Comment: A global shop for local people

The importance of tailoring Web sites for local requirements was demonstrated to me recently when I was researching a technology product produced by a firm in California. Although the firm is based across the pond, it has offices in Germany and France and sells to the UK and other European countries.

Despite its apparent ambitions to attract both European and US customers, the company was not supporting this strategy well on its Web site. It had made some efforts to offer separate pages for foreign visitors, but while German and French visitors were able to access company and product information in their own language, the dedicated press and In the news sections always appeared in English.

I also found that as a UK customer, I needed to contact a US, German or French office to request information - not very helpful considering time differences and expensive international call rates.

On top of that, the company had a rather patchy attitude towards localised domain names. Although German visitors were able to use the appropriate .de suffix, the .fr suffix was not in use. Instead, French customers were required to use a .com/french address.

E-commerce experts have long encouraged firms to localise sites and use the local country-code suffixes. They argue that consumers are more likely to purchase goods from a site if they feel the seller has a base nearby, and values their custom. Regarding my recent experience, I know I'd be inclined to search on the Web for another option, rather than try out my rusty French or German, or wait for the US to wake up.

The fact that firms outside China can this week acquire .cn domains for the first time highlights the potential value of localised Web sites.

According to reports from analyst firms, there are currently more than 56 million Internet users in China, and by 2004 China is expected to account for over a quarter of the world's online population. Along with the growing number of Chinese Internet users will come growth in e-commerce, and the value of goods and services sold online across China in 2004 is predicted to be about £16bn.

So there's obviously a lot of money to be made by some Internet traders. But to have a good chance of gaining a share of the Chinese online market, companies will have to target their audience properly. Registering a. cn domain is an important step, but accurate site translation, local contacts, and content relevant to Chinese consumers should also increase a firm's chances of succeeding in that market.

Developing and implementing a site localisation strategy is not an easy process, and requires plenty of time to address issues such as complying with relevant e-commerce legislation and forming delivery partnerships.

But the rewards for firms that do this well could be considerable - particularly in China's £16bn market.

Have your say: reply to IT Week

More IT Week Comments