Expanding a company to another country can create new revenue streams, bring the brand closer to strategic customers and open paths for growth. The problem is that international expansion also adds variables the company doesn't face in its home market: legislation, taxation, business culture, sales channels, suppliers, language and operating costs.
When a company tries to solve everything at once, the initial investment grows before there is enough evidence that the market will respond. Soft landing starts from a different logic: enter gradually, validate assumptions and grow the structure as results come in.
In practice, it works as a bridge between studying a market from a distance and establishing a full operation in the target country.
What is soft landing?
Soft landing is an approach to entering new markets that aims to make a company's first steps in another country more controlled. Instead of starting internationalization with a permanent structure, the organization builds a presence that matches the validation stage.
This presence may include operational support, a business address, meeting spaces, local partners, guidance on company setup processes, connections with service providers and support to understand market practices. The exact format varies by country, industry and company goals.
The address can be part of the structure, but the logic of soft landing is broader: reduce uncertainty, ease local adaptation and allow the company to learn about the market before increasing its financial and operational commitment.
Why start gradually?
An internationalization decision is usually made with incomplete information. Research helps estimate market size, competition and customer profile, but an important part of the learning only shows up once the company starts operating: real meetings, proposals, customer objections, supplier lead times, documentation requirements and differences in how deals are negotiated.
Soft landing creates room for that learning without requiring, from day one, the same level of investment as a mature operation. This makes it easier to correct assumptions and adjust the entry plan.
- Test market receptiveness before taking on larger fixed costs.
- Understand how local customers and partners make decisions.
- Identify operational and bureaucratic requirements that don't show up in the initial analysis.
- Adapt pricing, messaging, the commercial offer and customer service processes.
- Build a local network of suppliers and specialists as needed.
- Decide with more evidence whether to scale, change the strategy or stop the entry.
Soft landing vs. Market Entry: what's the difference?
Market Entry is the broader plan for entering a new market. It includes choosing the country, analyzing demand, the commercial model, the legal structure, sales channels, marketing strategy and the criteria used to decide whether the expansion should move forward.
Soft landing can be one stage within that strategy. It is especially useful when the company has already identified a promising market but still needs to turn assumptions into operational learning before building a larger presence.
International expansion in stages
| Stage | Main goal | Example actions |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Analysis | Understand whether the market deserves deeper investigation. | Research, competition, demand, regulation and initial costs. |
| 2. Soft landing | Validate the market with presence and investment proportional to the stage. | Prospecting, meetings, partners, business presence and sales tests. |
| 3. Scale | Expand the operation after consistent signs of traction. | Local team, own structure, additional channels and greater investment. |
What can a soft landing structure include?
There is no universal package. A B2B services company may need a very different structure from a manufacturer, a tech startup or a foreign trade operation. Even so, some elements come up frequently.
1. Business presence in the target market
Depending on the stage and local rules, the company may need a business reference point to receive communications, present itself to partners or organize its initial operation. In some projects, this avoids prematurely committing to a physical structure larger than what is actually needed.
2. Support to understand the local environment
Company setup processes, registrations, tax obligations, contracts and licenses vary between countries and activities. Soft landing doesn't replace specialized legal or accounting advice, but it can help the company organize its needs and connect with the right professionals.
3. Space and support for in-person activities
Meetings with customers, partners, suppliers or candidates may require a physical presence even when the operation is still lean. Flexible structures make these activities possible without turning a market test into a long-term real estate commitment.
4. Local network of partners and providers
Accounting, legal, translation, recruiting, logistics, marketing and technology are examples of needs that may arise during market entry. Access to a reliable network reduces the time spent searching for suppliers from scratch.
5. Support for commercial adaptation
The company may find that sales arguments, proposal formats, acquisition channels and even the way the product is presented need to change. What is learned in the first interactions should quickly feed back into the sales strategy.
When does soft landing make the most sense?
The approach tends to be useful when there is real interest in a country but not yet enough data to justify a robust operation. Some scenarios are particularly well suited to this model:
- Companies testing international demand for the first time.
- Businesses that already have potential customers or partners in another country but no local presence yet.
- Companies that need to compare two or more markets before choosing where to invest more.
- B2B operations in which relationships, meetings and local trust carry significant weight in the sales process.
- Projects that require regulatory or operational adaptation before a larger expansion.
What soft landing doesn't solve on its own
The strategy reduces friction, but it doesn't turn a bad market into a good one. The company still needs a competitive offer, sufficient demand, financial capacity and a willingness to adapt its model. Legal, tax and regulatory matters still need to be reviewed with specialists in the target country.
Another important point is setting a timeline and decision criteria. A soft landing operation without goals can become a temporary structure kept indefinitely, with the company unsure whether it is validating the market or just postponing a decision.
How to structure a soft landing project
1. Define what needs to be validated
Before hiring any structure, list the main assumptions: Is there demand? Is the price point right? Is the sales cycle viable? Does the company need a local presence to sell? Which regulatory barriers could change the plan?
2. Set a testing horizon
Define a period to gather evidence and review the strategy. The timeline should take into account the industry's sales cycle: complex B2B deals may require more time than transactional sales.
3. Start with the structure you need, not the structure you imagine
Build the presence that meets the current needs of validation. Team, office, suppliers and systems can be expanded as the operation demonstrates real need.
4. Track learning and traction metrics
Beyond revenue, monitor meetings, opportunities, proposals, conversion, time to close, acquisition cost, recurring objections and adaptation needs. These metrics help identify whether the problem lies in the market or in the way the company is entering it.
5. Set the triggers to move forward, adjust or stop
The project should end in a decision. If the metrics are positive, the company can expand its presence. If the signals are mixed, it can adjust the strategy. If the thesis isn't confirmed, exiting should be possible without carrying a disproportionate structure.
Common mistakes in soft landing projects
- Treating soft landing as an end in itself, without validation goals.
- Choosing a country based on a perceived opportunity without investigating demand and competition.
- Believing that local presence replaces a well-structured sales strategy.
- Ignoring cultural differences in negotiation and customer relationships.
- Postponing legal and tax analysis until the operation is already selling.
- Hiring an excessive structure before there is traction.
- Not recording lessons learned and, as a result, repeating assumptions the market has already disproved.
Initial checklist for a soft landing expansion
Before starting the project, it's worth answering the following questions:
- Why was this country chosen?
- Which customer profile will be tested first?
- Which commercial assumptions need to be confirmed?
- Which legal, tax and regulatory requirements need specialist review?
- What kind of local presence is really needed at this stage?
- Which suppliers and partners will be essential?
- What is the maximum budget for the validation period?
- How long should the test last?
- Which metrics will show signs of traction?
- Which criteria will determine the decision to scale, adjust or end the initiative?
Internationalizing with less improvisation
International expansion always involves uncertainty. The difference lies in how much the company invests before it learns. Soft landing offers a way to organize this initial phase with more flexibility: first understand the market in practice, then decide the size of the operation.
For companies that are still building knowledge about a country, this format can avoid a premature choice between two extremes: staying entirely at a distance or immediately opening a full structure.
The logic is simple: enter, learn, adapt and only then scale.
ORBE can help you build a leaner initial presence for Market Entry and Soft Landing projects, helping your company organize its first steps before expanding the operation.
