Helping Businesses Do Business Overseas
KC Export Assistance Center helps small businesses sell products and services abroad.

Kansas City businesses don’t call a travel agent when they want to go overseas, they call the Kansas City Export Assistance Center. The center is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce—U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service (US&FCS). The organization, which has personnel around the world, is dedicated to helping U.S. manufacturers and service suppliers of all sizes sell their products and services abroad.

Counseling Services
International trade counselors at the Kansas City Export Assistance Center work one-on-one with companies in metropolitan Kansas City and other areas of Kansas and Missouri.

Counselors regularly visit area companies in order to gain a basic understanding of a company’s products and services, industry, markets and capabilities. They then provide guidance and services designed to match a company’s interests and resources.

In addition, the center responds to requests from companies and individuals requiring assistance for a wide variety of international problems and issues, including:

•    Development of export strategies
•    Obtaining export financing
•    Resolution of regulatory problems
•    Recovery of payments from foreign countries
•    Market information
•    Location of sales outlets abroad
•    Guidance on export documentation
•    Advice on export licensing issues

Liaisons and Educational Opportunities
To provide the best service to local companies and work more efficiently, the Kansas City Export Assistance Center works closely with a wide variety of private and public sector partners, including international trade associations, state development agencies, chambers of commerce, local development agencies, banks and freight forwarders.

The center also provides a variety of educational opportunities. Recently, the center organized programs that focused on the markets in Singapore, Poland, Russia and The Netherlands as well as patent and trademark protection and international security.

The center also regularly hosts foreign commercial officers from embassies around the world, who meet with companies to counsel them about doing business in the foreign officers’ home countries.

Global Links
The center is linked to other commercial offices in the United States and around the world. These links provide a wide variety of information on foreign countries and markets. Available information is both general (market condition, best export prospects, financing, legal and cultural issues) and specific (including information on regulations, key players and competitors).

Product Promotion
Commercial offices also assist U.S. companies in promoting their products and services internationally through a wide variety of trade events, including:

• Trade missions. On organized trips to foreign countries, U.S. companies can meet face-to-face with potential buyers and sales representatives. Also included are country briefings, logistical support and follow-up activities.
• International buyer program. Potential buyers are recruited to attend trade shows in the United States in order to meet with prospective U.S. sellers.
• Single company promotions. U.S. embassies and consulates provide meeting space and pre-screened invitations to local companies in foreign countries to help U.S. organizations present product and service seminars.
• International trade fairs. U.S. pavilions featuring U.S. products and services are organized at major international trade fairs.
• Catalog exhibitions. Company literature and information is displayed at international trade events to promote company interests. Listings of foreign companies that have expressed an interest in products or services are then provided to each company.

Other Programs
Depending on the interests and capabilities of U.S. companies, a wide variety of programs and services are provided to U.S. manufacturers and service suppliers to help them locate and evaluate potential international buyers, sales representatives, distributors and potential partners in international markets.

These programs include:

• Gold Key Service. One-on-one appointments are arranged with pre-screened business contacts in targeted export markets.
• BUYUSA.com. A Web site that matches foreign buyers with U.S. sellers.
• Virtual Trade Mission. Explores potential markets via videoconferencing.
• International Partner Searches. Provides details on potential foreign buyers, sales representatives and distributors.
• Commercial News USA. A magazine and Web site that promotes U.S. products and services to more than 400,000 international buyers.
• International Company Profiles. Provides low-cost and quick credit checks and due diligence reports on potential foreign buyers, distributors, partners and sales representatives.
• Trade Opportunity Program. Provides daily trade leads from foreign buyers.

So, if you’re looking for business overseas, before you book your airline tickets, book an appointment with the Kansas City Export Assistance Center.

The Kansas City Export Assistance Center can be reached at (816) 410-9201.