13 Essential LinkedIn Groups for Exporters

How often do you pass out business cards? Those ubiquitous 3.5-by-2-inch pieces of paper are becoming more and more rare—the internet has made it easy for people in any country and in any industry to network while in their pajamas.

Thanks to online professional networks like LinkedIn, exporters can reach out to customers, find new markets, converse with industry peers, and even get answers to the toughest export-related questions… all without even speaking a word!

Here are 13 essential LinkedIn groups you can use to network, increase your knowledge, and interact with customers.

Export Regulations & Compliance

1. Customs Specialists: This group is for customs and trade professionals interested in discussing new developments in customs and trade law and practice. This is an open group with 20,000 members.
   
   
2. International Compliance Professionals Association: The ICPA, founded by Ann Lister and Lynda Thomas Westerfield, is a non-profit, global professional association whose mission is to provide networking resources to compliance professionals. With more than 4,000 members, ICPA is one of the fastest-growing trade organizations. This is a private group of about 4,600 members; you must request membership and be approved in order to join.
   
   
3. Global Trade Compliance Management: This is a professional group for sharing and building Global Trade Compliance Management-related knowledge, including strategy and business alignment, subject matter expertise, and regulation changes. This is a private group of about 5,800 members; you must request membership and be approved in order to join.
   
   
4. Export Controls Group: This group is for professionals who regularly work with export controls and want to network to share news, best practices, and job opportunities. This is a private group of about 6,700 members; you must request membership and be approved in order to join.
   
   
5. Global Trade Compliance Professionals: Global Trade Compliance Professionals is a networking group for international trade compliance professionals to network and share information. This is a private group of about 9,400 members; you must request membership and be approved in order to join.

International Terms of Sale

6. Incoterms 2020: The Incoterms 2020 group is used for connecting interested parties to share, discuss, and debate aspects of the Incoterms 2020 rules. This is an open group with about 1,000 members.

Letters of Credit and Other International Payment Methods

7. International Trade Credit Group: This group includes commercial credit managers, international/export/import credit professionals, trade finance bankers, and business owners and executives who want to grow their export and global sales. Members are welcomed to post questions seeking ideas, suggestions and solutions to their challenging international trade credit transactions from other members. This is a private group of about 3,100 members; you must request membership and be approved in order to join.
   
   
8. Letter of Credit Collection.com: This is a group for finance and logistics professionals interested in exchanging their Letter of Credit Collection questions, answers and best practices for all aspects of documentary collections. This is a private group of about 2,100 members; you must request membership and be approved in order to join.

Issues & Roles of Freight Forwarders

9. International Freight Forwarding: This is a networking group for the international freight forwarding community. In addition to posting articles specifically concerning freight forwarders and freight forwarding issues, this group can provide feedback for topics related to shipping and packaging. This is a private group of about 62,000 members; you must request membership and be approved in order to join.

General Export Issues & International Trade Promotion

10. International Export Import: This group is dedicated to professionals involved in import and export businesses. Group members share information on finding buyers and suppliers together and receiving trade leads. This is an open group with 230,000 members.
    
    
11. Promote your business import export: In this group, exporters and importers communicate and discuss global export and import necessities and requirements. This is a private group of about 8,100 members; you must request membership and be approved in order to join.
    
    
12. Trade Professional.Net: This is a group for international trade professionals to share knowledge and experience. The group has a specialized website with discussion forums, member profiles, networking features, and a job board all available to members at no cost. This is an open group with 1,700 members.
    
    
13. International Trade 2.0 – Import & Export: This group is for international business professionals to discuss import and export trade leads, relevant international trade news, and meet new suppliers and customers, agents, and distributors. This is a private group of about 58,000 members; you must request membership and be approved in order to join.

Do you have any other LinkedIn groups I should join? Let me know in the comments!