May 2024

An adorable viral video of a baby saying they want to go to the Four Seasons Resort in Orlando, Florida, has won the internet’s heart this week — and even prompted a response from the business itself.

In the original clip, Stefanie O’Brien asks her two children and husband, “Who wants to go to the Four Seasons Orlando?” The baby, hand raised, then exclaims, “Me!”

@sobrizzle If the @Four Seasons Hotels ♬ original sound – Stefanie O’Brien

The video has amassed over 45.4 million views and is now the source of many memes online.

Related: 5 Customer Service Secrets You Can Learn From Five-Star Hotels

The TikTok, of course, made its way to the team at the Four Seasons Orlando, which is at Walt Disney World, who said that it’s been an “exciting, exciting week,” thanks to the viral sensation.

“Our team sprung into action…to partner with the family and see how we could further this and see what we could do with it moving forward,” Tyson Nales, assistant director of rooms at the Four Seasons Orlando told FOX 35. “There’s something here for all ages.”

The hotel cheekily made its own TikTok in response, announcing that the baby is now the official ambassador for the Four Seasons Orlando.

@fourseasons #Stitch with @Stefanie O’Brien Let the adventure begin @Stefanie O’Brien fam ?✨@FourSeasonsOrlando #LuxuryTravel #FamilyTravel #LoveFourSeasons ♬ original sound – Four Seasons Hotels

“I literally just booked you for my trip later this year because of this baby,” one user wrote.

“Give the baby the entire hotel,” another joked.

Related: 5 Ways to Travel the World and Work Remotely From 5-Star Hotels

Looks like this boss baby has a lifetime of luxury vacation stays ahead.

More people are starting businesses now than ever before — and the reason could be that the opportunity cost, or what they have to give up in exchange for entrepreneurship, is lower than ever.

Data that the U.S. Census Bureau released earlier this month shows that the total number of applications to start businesses hit a record 5.5 million last year.

That’s half a million more applications than what was filed in 2022.

Related: Here’s What Millions of Small Businesses Have in Common, According to a New Survey

Census Bureau data from the first four months of this year show that the startup boom is still going strong, too — from January through April, the number of new business applications totaled over 1.7 million.

Why are more people filing to start new businesses?

Columbia Business School professor Angela Lee told Entrepreneur that the reason could be the “unprecedented number of layoffs from big tech companies in the last several years, resulting in a large pool of talent freed up to pursue entrepreneurship.”

^{Columbia Business School professor Angela Lee (left) and Co-Founder of Plum Alley Investments Andrea Turner Moffitt (right). Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images)}

Lee, the director of the Eugene Lang Entrepreneurship Center, also noted that “entrepreneurship has historically been counter-cyclical because the opportunity cost to start a company goes down during a recession.”

Related: Want to Start a Billion-Dollar Business? Look to These Two Industries, Which Have the Most Unicorn Growth

Big tech companies have been laying off employees in record numbers in recent years.

Tech layoffs last year affected 263,180 employees globally according to tracker Layoffs.fyi.

Amazon laid off the most people (27,410) last year, but Meta (21,000), Google (12,115) and Microsoft (11,158) also contributed to record numbers.

The unemployment rate has remained stable, in the 3.7% to 3.9% range in the U.S. over the past nine months, according to the latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report.

Related: ‘The Employment Situation’ Report for April Shows Employers Are Taking Hiring Down a Notch, Employee Wage Growth Slowing

Like every entrepreneur, you likely aspire to drive profits in your service-based company. But how do you achieve this goal? The answer lies in scaling. It’s imperative to grasp the difference between growing and scaling your operations. While growing entails taking on more projects to increase revenue, scaling focuses on improving profits without a significant surge in resources. Essentially, scaling means working smarter, not just harder.

You’ve got to grab every chance to make more profit without burning yourself out. So, here are five practical strategies that many service providers miss out on when they’re trying to make their businesses bigger and better.

