According to a recent survey by Windham International, a New York-based global relocation and consulting firm, nearly 55 per cent of 177 companies surveyed had up to 25 expatriates, compared to 32 per cent last year. ``Much of the growth in expatriates is coming from small and mid-sized firms,'' says Seung Kim, director of the Institute of International Business, School of Administration, at Saint Louis University in St Louis.

But before you jump to follow the crowd, better do your homework, advises Ruth Stanat, author of Global Gold, Panning for Profits in Foreign Markets (AMACON). The Federal government, local departments of commerce and chambers of commerce have truck-loads of helpful information to get you started. If you discover that, indeed, there is a market overseas just ripe for your picking, there are still some things to consider.

Dig deep into your pockets. First off, expect sticker shock. ``You can expect to pay three to five times that employee's salary to send them abroad,'' says Valerie Greenly, Windham International's director of client services.

Remember, your employee's family is involved. There will be moving costs, education expenses and the like. Expect too, that you or someone else will periodically check up on things -- another expense.

Also, how will you make up the deficit of one or two less bodies stateside? Bone up on the culture. While the FORTUNE 500 may have offices of protocol and such, you or your employee may not be astute in the ways of the locals. ``If you fail to understand the culture, you'll likely make major mistakes in negotiating and offend a potential client,'' points out Kim.

Adds Bob Brockhaus, director of the Jefferson Smurfit Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at Saint Louis University, ``Be sensitive. You can't just send your best sale person.''

Another disadvantage some small business employees have is a lack of role models with foreign experience within their companies.

Critical pitch

While executive assistants are usually busy coating their CEOs with compliments, Trudi Bresner's job is to nitpick about their flaws and dissect their strengths.

Bresner and her staff of three at T Bresner & Associates of Grandview, NY, have helped hundreds of leaders of small to mid-sized businesses perk up their speaking skills, update their wardrobes, and develop IPO road shows and venture capital pitches that persuade critical investors to open their wallets.

The former instructor of health science at New York University and Brooklyn College, one-time actress, and former Young & Rubicam director of training used her diverse experience to launch her company 20 years ago.

Fortune magazine met with Bresner in New York City and asked her what it takes to become a star CEO who can win over investors.

What are the main presentation problems you see with CEOs?

One, demonstrating commitment and passion. Two, creating a rapport with the audience. And three, being simple and clear in the messages they're trying to convey.

What's the key to organising a presentation?

Less is more. Most people put too much material into their presentation for the amount of time they have. Never speak longer than 30 minutes; an audience cannot listen longer than that. Fifteen minutes is preferable.

Speak their language. I was working with the owner of a biotech company who was a scientist and was excellent at delivering his message to scientists, but when he tried to raise money with venture capital firms, he bored them. After we turned his ``technicalese'' into easy-to understand science, he was able to raise $10 million.

Any advice about using visuals?

The greatest problem I find with people using speaker support is that they expect the visuals to tell the story for them, when really the CEO must always be the star of the show.

A client of mine was very high tech about presenting the company story, always using PowerPoint and video. But one day, the venture capital firm asked him to put the visual aids away. He did very poorly because he wasn't able to organise spontaneously. He ended up not getting the private financing.

Also, do not give out a deck of material and then sit and read through it. If they're looking down and reading, you lose them.

What are investors really looking for in a company?

Investors buy two key things: management and growth. They need to know that this is a great management team that is going to take this company forward. Your ability to project confidence, control, and certainty is very important.

Can investors look past bad communication skills if the company shows potential in other ways?

I don't think so. You can take someone who's very intelligent, but if he can't communicate to the world what he's doing and how he's doing it, the investment community has a very difficult time.

How do you dress to impress investors?

First and foremost, be very comfortable in what you wear. If my male clients feel that their shirt and tie are too loud, they're going to be conscious of that, and it will hinder their ability to project confidence to investors. A good piece of advice: Ask yourself, what effect do I want to have on this audience? Then dress to create that effect.

I like colours; they tell people a lot about your personality. But if you know you're not great at choosing clothes, you should hire a personal shopper.

How many small-business leaders out there actually realise they need help communicating with investors?

About 75 per cent know they could be better, and 25 per cent just do not get it. Sometimes the firm will hire me to be the deliverer of the news that the CEO either doesn't dress well or has body odour or bad breath -- you name it.

How easy is it to correct clients' habits when they've been doing something all their lives?

The way to change a behaviour is to encourage someone to practise that new behaviour constantly. Go to the extreme. When I'm correcting pace, I have the CEO speak very quickly for five minutes with no pausing, and then I have him or her do totally the reverse and go at a snail's pace with constant pausing -- one extreme to the next before you can find a balance. With commitment, any CO, young or old, can become better at speaking overnight.

What about those people who fear public speaking?

In a study done about fears, speaking was rated No. 1, before death... before divorce. Luckily, there are techniques to help people conquer their fear. One is eye contact -- not the kind where you get up and just scan a sea of bodies, but the kind where you focus on one person at a time. The idea is to get attention off yourself and onto the investors.