Stop wasting time on leads that won't close and learn how to navigate the complex stakeholder web to reach the person with overall authority.

In the global market, there is an abundance of clients, but it’s easy to get lost chasing the wrong ones. Most sales teams fall into the "easy to be busy" trap—filling their CRM with activity that never turns into revenue.

In this episode of Start Global Insights, host Dmytro Shvets sits down with Olha Kobrina, Channel Sales Manager at Splunk (a Cisco Company), to reveal how to transition from a "pitchman" to an "intelligence agent."

Olha breaks down the MEDDPICC framework, a high-stakes qualification methodology used to navigate complex B2B stakeholder ecosystems.

In this episode, you will learn:

• The "Busy" Trap: Why high activity levels often mask a lack of real progress.
• The Economic Buyer's Role: How to identify the person with the overall authority to find budget and provide the final sign-off.
• Champion vs. Coach: Why relying on the wrong internal advocate is the #1 reason complex deals die.
• The Budget Myth: How "Identified Pain" can create a budget even if one wasn't initially allocated.
• RFP Strategy: Why rushing to answer a Request for Proposal is often a race to the bottom.

Timestamps:

00:00 – The "Easy to be Busy" Trap.

05:36 – Why "Interest" is a dangerous metric.

12:26 – Introduction to the MEDDPICC framework.

15:52 – Identifying the Champion vs. the Coach.

21:14 – The RFP Trap and AI in procurement.

30:52 – Navigating the Economic Buyer’s authority.

LinkedIn profiles:

Host, Dmytro Shvets https://www.linkedin.com/in/dshvets/

Guest, Olha Kobrina https://www.linkedin.com/in/olha-kobrina-a0954310/

Listen to Start Global Insights on all major platforms and YouTube. Don't forget to subscribe for more global business insights.

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Feedback: We value your thoughts. Please leave us a review on Apple podcasts, Spotify or email us at podcast@start-global.biz

Develop your international expansion strategy with Start Global, your guide to foreign markets. Visit us at https://www.start-global.biz/

Ready to master Intercultural Communication and adjust your Global Market Entry Strategy? The secret to international business success isn't just your product, it's understanding the global anatomy of trust.

In this episode of Start Global Insights, we sit down with cross-cultural expert and author Maryna Starodubska to decode the subtle, often unseen cultural dimensions that make or break international deals.

In this episode, you will learn:

0:35 - The Anatomy of Trust: Defining generalized trust and the crucial Global Trust Radius -why a high trust score isn't enough for market entry success.

3:37 - Cooperation Format & Time: Understanding which cultures require face-to-face meetings and socialization versus those that allow trust-building via correspondence.

5:19 - Trust Loans vs. Starting at Zero: The difference between "advanced trust" (loaned in Scandinavia/Baltics) and "earned trust" (required in the Middle East/Asia).

6:20 - Power Distance (Rank Sensitivity): Why your Job Title determines who you need to send to the negotiation table, and how transient trust affects successor relationships.

10:20 - Social Norms & Emotion: How cultural factors like hospitality and emotional expression (Neutral vs. Affective cultures) impact your professional credibility.

13:50 - The Minimum Research (3 Key Rules): The three essential cultural dimensions (Trust, Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance) you must check before entering any new market.

17:50 - Five Costly Mistakes: Avoiding common blunders like bluntness, mandated overwork in the EU, and neglecting local expertise in highly competitive markets (like the 50 subcultures of the U.S.).

23:40 - Cost-Benefit Analysis: Why seeking the "easy" market is the wrong strategic move, and the importance of weighing cultural distance against market lucrativeness.

Maryna also reveals the key cross-cultural methodologies (Hofstede, Trompenaars, etc.) that you must research for a successful market entry.

LinkedIn profiles:

Host, Dmytro Shvets https://www.linkedin.com/in/dshvets/

Guest: Maryna Starodubska, Cross-Cultural Interaction Consultant, Kyiv Mohyla Business School Adjunct Professor. https://www.linkedin.com/in/starodubska/

Listen to Start Global Insights on all major platforms and YouTube. Don't forget to subscribe for more global business insights.

Spotify: https://rebrand.ly/SGISpotifyRSS

Apple podcasts: https://rebrand.ly/SGIAppleRSS

YouTube: https://rebrand.ly/SGIYTRSS

In your browser: https://rebrand.ly/SGISGRSS

Feedback: We value your thoughts. Please leave us a review on Apple podcasts, Spotify or email us at podcast@start-global.biz

Looking to export your food products to Scandinavia? The Swedish food retail market is worth ~ €27 Billion, but it is famous for its concentration: 90% of all sales are dominated by just three major players.

In this essential episode of Start Global Insights, host Dmytro Shvets sits down with Jenny Köpper, CEO of Food Collective and former Category Manager for major Swedish retailers. Jenny shares the insider roadmap for securing product listings and thriving in this highly concentrated market.

You Will Discover:

• The 90% Problem: Why the extreme market concentration dictates your entire sales strategy.
• Price Myth Busted: Why high Swedish shelf prices are a signal of high logistics costs, not high margins, and how this impacts your financial model.
• The Buyer's Mandate: What a stressed Category Manager is actually looking for in a product proposal (and why most cold emails fail).
• The One-Year Rule: Why you must plan for a minimum of 12 months from first contact to first order to succeed in Swedish business culture.
• The Sustainability Test: The non-negotiable role of traceability and sustainability compliance in securing partnerships and private label deals.
• The Margin Calculation: The crucial financial calculation required to ensure your partner earns with you, not without you.

LinkedIn profiles:

Host, Dmytro Shvets https://www.linkedin.com/in/dshvets/

Guest, Jenny Köpper https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennykopper/

Listen to Start Global Insights on all major platforms and YouTube. Don't forget to subscribe for more global business insights.

Spotify: https://rebrand.ly/SGISpotifyRSS

Apple podcasts: https://rebrand.ly/SGIAppleRSS

YouTube: https://rebrand.ly/SGIYTRSS

In your browser: https://rebrand.ly/SGISGRSS