Related: I Exited My Company in Just 7 Years — Here’s 3 Things You Need to Do to Have a Successful Exit

1. Find your room to grow

To scale effectively, start by identifying areas within your business with untapped potential. Take a close look at what you’re already doing – your processes, the services you offer, and the audience you’re reaching. Look for niches where demand is high but competition is low, or explore opportunities to diversify your service offerings. For example, a digital marketing agency might expand into photography or influencer marketing to cater to evolving client needs.

Market research is key here. Talk to your clients to understand what they’re looking for. Check out what your competitors are doing and monitor what’s happening in the market. Once you’ve figured out where the opportunities are, you can start making changes to scale your business smartly.

Related: Key Financial Metrics Every Founder Should Know About

2. Listen to customer feedback

Listening to what your customers say can steer your business toward success. Make it a habit to ask for client feedback through surveys, online reviews, or direct conversations. Then, take the time to dive into that feedback to understand what your customers love, what they don’t, and what new trends are emerging.

Let’s look at an example: you run a software development company. You might discover a growing demand for mobile app development services by listening closely to your clients. With this knowledge, you can tailor your services to meet this demand, positioning yourself as a go-to provider in the industry.

Collecting customer feedback can also increase upselling and cross-selling success rates by 15% to 20%. Always make it a priority to listen to your customers—they just might hold the key to your business’s success.

3. Simplify your business with tech & automation

Using tech and automation can make your business smoother and save time. Surprisingly, over 90% of surveyed employees reported that automation solutions actually boosted their productivity, while 85% noted significant improvements in team collaboration. Moreover, nearly 90% expressed trust in automation tools to minimize errors and speed up decision-making processes.

First, figure out which tasks you’re repeating or where things get stuck. Then, explore project management tools like Monday.com or Asana. Investing in a CRM system such as Salesforce or HubSpot can centralize customer data, improve communication, and improve client relationships.

Modern payment platforms can do billing and invoicing automatically, so you don’t have to. By cutting down on these routine tasks, you’ll have more time to focus on improving your business.

Related: Busywork Sucks — How Automation Can Eliminate Boring Tasks for Entrepreneurs

4. Build strong networks and partnerships

In the service industry, teaming up with others can fuel your growth. Build relationships with businesses that complement yours, connect with peers in your industry, and seek out strategic partners. Attend networking events like Small Business Expo or IT industry events, join industry groups, and engage with online communities to expand your circle and discover collaboration opportunities.

If you’re running a web design company, you can team up with a digital marketing agency to give clients a full package of services, using each other’s strengths to get great results. By making friends and partnerships, you’ll open up new opportunities and make your business even better.

Related: Turn Your Startup into a Powerhouse With These 6 Financial Growth Hacks

5. Upgrade your marketing and branding

To really stand out from the crowd, it’s not enough just to have a good marketing plan—you need to keep tweaking and improving it all the time. One way to strengthen it is through SEO and content marketing; don’t only focus on paid ads.

Did you know that nearly half of all clicks on search engines come from organic searches? That means people are more likely to trust the results they find naturally rather than those paid for. So, if you use SEO effectively, you can get more visitors to your website.

Crucially, your strategy must be rooted in data. By meticulously analyzing metrics such as website traffic, conversion rates, and customer engagement, you can glean invaluable insights into what initiatives are giving results and where improvements are needed.

Equally significant is the need to refresh your messaging and brand identity. As people’s preferences change and the market moves around, you must ensure your brand still fits in with what your customers like. Talk to your customers, see what they think, and keep an eye on what’s going on in your industry. By giving your brand a fresh look and message, you can keep customers interested and stand out from the crowd of competitors.

Hyperconnectivity and social media have forever changed the reach and impact of company leadership. These days, chief executives are expected to be the face of their companies, not only in the boardroom, across annual reports or at shareholder meetings, but across the entire and endless digital expanse.

The supercharged visibility of CEOs and other C-suite executives online plays a pivotal, if not essential, role in shaping brand perception and, by extension, brand perception and reputation. This transformation not only forced corporate PR teams to shift focus toward heavily digital branding strategies; it’s also prompted many leaders to rethink their entire approach to image management and public engagement.

