from the Irish Government and the European Regional Development Fund 2014 – 2020.
