How to find buyers abroad: fairs, B2B platforms, trade offices, data and email

Most small manufacturers look for buyers abroad the same way: one trade fair, a couple of B2B platform listings, the odd inquiry in the inbox. Each can work. The trouble starts when you pay for all of them without knowing which fits your product.

This guide compares five methods: trade fairs, B2B platforms, trade offices abroad, trade data and direct email. Public support is quoted from Turkey's published rules, checked on 7 November 2026. At the end there is a first email to a foreign buyer and a follow-up schedule.

Pick the country and the companies first

Narrow the market before you choose a method. Without knowing which countries import the most of your product and whether those imports are growing, choosing a fair is guesswork.

You do not need a paid report. Trade Map, the database of the International Trade Centre (ITC), is one of the sources the Turkish Ministry of Trade lists on its trade information page. Search with the first 6 digits of your HS code, rank the importing countries and pick 2 or 3. A small team that targets ten countries leaves no mark in any of them.

Trade Map works at country level and does not name companies. Company-level shipment data, compiled from some countries' import records, is sold by paid providers. It shows firms that already buy under your HS code, so they need no convincing. Clean any list you build: remove companies outside your sector, logistics intermediaries and shared info@ inboxes, then find who decides on purchasing. A good list is 200 right companies, not 5,000 random addresses.

Five methods side by side

The table has no prices on purpose, because stand and platform costs vary too widely. It shows where the money goes and who each method suits.

Trade fairs and public support

A fair is still the strongest first contact. The buyer handles the product, talks to you and sees your competitors in the same hall. What makes a fair expensive is rarely the stand but the missing follow-up, when business cards stay in a box.

Many governments subsidise fair stands, so check what yours offers before you book. In Turkey the Ministry of Trade does it under Decision No. 5973 on Export Support. Article 7 calculates support per square metre of stand space, based on 50% of the approximate cost per square metre. In target countries set by the Ministry the rate is 70%, and 75% for companies in target sectors at fairs in those countries. Up to 5 fairs starting in a calendar year qualify, or 10 for some participants defined in the circular.

The lira caps are updated at the start of every year and published on the Ministry's fairs page, together with the list of supported fairs. Article 6 of the same decision covers 50% of travel and accommodation for market research trips abroad, up to 5 times a year. Check the current circular before applying.

B2B platforms and trade offices

B2B platforms let buyers find you. Most inquiries are price questions sent to many suppliers at once. Whoever answers the same day with unit price, minimum order, lead time and delivery terms (FOB, CIF) gets ahead. Without a price template, a paid listing loses money.

Commercial attachés are the most underused route. Turkey's Ministry runs an "Ask the Counsellor" service (Müşavire Danışın) for questions about the country where each counsellor serves. Purchase, sale and tender notices that reach the counsellors go into a bulletin only registered exporters can follow.

Do not ask a counsellor for a buyer list. Ask a narrow question: "Which fairs do hotel chains here attend, and which certificates do they require?" Follow your exporters' association too. Article 24 of the Turkish decision supports trade missions abroad and inbound buyer missions organised by associations.

The first email to a foreign buyer

Email fills the months between fairs. Keep it short, base it on one true fact about the buyer and ask one question. Write in the buyer's language when you can and have a native speaker check it, because a text that reads like a machine translation does worse than plain English.

The example is for a towel mill in Denizli, Turkey. The part in square brackets is the one fact you research and check for each buyer.

Subject: Towels for [your two new Lisbon hotels]

Hi Ana,

I read on your website that [you are opening two hotels in Lisbon next spring].

We weave cotton hotel towels in Denizli, Turkey, and supply hotel groups in Europe. Size, weight and an embroidered logo are set per order, from 500 pieces.

Would a sample set and a price for 1,000 pieces delivered to Lisbon be useful?

Ahmet

If you would rather not hear from us, reply "no" and we will not write again.

Why it is written this way:

• The first line is about the buyer. An email that opens with "We are one of the leading manufacturers" gets deleted before line two.
• The second paragraph answers the first filter: what you make, who you sell to, the minimum order.
• One easy question. A price delivered to the buyer's city leaves no maths for them.
• No attachment or link, first name only, a clear way to say no. Send the catalogue later. For US buyers, add your postal address.

Follow-up schedule

Stop the sequence for anyone who replies, and mind the buyer's holidays and buying season. Sorting replies and sending domains are covered in our cold email guide.

Email rules depend on the buyer's country

GDPR and Turkey's rules are covered in our cold email guide. For three common export markets, the official texts say this:

• United States. The FTC's CAN-SPAM guide says the law makes no exception for business-to-business email. You need a valid postal address, a clear opt-out honoured within 10 business days, an honest subject line and a clear sign that the message is an advertisement.
• United Kingdom. The ICO's business-to-business marketing guidance says the email consent rule does not apply to corporate subscribers such as limited companies and LLPs. Sole traders and some partnerships get the stricter rule. Keep a "do not email" list.
• Germany. Section 7 of the Act against Unfair Competition (UWG) requires prior express consent for advertising email, without separating consumers from businesses. In Germany, favour fairs, trade offices and platforms.

Where to start

For a small export team we suggest this order:

1. Use Trade Map to pick 2 or 3 target countries.
2. Send each trade office a narrow question and join its buyer notice bulletin.
3. Book one supported fair there and work out the support before applying.
4. Start emailing target companies 2 to 3 months before the fair and book stand meetings.
5. Have an English website, a price template and samples ready.

A buyer who reads your email checks your website next. What a site costs line by line is in our website cost guide.

If you would rather not run the email side yourself, our Lead Generation package costs €300 a month. It sends a three-step sequence to up to 1,000 verified decision makers a month in your target segment, sets up the sending infrastructure and routes replies to you.