Related: How to Skyrocket Your Business to the Top With Thought Leadership and Visibility

The digital persona: More than just a role

The internet (particularly social platforms) has democratized information in incredible ways, giving consumers unprecedented access to the people behind the brands their favorite brands. This shift has made your CEO’s digital persona an integral part of your company’s image.

When your CEO actively engages with audiences online, whether that’s through social media, blogging, webinars or workplace videos, they essentially humanize your brand, lending a powerful human element that can lead to stronger connections with both current and potential customers. A proactive and carefully managed online presence can boost such intangibles as trust and transparency. When your CEO is visible and interacting in ways that align with company values, they can help create a sense of openness that builds trust and connection with your business.

Such a presence can also elevate your thought leadership efforts. By sharing industry insights and forecasts, your CEO (and other executive leaders) can establish themselves and your brand as experts in your space, strengthening a critical perception that nudges customers closer to the finish line.

Impact of CEO visibility on brand perception

How your CEO crafts their image and engages with folks online can have a meaningful, sometimes even lasting, impact on your brand’s relevance and relatability. For example, a CEO who makes themselves approachable and (perhaps most importantly) relatable on social platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn and even TikTok can deliver real-time dividends for brand loyalty, driving trust and consumer interactions in the right direction.

In contrast, as a leader of an organization, a CEO who often seems aloof, distant or disconnected — especially from the values they preach or relevant societal issues and events — can inadvertently drain their company’s reputation, creating an association that can be hard to pull away from.

Successful CEO visibility efforts

Consider Tim Cook of Apple or Satya Nadella of Microsoft. Through both brand PR and adept personal efforts, both leaders have crafted online personas that align closely with the innovative and forward-thinking ethos of their companies. Cook and Nadella are not only effective, often persuasive advocates for their products, but also for broader issues like border societal concerns like privacy, security and corporate responsibility, often mirroring sentiment among their customer base.

Related: In a Downturn, It’s Not Enough to Have Good Financials — Brand Visibility Is the New Currency.

Potential risks of higher visibility

Of course, while there are clear benefits to having a highly visible CEO, there are also risks, including:

• Inconsistency. Any discrepancy between your CEO’s online persona and your company’s actions can lead to public relations issues. Consistency and brand-leadership alignment are key.
• Overexposure. Too much visibility can backfire over time, especially if it shifts focus away from your company and onto your CEO’s personal views or actions. Again, coordination and careful management of each strategy is essential.

Harnessing social media for CEO influence

Social media can be a double-edged sword. While it does offer a host of valuable platforms for leaders to engage audiences, it also poses considerable risks, especially if not managed carefully.

Here’s how savvy CEOs use social media to their advantage:

Regular updates: Skilled leaders understand how to leverage social channels to keep followers informed about company news and industry trends.

Engagement: While often challenging, CEOs who respond to comments and participate in discussions (measuredly, of course) help build a community around the brand.

Crisis management: Executives who address issues head-on can turn potential negatives into positive press. This also helps demonstrate leadership and accountability, essential to building positive sentiment and trust among consumers.

The SEO advantage of CEO visibility

While sometimes overlooked, CEO visibility can have a sizable impact on your brand’s search engine optimization (SEO) efforts. For instance, regularly updated blog posts and articles from your CEO can provide an incredible opportunity to drive organic traffic to your website, in turn improving its search engine ranking. Additionally, positive mentions of the CEO in the media can help generate positive headlines in Google, boosting your company’s larger online footprint.

Elements like consistent content creation — high-quality, optimized content — and link-building (leveraging and promoting CEO-authored articles and posts) can heighten your CEO’s online visibility and, by extension, elevate your brand across critical search results pages.

Related: This CEO Shares 4 Highly Effective Ways to Promote and Scale Your Small to Medium-Sized Business

Stepping into the spotlight with integrity

Visibility is powerful, but it must be handled with integrity to really benefit your company’s reputation. Your CEO’s online actions and communications should be thoughtful, authentic and aligned with the company’s values. Whether it’s participating in online discussions, writing insightful articles or engaging with followers on social, every activity contributes to the tapestry of the company’s online presence.

