To go global is not based on intuition, but on certain data or market experience support. Today we will develop this market, and tomorrow we will hear that the market is good and develop that market again. In the end, it often wastes both time and money.
This article will combine the practical experience of the 52WMB Customs Data Platform to systematically analyze how foreign trade enterprises markets, identify high potential customers, and quickly carry out precision marketing through data.
1、 Why use customs data to judge market potential?
Traditional foreign trade market analysis often relies on secondary information such as government reports, industry association data, or feedback from trade shows. Although these data are valuable, they are slow to and have coarse granularity, making it difficult to reflect the real trading dynamics.
The advantage of customs data lies in its "authenticity" and "traceability":
Real transaction source: Each record corresponds to an actual customs clearance import and export order.
Rich segmentation dimensions: You can view multidimensional information such as buyers, suppliers, product descriptions, quantities, amounts, HS codes, ports, trade times, etc.
Time series analysis: By analyzing monthly, quarterly, and annual data changes, market trends and procurement rhythms can be determined.
For example, if a company specializes in LED lighting products, it can query the import volume, main purchasers, and average purchase price of "LED Lamp" from different countries in the past 12 months through the Foreign Trade State platform, in order to determine which markets are in a growth period and which countries are fiercely competitive.
Generally, data service providers have a "market analysis" function that automatically generates import country transaction proportion charts and buyer quantity trend charts, helping users visually see the direction of changes in the target market.
2、 How to target markets through customs data?
To choose a market, two issues need to be addressed first: market capacity and market competitiveness.
Customs data can provide quantitative basis from both aspects simultaneously.
1. Check the transaction size and screen for high potential markets
In the analysis of the foreign trade industry, using LED light as the keyword to search can quickly generate import amount and transaction frequency rankings for different countries. For example, if you export "motor belts", you can view the top 10 companies in the target country's import volume for 2024 and compare their annual growth rates. This can help businesses:
Lock in markets with large import volumes and high growth rates;
Avoid investing in areas that are experiencing decline or saturation;
Preliminary assessment of which regions have long-term potential.
2. Look at the supplier structure and uate the intensity of competition
A large market does not necessarily mean more opportunities, and sometimes competition becomes more intense.
The data of Foreign Trade State supports viewing the number and concentration of suppliers corresponding to each country. If a country has only a few suppliers but occupies the majority of orders, it indicates a high degree of market concentration and new entrants need differentiated competition; On the contrary, if buyers are scattered and there are many suppliers, it indicates that the market is relatively open and there is greater development space.
3. Check the procurement frequency and amount
The same buyer, if the purchasing frequency is high and the amount is stable, is a sign of a high-quality customer group. By analyzing transactions in the time dimension, we can gain insight into the seasonality of procurement and provide reference for marketing rhythm.
3、 How to develop customers in the target market from customs data?
After ing the target market, the next step is to find real buyers who can be contacted and transacted.
The role of customs data is particularly crucial in this step.
1. Filter for 'real buyers'
In the Foreign Trade State platform, each customs clearance record is accompanied by the buyer's company name, address, contact information (in some countries), purchased product details, transaction amount, and other information.
By setting filtering criteria (such as import frequency ≥ 3 times, amount ≥ $10000, latest transaction time within 3 months, etc.), a list of buyers with high activity and continuous purchasing can be ed.
In addition, the system can also display the buyer's upstream supplier list. This means you can see who they are purchasing from and at what price - this information can help you develop more competitive pricing strategies.
2. Obtain contact information and social media leads
Although some countries' customs records do not directly disclose contact information, the buyer's company name can be quickly traced back to their official website LinkedIn、 Email or social media homepage.
3. Hierarchical management of customer leads
Foreign Trade State supports users in establishing a customer follow-up label system.
For example, dividing buyers into:
A-class customers: Recently made multiple purchases with high amounts;
B-class customers: Stable procurement, but moderate amount;
C-class customers: newly emerged or with small amounts, but with great potential.
Customers at different levels can adopt different development rhythms and communication strategies to achieve a data-driven customer management loop.
4、 Reverse analyze competitors using customs data
In addition to finding customers, customs data also has an important function - to see what peers are doing.
By checking the export records of competitors, you can learn that:
Which countries do they mainly export to;
Who are the main buyers;
The time and value trend of each transaction.
This means that you can clearly see the competitive landscape and determine which customers are being served by peers and which markets are not yet covered.
For example, if you find that your competitor's order volume in Brazil has continued to increase in the past six months, and you have not yet entered the market, this may be your next opportunity window.
In the era of accelerating global supply chain restructuring, foreign trade is no longer about "who can find customers", but "who can find customers faster, more accurately, and more systematically". Choose markets with data, find customers with data, and win the future with data.
