International business prospects have never been brighter for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). While that may sound a little overstated, experts in the industry say there are hundreds of opportunities for U.S. firms who want to jump into the export game. And better yet, there are a wealth of resources to tap into for first-timers who are ready to get going. One of the best places to start, especially for SMEs, is the Small Business Exporters Association (www. sbea.org). "Our services are specifically geared toward smaller companies," says James Morrison, president of the organization. The Small Business Exporters Association is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and works on behalf of its members to maintain the federal government's support for smaller exporters while providing networking opportunities too. Morrison says that there's sometimes a mispercep-tion about who's active in the global export market. It's not just for the big companies, he emphasizes. On the contrary, "big companies leave a lot behind, either because the business is 'too small' or it doesn't fit in some other way," which leaves plenty for smaller firms to pursue, he explains. As an example, "Russia is very attractive now," he notes, "and if CAFTA passes, that will also open up a slew of opportunities." Morrison says that entering the export game not only helps smaller businesses expand, equally important, it can also be a safety net in an economic downturn. He tells the story of Hoffman International, a New Jersey-based construction and materials handling equipment company, that began looking outside the U.S. during the 1970s when the northeastern U.S. was reeling from a recession and sales leads were drying up. Exports eventually came to represent the majority of the company's sales. "You can smooth out business cycles with exports," says Morrison. "And don't forget - 96 percent of consumers live outside of the United States." Air Tractor, a Texas-based manufacturer of agricultural aircraft used for crop-dusting and firefighting, was another U.S. firm that began searching for overseas prospects after realizing the U.S. market had reached maturity. Spain was one of the first countries Air Tractor expanded to, though now its customers can be found in many more countries throughout the world. The company now boasts the most extensive product line of agricultural aircraft in the world and turns out about 100 aircraft each year from its facility in Olney, Texas.
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