A CEO’s digital visibility is a formidable tool that can profoundly shape your company’s reputation. By embracing the spotlight with sincerity and strategy, your CEO not only bolsters your company’s image but also sets a benchmark for future leaders.

In this rapidly evolving digital landscape, those at the helm who can navigate with visibility and integrity are the ones who will steer their companies to new heights of success and influence.

Eightball was meant to be an AI tool that turned coursework into study aids, like flashcards and practice tests. Its creators, Emory University undergrads, won Emory’s pitch competition last year, earning a $10,000 grand prize and promotion from the university on its own social media channels.

Though Emory seemed to endorse Eightball at first, the university recently decided to suspend the students who created it.

Benjamin Craver, one of the suspended student founders behind Eightball, filed a lawsuit against Emory University on Monday detailing how Eightball went from a lauded, public AI tool that Emory helped fund and promote to one that the school demanded he shut down.

Craver says the suspension, which he appealed and the school reduced to a semester, affects his ability to graduate with his class, write an honor’s thesis, and apply to law school.

Craver, who took care of the marketing side of Eightball, could have been suspended for a year, and his developer co-founder, who remained unnamed in the 27-page lawsuit, could have been expelled over the school’s concern that Eightball “may” have been used to cheat — though Craver claims there’s no evidence of it.

^{Emory University campus (Photo by Davis Turner/Getty Images)}

Per the lawsuit, Emory told Craver in November that Eightball “may be used by students to complete assignments in violation of the Undergraduate Academic Honor Code,” which prevents students from “intentionally” helping other students cheat, plagiarize, or violate the honor code.

The Emory Honor Council conducted an investigation and held a hearing in January about Eightball.

The council heard from two Emory employees as witnesses, who pointed out that Eightball’s integration with Canvas, an online platform containing course materials, was a “major concern.”

Craver claimed that he and his co-founder told the university about the possible Canvas link at the pitch competition they won in the spring of 2023. Only a handful of students actually linked to their Canvas accounts, per the filing.

After the hearing, the Honor Council stated that “Eightball is based on a blueprint which incorporates the ability to cheat” meaning that Craver and his co-founder knew that it could be used that way “and built it with intent.”

Craver’s filing noted that he was not asked about his intentions and that “none of the witnesses at any point described how Eightball could be used to cheat or presented any evidence that anyone had in fact used Eightball to cheat.”

The council recommended a year-long suspension for Craver and expulsion for his co-founder. The school has since reduced the discipline to a semester suspension for each of them. Craver is suing to not be suspended at all.

The case ties into a broader question of how to keep AI safe and accountable as more people use it. ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, one of the biggest AI companies in the world, has recently seen two AI safety research leads resign, including Jan Leike, who said he left because he felt OpenAI did not prioritize AI safety.

Related: Now that OpenAI’s Superalignment Team Has Been Disbanded, Who’s Preventing AI from Going Rogue?

Emory University did not immediately respond to Entrepreneur’s request for comment.

If you find a coin on the ground heads up, it’s long been considered good luck.

And for one Virginia man who found a lucky penny and then used it to scratch off a winning lottery ticket, it looks like the adage might be true.

Tim Clougherty of Accomack County, Virginia, purchased a lottery ticket on April 29, 2024, that offered the prize of $10,000 a month for 10 years when he noticed a penny in the parking lot of the Mini Mart.

Related: Virginia Woman Hits $1 Million Lottery Jackpot — Her Second Win That Week: ‘I’m in Shock’

When he arrived back home, Clougherty used the penny to scratch off the numbers on the ticket. When he did, he won the grand prize.

“It took a week to really start sinking in,” Clougherty told lottery officials, per the Virginia lottery.

Instead of choosing the monthly payout, he took a lump sum in cash, which amounted to $1,028,000 before taxes.

The $10,000-a-month game first hit stands on January 2 and costs each player $20 per ticket to buy.

According to the Virginia lottery, the odds of winning the game’s top prize is 1 in 612,000, with two of the top prizes still remaining.

