Suppose that you're the manager of a small firm seeking to enter the international arena.?

Question

What basic information would you need about the market that you're thinking of entering?

Answer 1

Per capita incomes and per capita consumption of whatever it is you are selling. Ideally, the former should be higher than in your home country (meaning more spending power), the latter, much lower (meaning underserved market).

Answer 2

NC has a great answer, these are the first two requirements. Without knowing your specific industry, whether it is goods or services and what you mean specifically by the "international arena," the remainder is pretty generic:

1. Local prices for same or similar items/services, or for something that solves the same problem.
2. What is the value (different from price) in that market of solving the problem your service or item solves?
3. Trade regulation and intellectual property protection. Will high tariffs affect your price, does the market's country protect your intellectual property so that you don't sell just one which is then copied and produced locally?
4. Beyond market information: Will success in this market add any net value to your firm? Entering the international arena will add complexity to your firm's operations. Will the resources required to deal with that added complexity negate any value added?

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