Even if you are operating your home business in a small town where you have lived your entire life—there are social issues that can affect your success. If you are working internationally, or with demographics and populations of people who are different from you—taking the time to learn about customs and culture can really pay off as you build and grow your business.
There are all sorts of social nuances and customs that can come into play when one is interacting with a variety of people. Just because you are “doing business” does not mean that culture and manners don’t come into play. Things like business hours, how aggressive one can be when making a sale and expectations around payment and tipping can all be influenced by culture and customs.
Turn on your observation skills when getting to know your customer base. While you may be drawing the bulk of your customers or clients from a particular demographic—you might not. Get to know the heritage and cultural background of your customers, as well as where they stand on some of the “hot issues” such as family, religion, work ethic, and education. This will help you to be culturally sensitive and adjust your sales and business style to fit the cultural comfort level and expectations of your customers.
Getting a good handle on customs and culture is probably not something that can be done in an afternoon. In addition to observing and getting to know your customers, you can do a little research online or at your library. There are some really great publications, magazines, and books that have business-related articles and information about doing business with various demographics and in different countries and cultures. As it becomes increasingly common for even small home-based businesses to work on an international level, more information about cultures and customs becomes accessible.
What seems like good behavior here in the United States can definitely be offensive if you are working in with other countries—and what is acceptable in one region of the U.S. might not fly in another. So, depending on your business, taking the time to get and keep yourself culturally savvy can be well worth your effort!
See Also: Think You Know Your Market–Don’t Get Too Complacent
Do You Know What Your Customers Want?