Last year, a Virginia woman hit the $1 million jackpot lottery for the jackpot after already winning a $500,000 online prize earlier in the same week.

Related: ‘I Am Blessed’: Woman Finds $100,000 Forgotten Powerball Ticket While ‘Going Through Papers’

“I’m in shock!” Jennifer Minton told lottery officials about the win last November. “I’m in disbelief!”

The Virginia Lottery raised an estimated $867 million last year, all of which went to K-12 education in the state.

I was talking to a friend recently who serves as the CTO at a mid-sized company and was struck by his sudden change in perspective on AI. Despite initial skepticism, he now believes artificial intelligence (AI) will revolutionize his industry. Yet, his main challenge has been convincing the rest of his executive team to adopt an AI roadmap. This scenario isn’t isolated.

In the last year, we’ve seen a contracted hype cycle around AI, which has caused many leaders to question if an investment in AI can truly yield proportional returns. These concerns aren’t without merit. VC firm Sequoia Capital recently estimated the AI industry spent $50 billion on Nvidia chips to train AI models last year, yet only yielded $3 billion in revenue.

Despite that disparity in investment, Sequoia went on to hypothesize AI is likely “the single greatest value creation opportunity” mankind has ever known, comparing its impact on business to that of the cloud transition. Unlike the cloud, however, which replaced software, AI has the potential to replace services, which the VC firm estimated has a total addressable market in the trillions. It’s the reason tech giants like Microsoft and Amazon continue to double down on AI investment.

Related: What Is Artificial Intelligence (AI)? Here Are Its Benefits, Uses and More

With so many competing narratives around the future of AI, it’s no wonder companies are misaligned on the best approach for integrating it into their organizations. The problem is most leaders are still looking at AI in its limited capacity as a software or tool rather than its ability to operate in a human-like capacity. Here are three common mistakes I see companies make when it comes to implementing an AI roadmap.

Underestimating and limiting AI’s potential

AI is widely viewed as a tool or software, but because it can create and reason, it has the ability to interact in a human-like capacity. Much like a junior employee who gets better at their job with experience, AI has the ability to learn from its interactions and refine its methods to improve its output and take on more work overtime.

For this reason, leaders who think of leveraging AI as “smart people” rather than software are better positioned to harness its full potential. Think about a company’s organization chart. If you were to write down the skills and tasks associated with each employee, then you can start to visualize where AI can be trained to augment or automate these tasks.

AI already outperforms humans in areas such as image classification, visual reasoning, and even English understanding, according to Stanford University’s recently published AI Index report. As of 2023, the report showed AI has surpassed human-level performance on several benchmark tasks, succeeding in helping workers become more productive and produce better-quality work. Another study out of the University of Arkansas showed AI outperformed humans in standardized tests of creative potential.

Unlike humans, however, AI scales up effortlessly as business demands increase, handling workloads without the physical and mental limits of humans. Adopting AI in this way means rethinking our team structures and workflows. It involves training teams to work alongside AI to enhance their roles and drive innovation.

This perspective shift is crucial because it allows leaders, who may not be accustomed to deploying technology themselves, to innately understand how to best leverage AI across their entire organization.

2. Trying to mimic another company’s AI use case

The more you start thinking of AI as smart people, the more you realize how individual every organization’s approach to building an AI roadmap should be. I like to think of AI implementation as the onboarding of new team members who need to fit within the specific dynamics of your company.

Take human resources for example — one company might have 10 people there; another only three, even if they’re the same size. This difference isn’t just about company size or revenue. It’s about how these companies have evolved.

Each business has its own unique structure, culture and needs. In order to realize generative AI’s full potential, PwC reported, businesses must take advantage of its capacity to be customized to a company’s specific needs and avoid the use-case trap.

Of course, general use cases for AI exist, particularly when it comes to enhancing customer service or sales. But, when you’re looking at a deeper integration of AI into a company’s operations, the approach needs to be custom-built, not copied and pasted from outside case studies.

