With the development of globalization, more and more enterprises are faced with the challenges and opportunities of opening up new markets. The development of new markets requires not only a deep understanding of the target market, but also the development of appropriate market entry strategies to overcome potential risks and obstacles. As a professional third-party service organization, consulting companies can provide enterprises with a full range of market research, competition analysis, channel construction, marketing planning, investment evaluation and other consulting services to help enterprises effectively open new markets. Taking Shangpu Consulting as an example, this paper introduces the main methods and cases of consulting companies in helping enterprises to open new markets, and shows the value and role of consulting companies.

Definition and classification of 1. consulting firms

A consulting firm is a service provider that provides expertise, skills or advice to clients, usually for a fee in the form of a project or contract. The range of consulting services is very wide, covering strategy, management, finance, human resources, information technology, law, marketing and other fields. According to the different service content and object, consulting companies can be divided into the following categories:

Strategic consulting: mainly to provide customers with strategic planning, organizational change, competitive advantage and other aspects of consulting services, to help customers develop long-term development goals and paths. Representative strategic consulting firms include McKinsey, Boston Consulting, and Bain.

Management consulting: mainly to provide customers with management process, organizational structure, human resources, quality control and other aspects of consulting services to help customers improve management efficiency and effectiveness. Representative management consulting firms include Accenture, Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Technical consulting: mainly to provide customers with information technology, digital transformation, innovation and research and development consulting services, to help customers use technical means to enhance competitiveness and creativity. Representative technical consulting firms areIBM, Microsoft, Alibaba, etc.

Industry consulting: mainly to provide customers with specific industry or field of expertise and experience, to help customers solve industry-specific problems and challenges. Representative industry consulting firms include Roland Berger (automotive), McKinsey (medical), and Champ (market research).

The main methods of 2. consulting firms in helping businesses open up to new markets

A new market is a potential market that an enterprise has not yet entered or has just entered, usually with high growth potential and room for competition. However, there are many uncertainties and risks in the new market, such as market demand, consumption habits, competition pattern, laws and regulations, cultural differences and so on. Therefore, before opening a new market, enterprises need to conduct adequate market research and analysis, and formulate appropriate market entry strategies to improve the success rate and rate of return. Consulting firms can provide companies with consulting services in the following areas to help them open up new markets:

Market research: Consulting companies can provide enterprises with basic information about the target market, market size, market segmentation, market trends, market opportunities and other information through professional data collection and analysis methods to help enterprises understand the potential demand and development prospects of new markets.

Competitive analysis: Consulting firms can help companies determine their competitive advantages and differentiation strategies by conducting in-depth investigations and evaluations of major competitors in the target market, providing them with information on the characteristics of competitors' products or services, pricing strategies, channel models, marketing methods, strengths and weaknesses.

Channel construction: Consulting companies can provide enterprises with appropriate channel selection and construction solutions through research on consumer behavior and preferences in the target market, including direct sales, agency, distribution, alliance, e-commerce and other different channel forms to help enterprises effectively reach and serve target customers.

Marketing planning: Consulting companies can analyze the psychology and needs of consumers in the target market to provide enterprises with effective marketing plans, including brand positioning, product pricing, promotional activities, advertising and other marketing methods to help enterprises enhance brand awareness and influence.

Investment evaluation: Consulting companies can provide enterprises with reliable investment evaluation reports, including investment costs, income forecasts, risk analysis, etc., by evaluating the policy environment, legal risks, economic stability and other factors in the target market, and help enterprises make reasonable investment decisions.

The Case for 3. Consulting Firms in Helping Businesses Open to New Markets

Shangpu Consulting is one of the most influential domestic leading brands in market research in China. It has a foreign-related investigation license issued by the National Bureau of Statistics and focuses on providing customers with special market research services. Champ Consulting has a wealth of experience and success stories in helping clients open new markets, and here are some of them:

An internationally renowned household brand commissioned Shangpu Consulting to conduct market research on Chinese household goods to explore opportunities and challenges in the Chinese market. Through in-depth research on the overall situation of China's household goods market, consumer demand and behavior, competition pattern, etc., Shangpu Consulting provides customers with detailed market reports, and according to the characteristics and advantages of customers' products, it puts forward suggestions for the positioning and entry strategy of the Chinese market. According to the report and recommendations of Shangpu Consulting, the customer has successfully opened a number of stores in China and has received good market response.

A well-known domestic automobile manufacturer commissioned Shangpu Consulting to adjust the Southeast Asian automobile market and continue to display the remaining contents, as follows:

A well-known domestic automobile manufacturer commissioned Shangpu Consulting to conduct research on the Southeast Asian automobile market in order to seek overseas market expansion. Through systematic analysis of the scale, growth, segmentation, trends and opportunities of the automobile market in Southeast Asian countries, Shangpu Consulting provides customers with comprehensive market reports, and puts forward market entry strategy suggestions for different countries according to the customer's product line and competitiveness. According to the reports and recommendations of Champ Consulting, customers have successfully launched their own brand cars in many countries in Southeast Asia and gained a good market share.

A well-known domestic medical device company commissioned Shangpu Consulting to conduct European medical device market research to explore the possibility of high-end market. Through in-depth research on the demand, supply, regulation and competition of the European medical device market, Shangpu Consulting provides customers with professional market reports, and puts forward the positioning and entry strategy for the European market according to the customer's product characteristics and advantages. According to the report and recommendations of Champ Consulting, the customer successfully applied for the registration and certification of medical devices in many European countries, and established cooperative relations with local hospitals and distributors.

Conclusion

Consulting firms are important partners for companies to open new markets, providing professional, objective and rigorous market research and analysis services to help companies develop appropriate market entry strategies, overcome potential risks and obstacles, and improve success rates and returns.