Capacity Building as a Route to Export Market Expansion : A Six-Country Experiment in the Western Balkans / Ana Paula Cusolito, Omella Darova, and David McKenzie.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Cusolito, Ana Paula, author.

McKenzie, David, author.

Darova, Omella, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Exports.

Small business.

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Other Title:

Capacity Building as a Route to Export Market Expansion

Place of Publication:

Washington, D.C. : World Bank, 2022.

Summary:

The limited market size of many small emerging economies is a key constraint to the growth of innovative small and medium enterprises. Exporting offers a potential solution, but firms may struggle to locate and appeal to foreign buyers. We conducted a six-country randomized experiment with 225 firms in the Western Balkans to test the effectiveness of 30 hours of live group-based training and 5 hours of one-on-one remote consulting in overcoming these constraints. Treated firms used techniques such as search engine optimization and improved Facebook content to increase their digital presence and better reach foreign customers. A year later, we find positive and significant impacts on the number of customers, and a significant intensive margin increase in export sales. Qualitative interviews suggest this improvement came from a combination of sector-specific advice on market expansion, and through an encouragement effect which gave entrepreneurs the confidence to try new sales strategies.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Publisher Number:

10.1596/1813-9450-10256