Related: I Tested AI Tools So You Don’t Have To. Here’s What Worked — and What Didn’t.

3. Buying off-the-shelf products — not tailoring AI solutions to your needs

There are some great off-the-shelf AI products like ChatGPT, Dalle, and translation tools that solve specific problems within a company. The challenge with investing in a boxed solution for AI is that many leaders fail to see how AI can enhance operations at a systemic level.

The true power of AI lies in its ability to fundamentally transform your operations, not just perform isolated tasks. PwC’s 2024 AI predictions report states that many companies will find attractive ROI from generative AI. Still, few will succeed in achieving transformative value from it — the biggest barrier being the inability of leaders to think beyond boxed solutions and reimagine the way they work with AI.

When building an AI roadmap, leaders must first conduct a thorough assessment of their company’s processes. This means identifying areas with redundancies, recognizing outsourced tasks that could be automated, and pinpointing where the company invests heavily in human capital. By understanding these dynamics, leaders can tailor AI solutions to their company’s needs and transform how they work.

The more I talk to company leaders about integrating AI into their businesses, the more apparent it becomes that we leaders need to shift our perspective. When we view AI not just as a technological upgrade but as the onboarding of smart people, we’re better able to integrate it into our internal operations, enhancing performance and human ingenuity along the way.

Microsoft Office is a staple, which is why so many businesses rely on it for a range of functional needs throughout a given workday. If you are an entrepreneur leading a team with a member who doesn’t have a Microsoft Office license on their computer, that issue needs remedying right away. That is if you want to ensure your team has everything they need to do their jobs as well as possible.

Luckily, you can save extra on a lifetime license during a special price drop that ends today. Get Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2019 for Windows and Microsoft Office Home & Business 2019 for Mac for only $24.97 (reg. $229).

Each of these deals is good for a lifetime license that goes with one computer. It also warrants lifetime access to Microsoft’s beloved customer service team. The Mac version has Teams Classic 2019 and the Windows version comes with Access and Publisher, while both feature each of these esteemed software solutions:

• Word
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• PowerPoint
• Outlook
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These fantastic deals, which end today, each have an average rating of 4.8/5 stars on the Entrepreneur Store. One recent five-star review describes the deal as a “great price and so simple to install! Extremely happy with my purchase of Microsoft Office Professional 2019.”

One of your responsibilities as a business leader is to make sure your team is set up with the tools they need to succeed. Today’s the last day you can set them up with one of these amazing licenses:

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Elvis Presley’s granddaughter Riley Keough is taking legal action against a company that advertised a public auction for Presley’s famed estate — alleging that the documents the company used to justify the sale are forgeries.

Keough, now the owner of the 13.8-acre Graceland estate, filed a 61-page lawsuit last week against Naussany Investments & Private Lending over the attempted public auction of the historic property, where several of her family members are buried.

^{Elvis Presley on the grounds of his Graceland estate in 1957. Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images}

The filing details that eight months after Keough’s mother, Lisa Marie Presley, passed away in January 2023, Naussany came forward with documents claiming Lisa Marie had borrowed $3.8 million from them in 2018 and used Graceland as collateral.

“These documents are forgeries,” Keough asserts in the filing.

^{Riley Keough. Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic}

Keough pointed out that one of the documents used language that went into effect two years after Presley supposedly signed it.

The notary listed on the document also confirmed that she did not notarize the document or had ever met Presley, per the filing.

Keough further alleges that “on information and belief,” Naussany is not a real company but “appears to be a false entity.”

Kurt Naussany, named in the filing as the person acting on behalf of the company, told NBC News on Tuesday that he left the firm in 2015 and should not be named in the legal document. According to Keough’s filing, someone under the name of Kurt Naussany sent her legal counsel multiple emails asking to collect the claimed $3.8 million debt or risk a sale of Graceland.

Related: This Is How Much Elvis Presley’s Private Jet Just Sold for at Auction

The company has posted multiple public notices of the foreclosure sale this month and scheduled the auction for Thursday morning, at the front of the Shelby County Courthouse in Memphis.

