How To Find B2B Buyers Internationally At No Cost: A Step-by-Step Guide for U.S. SMEs

AI consultant Tom Daccord

Finding e-commerce clients internationally doesn’t have to involve complex strategies or expensive tools. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), AI-powered tools like ChatGPT and Google Search offer cost-effective ways to identify key decision-makers, streamline lead generation, and connect with high-quality prospects in new markets. 

This post explains how B2B companies can use Google Search and ChatGPT to uncover valuable sales leads, format the results, and enhance their lead generation process – all at no cost. The strategies discussed here can target any number of countries, but examples will focus on Colombia (where we are located).

Related: Why You Should Expand Your E-commerce Business to Colombia

Using ChatGPT with Google Search for Lead Generation

Finding the right prospects is the first step in any successful lead generation strategy. Let’s begin with Google Search: 

How the Google Search Works

Google Search’s advanced operators allow you to tailor your searches, making it easier to locate companies with B2B interest in specific industries and markets. When you combine keywords, operators, and filters, you can target businesses in various countries while identifying their particular services and contact information. 

To illustrate, we’ll go through the process of building a Google search with advanced operators focusing on the booming e-commerce market in Colombia, projected to reach US$87 billion in 2026.

Here’s a breakdown of the key Google Search elements:

1. Site-Specific Searches

• The site: Using the "site" operator, you can limit a search to specific web platforms, such as LinkedIn. This ensures you’re looking at professional profiles, not general web pages.

Example: site:linkedin.com

• This focuses your search on LinkedIn company profiles, where B2B businesses and decision-makers like procurement managers and supply chain specialists will most likely have active accounts. 

2. Business-Specific Keywords

For our example, we'll focus on targeting companies with potential B2B interest in Colombia’s blossoming technology sector.

So, to locate companies that import, distribute, or resell technology products in Colombia, we'll incorporate a few keywords related to distribution and sales channels, such as:

 Business-Specific Keywords:

• "distribuidor de tecnología" (technology distributor)

• "importador de hardware" (hardware importer)

• "mayorista de TI" (IT wholesaler)

• "revendedor de software" (software reseller)

• "comercializador de equipos tecnológicos" (commercial trader of tech equipment)

3. Add Industry Keywords:

For more specificity, let’s add some industry-specific terms to narrow the search.

• Here are some examples to choose from:

  • Hardware & IT Equipment Distributors - companies that import, distribute, or sell IT hardware, networking, and computing devices:

    • "equipos tecnológicos" (technology equipment)

    • "componentes electrónicos" (electronic components)

    • "distribuidor de computadoras" (computer distributor)

    • "proveedor de servidores" (server provider)

    • "almacenamiento y redes" (storage and networking)

    • "suministros informáticos" (IT supplies)

• Software & SaaS Providers - for businesses dealing with enterprise software, cloud services, and SaaS platforms:

  • "software empresarial" (enterprise software)

  • "desarrollador de software" (software developer)

  • "proveedor de SaaS" (SaaS provider)

  • "integrador de software ERP" (ERP software integrator)

  • "automatización empresarial" (business automation)

  • "transformación digital" (digital transformation)

• Cloud Computing & Data Centers - for cloud services, cybersecurity, and data storage:

  • "servicios en la nube" (cloud services)

  • "proveedor de almacenamiento cloud" (cloud storage provider)

  • "infraestructura de TI" (IT infrastructure)

  • "seguridad informática" (IT security)

  • "centro de datos" (data center)

  • "computación en la nube" (cloud computing)

4. Geographic Filters

• Adding specific cities or countries as keywords, such as "Colombia", "Bogotá", or "Medellín", narrows the search to professionals in your target region.

Example: ("Colombia" OR "Bogotá" OR "Medellín")

• This ensures your results are regionally relevant, particularly for industries clustered in certain cities.

