The Global Web:  How to Transform a National Company Operating in Foreign Markets into a Global Company Serving Local Markets

A few years back, a colleague of mine was doing research on global brands. In the course of interviewing a senior marketing manager at Microsoft, the topic of their global Web presence was raised. He mentioned that Microsoft had 180 web sites worldwide, of which around two-thirds he absolutely knew to be “on-brand.” At the time, this manager was relatively satisfied with this state of affairs. After all, it had been and could still be a lot worse. Today I expect he has managed to ensure all Microsoft sites are on-brand, but the issue at the core of his observation - the difficulty of maintaining a consistently on-brand Web presence - is something that many global businesses struggle with regularly.

The challenge is not simply a global web site design and branding issue; the issue is much larger. It is about how companies approach the globalization of their businesses and brands, and the tangible manifestations of both as experienced by different markets throughout the world. Often, the crux of the matter revolves around how global a company actually wants to be. How a company positions itself - as a national company operating in foreign markets or a global company operating in local markets - will have a big impact on its globalization strategy. There is a spectrum to globalization, the range of which can be seen in how the balance tips between desires for uniformity and diversity, between international and national, and standards and guidelines. Where a company fits within this spectrum is often determined by the very nature of the business itself.

Before launching a global Web presence, senior managers have to answer the basic question of what globalization means for their company. Does the company possess a uniform global persona or a diverse persona that means many different things to many different people? How can the company balance catering to the diversity of markets with desires for consistent application of the brand and corporate persona? What shape of Web architecture best reflects not just the brand architecture, but also the expectations of Web audiences worldwide? All of these decisions have ramifications for marketing and design teams tasked with implementing a globalization strategy.

This paper provides a broad overview of the challenges that companies face when launching a global Web presence, including issues that impact the design and branding decisions that must be made along the way. It also offers practical suggestions and strategies for overcoming these challenges.

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