After Keough’s request for a temporary restraining order, a Memphis judge froze the scheduled auction. An injunction hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.

The pandemic made global supply chain issues a common dinner table conversation. Now, with escalating geopolitical tensions and competing manufacturing hubs in China, India and Mexico, it can be hard for businesses to understand what the best strategy is for moving goods internationally.

Yet, despite the complexities affecting our global supply chains, the opportunity for businesses to engage in international trade has never been better. Advances in technology continue to make it easier to automate logistics. In fact, according to Acumen Research and Consulting, the global logistics automation market is predicted to reach $133 billion USD by 2030.

Not only is technology making supply chain logistics easier for businesses to manage, but in a down market, there can be opportunities to negotiate better deals with overseas suppliers, find new customers and create business models that adapt to future market conditions.

Regardless of your motivation, if you’re a business looking to expand abroad, here are three tips that can give you a competitive edge:

1. Understand regulatory requirements in advance

Paperwork may seem tedious, but in the world of global logistics, an incorrect or incomplete form can determine whether or not your shipment gets across the border. As the leader of a customs brokerage and freight forwarding business, I can tell you brokers spend a disproportionate amount of time following up with clients to complete the appropriate paperwork to clear customs.

Understanding simple but important details like what determines your product’s country of origin is instrumental for budgeting and planning. For example, if a business purchases materials from China and further develops them in the U.S. before resale, many leaders assume they qualify for reduced duty through North America’s free trade agreement (now known as the Canada, U.S., Mexico Agreement) — but this isn’t always the case. Products must meet a specific set of criteria to leverage the lower duty rates. Missed details like this can cost businesses a significant amount of money unexpectedly.

It’s also important to understand how exchange rates are calculated. Many businesses are surprised when they have to pay more for duty on a shipment when it arrives than they originally estimated. That’s because duty is calculated based on the exchange rate at the time the goods arrive at their destination. Exchange rates fluctuate, so it’s important for businesses to bear this in mind when creating budgets.

Related: Your Customers Don’t Care Where Your Ecommerce Business Is Based, So Be Ready to Ship Anywhere in the World

Factor In geopolitical tensions and changing market conditions

From China’s recently passed “retaliation tariff” to attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea, growing geopolitical tensions are causing businesses to rethink their trade routes.

How a business navigates geopolitical disruptions largely depends on whether it is looking for a short-term or long-term strategy. If a company is looking for a short-term strategy, for example, it can likely adapt more swiftly to trade route disruptions. Businesses focused on long-term logistical planning, however, need to factor in the big-picture implications of geopolitical stability.

Take, for example, the current tensions between the U.S. and China, which have caused more manufacturers to set up operations in Mexico. If the U.S. decides to permanently shift its purchasing from China to Mexico, this change would have significant implications on the trade route’s pricing and capacity in the long term.

Businesses entering into international markets should factor in what parts of the supply chain are likely to be disrupted within the time frame they are targeting and consider whether or not they are well positioned to pivot, as necessary.

Related: How to Find International Customers and Partners as You Expand Your Market

Build strong relationships with international partners

One of the most overlooked factors in navigating global logistics is the importance of building strong relationships with partners abroad. Businesses seeking strong international partnerships must learn and adapt to the customs and cultures of the regions they operate within.

In my work, I do business with partners in multiple countries. Every year, when I attend their annual conferences, I notice the difference between leaders who respect the local customs and those who operate as though they were on home soil. Often, this attitudinal difference determines who establishes long-lasting, cooperative partnerships that lead to better pricing and referrals and who loses business altogether.

According to the International Labour Union, a staggering 70% of international ventures collapse due to cultural disparities. Every culture has its own etiquette. Doing a little research on the communication rules and accepted behaviors in the countries you’re operating in can go a long way toward establishing a cooperative partnership.

As a seasoned leader in international logistics, I’ve seen firsthand the transformative power of adapting to global market dynamics. For businesses venturing into international terrain, understanding regulatory landscapes, geopolitical shifts and cultural nuances not only mitigates the risk of expansion but can help maximize the opportunity.