A Cultural Perspective on Web Site Localization

Abstract

For the last two decades, companies have been increasingly operating in many foreign markets. Serving local consumers effectively and thus achieving success in individual foreign markets require both a solid understanding of local values and a reflection of this understanding on business activities in foreign markets that will facilitate serving local markets. Today, as the size of global E-Commerce is expanding, a Web site is an important medium of multinational companies in communicating with stakeholders. In this chapter, we will discuss from a cultural perspective how to create and manage Web sites that will enable multinational companies to successfully localize in their target markets. The localization model, a useful and comprehensive tool in Web site localization, indicates that effective Web sites must adopt the specific cultural characteristics for the local market beyond the simple content and the product/service localization. However, an analysis of some international (local) Web sites of the largest multinationals shows that although some multinationals localize their international Web sites well, many others are weak in reflecting even some key localization features let alone full localization in their local Web sites. Managers are advised to utilize the Web sites localization model to increase the effectiveness of their international Web sites.