  
  

Combining All Elements:

Combining these elements skillfully allows you to create a precise search query tailored to your target industry and region. Here is an example:

B2B Tech Buyers in Colombia

This search query focuses on identifying businesses likely to be involved in procurement activities for Hardware & IT Equipment:

site:linkedin.com ("distribuidor de tecnología" OR "mayorista de TI" OR "proveedor de TI" OR "integrador de tecnología" OR "empresa de soluciones IT" OR "revendedor de software" OR "partner tecnológico") (“equipos tecnológicos" OR "componentes electrónicos" OR "distribuidor de computadoras" OR "proveedor de servidores" OR "almacenamiento y redes" OR "suministros informáticos") ("Colombia" OR "Bogotá" OR "Medellín") 

What This Query Does

1. Focuses on Relevant Businesses:

   • The search will include anyone dealing in technology hardware or businesses that resell software

2. Includes Industry Keywords:

   • Incorporates technology-related keywords to ensure the results are focused on businesses working in industries where purchasing technology products is relevant.

3. Filters by Location:

   • Limits the search to Colombia and key cities like:

     • "Bogotá": The tech hub of Colombia, home to many large companies and startups.

     • "Medellín": A growing hub for innovation and technology businesses.

       
       

Broadening the Google Search As Needed

Take note that search queries with multiple advanced operators (OR, parentheses, etc.) can complicate the search engine's ability to process a query effectively. So, some search queries you construct may occasionally elicit few or no results and require tweaking.

If that happens, broaden the scope of your search. For instance, break the query into separate searches instead of bunching many OR statements. In our example, we could focus on targeting distributors and resellers:

site:linkedin.com ("distribuidor de tecnología" OR "revendedor de software" OR "mayorista de TI" OR "comercializador de equipos tecnológicos") Colombia

Also, Google may not index all LinkedIn pages, which limits visibility. So, try Bing or DuckDuckGo, which sometimes return different LinkedIn results.

Finally, if LinkedIn does not yield many results, remove "site:linkedin.com" and perform another search. For example:

("distribuidor de tecnología" OR "mayorista de TI") ("equipos tecnológicos" OR "proveedor de servidores") ("Colombia" OR "Bogotá" OR "Medellín")

This lets Google search across different business directories, news articles, and company websites.

Streamlined Workflow with ChatGPT

Formatting the collected information is important for creating an organized, easy-to-use dataset that saves time and facilitates effective communication with potential leads. ChatGPT is ideal because it can format a lot of data quickly and efficiently.

So, once you have collected your search results, do the following:

1. Paste the data into ChatGPT.

   1. Note: Use “Command+A” to select all contents on a page

2. Prompt ChatGPT to structure it into a table. For example: "Organize the following contacts into a table with Company Name, City, LinkedIn URL”

   
   

This structured format ensures that your outreach process is well organized and allows you to prioritize leads based on their relevance. Furthermore, once the information is formatted, it can be seamlessly exported into tools like Excel, Google Sheets, or a CRM system to manage your sales leads, track follow-ups, and ensure timely communication. 

If you maintain an organized workflow, you can quickly personalize your emails or calls, reference specific details about each lead, and ultimately enhance the quality of your interactions. This streamlined approach not only boosts productivity but also increases the likelihood of building strong, long-term business relationships.

Conclusion

Sales lead generation tools can cost $100 a month or more. Before committing to one, use the steps outlined in this post to AI to help you identify and organize high-quality leads -- at no cost. Keep in mind that crafting effective Google searches is an art, so be prepared to refine your searches and try several approaches. The key to success lies in understanding how to leverage Google Search operators and ChatGPT formatting abilities for your unique business needs.

Lawyer Edith Jiménez

Legal Considerations by Edith Jiménez:

You may notice that we are not using Google to search LinkedIn for specific individuals. That is because Colombian law strictly regulates personal data protection via Law 1581 of 2012, which prohibits processing personal data without the explicit, informed, and prior consent of the data owner. Even if contact details are publicly listed, companies must obtain authorization before any outreach.

But even with prior authorization, you must follow the process outlined in Law 2300 of 2023, which establishes limits on how authorized marketing communications can occur, restricting frequency and contact hours. 

To comply with these regulations, we recommend you avoid direct, unsolicited outreach to individuals on LinkedIn. Instead, focus on engaging businesses and organizations through legal and appropriate channels. Since data protection laws vary by country, companies should consult official legal sources and compliance regulations before conducting international outreach.