10 principles for successful international web presence | Susanne Dirks - eVorsprung Consulting

10 principles for successful
international web presence
SUSANNE DIRKS
E-VORSPRUNG CONSULTING

Susanne Dirks MSc BSc
German living in Ireland since 1993
Academic background:
◦ Translation / Localisation
◦ IT / Artificial Intelligence
◦ E-Marketing / Web Technologies
◦ International SEO
◦ Business Development and Innovation
Experience:
◦ 15+ years as in MNC environment in various international IT
consulting, business development and management roles
◦ Since 2013, working with Irish SMEs, helping them develop and
implement strategies for international markets
Contact data:
◦ sudirks@evorsprung.com, Ph. 086-2375131
Helping Irish SMEs reach,
enter, and grow in export
markets utilising digital
strategies
www.evorsprung.com

WHY do WHAT ?
WHAT IS INTERNATIONAL WEB PRESENCE AND WHY IS IT SO
IMPORTANT FOR EXPORT-FOCUSED COMPANIES

What is international web presence?
Conscious
targetting of
selected export
market/s
Use of one or more
internet-driven
channels
Generates visibility, leads,
and sales
Depending on
strategy, resources,
budget

Why (1):
This is where decisions are made
B2C B2B
“70-90% of buyers
journey is complete
before they contact
sales” (Source: Forrester)
… as well as …
Source: Nielsen

Why (2):
Market opportunity is outside of Ireland
GLOBAL INTERNET POPULATION
Global internet population
E-COMMERCE SALES IN SELECTED EUROPEAN
COUNTRIES
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
Ireland France UK Germany Russia Spain
eCommerce Sales in Bn Euro (2015)
eCommerce Sales in Bn Euro
Source: internetlivestats, 2013
Source: ecommerce-Europe.euGoogle:

Why (3):
Market visibility is not automatic !
Typical non-Irish Market share of Ireland-only SME website
93.70%
2.80%
3.50%
6.30%
Example: www.irish-sme.ie
Ireland
UK&US
Other

Why Now: Brexit …
Consumer
& business
confidence
Tax
Business
implication
s
Exchange
rate
volatility
Free
movement
of goods,
services,
labour
Cost of
labour
Free
movement
of goods,
services,
capital
Legal &
regulatory
Life after BrEGGSit:

10 principles for successful
international web presence
Strategy
Business
Environment
Competitors Culture
Technology Content Language Optimisation
Special
challenges
Planning

1. Start with INTERNATIONAL STRATEGY
1. Countries
2. Channels
3. Products / services
3. Target audience/s
5. Differentiators and USP
WHERE WHAT WHO WHY WHEN HOW

2. Prepare for a different micro and macro
business environment
Macro
environment
Micro
environment
Internal
Company
• Economy
• Demographics
• Cultural forces
• Social factors
• Legal structure
• Political structures
• Technology
• Suppliers
• Distributors
• Competitors
• Customers

Example: Different demand (online)
Beware: Different business environment!
Example: Google Global Market Finder for ‘steam trap’ opportunity in various countries (extract):

3. Embrace your new competitors
Get to know your new
competitors
Learn from your new
competitors

Different organic SEO competitors
“steam trap (Kondensatableiter)”
Google.de Google.co.uk

Different Google Adwords competitors:
“steam trap/kondensatableiter”
Google.de Google.co.uk

Learn from your new competitors
TYPICAL AREAS TO EXAMINE
Weaknesses and strengths of competitor
Specific business aspects, e.g.
◦ Terms and conditions
◦ Pricing
◦ Value proposition / USP
Specific web presence aspects, e.g.
◦ Keywords
◦ Content strategy
◦ E-marketing tactics
◦ Social media strategy
◦ Customer support
◦ Best practice
EXAMPLE: BENCHMARKING AGAINST NEW COMPETITORS
C
O
M
P
E
T
I
T
O
R
S

4. Tune into local culture
CULTURE INFLUENCES HOW ALL
OF ITS MEMBERS:
Perceive
Think
Value
Act
E-MARKETING AIMS AT GETTING
PEOPLES’:
A ttention
I nterest
D esire
A ction
“The web is not a culturally
neutral medium … a website has to be
designed for a targetted customer segment
… Local adaptation should be based on a
complete understanding of
a customer group’s culture …”

Hofstede’s 6 cultural dimensions:
Power distance
Individualism
Masculinity/femininity
Uncertainty avoidance
Long-term orientation
Indulgence
Can and must be addressed via:
Web design, content, language,
features/functionality
Cultural dimensions as a guide
Ireland in comparison…

KEY PRINCIPLES
Minimal ambiguity
Clear navigation
Structured information
Predictable user journey
No pop-ups
No non-essential info
Explicit language
Clear images
EXAMPLE:
Example Russia:
Website design addressing uncertainty avoidance

Standards and conventions:
When in Rome …
WEBSITE FUNCTIONALITY
Measurements
Currency
Symbols and icons
Formats for specific text items
Word and text length
WEBSITE MARKETING
Overall look and feel
Layout and navigation
Colours
Pictures
Content
Concepts
Bank Holidays

Example Facebook: Consistent and modular design
accommodating different language requirements
FACEBOOK, ITALY FACEBOOK, ISRAEL

Example Alibaba: Adapting colours and overall design
to cultural preferences
ALIBABA.CN ALIBABA.COM

Checking your pictures to make sure they work in the
target market
Draft for German market
Final version for German market

6. Be tech-savvy
 Different hardware / IT infrastructure
 Different software platforms
 Different usage patterns
 Different rules

Different technology infrastructure
AVERAGE MOBILE CONNECTION SPEEDS MOBILE SHARE OF WEB TRAFFIC
Source: Statcounter, Q1/16 / wearesocial.com

Google is not Number ONE everywhere
Differences
in software
platform
preferences
SEO / SEM implications
especially for:
- China
- Hong Kong
- Russia
- South Korea
- United States

Example: Germany Example: China
Different countries,
different social networks
Example: Russia

6. Provide locally relevant content
Articulates your value proposition in …
Differentiates you from competitors in …
Meets the content needs of …
Uses standards and conventions in …
Uses content formats preferred by …
Uses design, colours, graphics used in…
Builds trust with local users in…
Speaks the ‘language’ of …
Your
Target
Market

The ‘Aldi Game’

Example Nivea: Using pictures that the target market
audience can identify with

Germany
Ireland
Target market focus:
Locally relevant content for local appeal

EI Electronics (DE)

www.volkswagen.ie (21.3.2017)

7. Speak the right language
Search
Read
Listen
Evaluate
Order
Ask
questions
Write
reviews
Only ¼ of Internet
users are English
speakers

Question asked:
“Do you use a language other than
your own to read/watch content
on the Internet ?”
Considerable country variances !
English language proficiency is lower than
you think: No translation, less reach
Top 25 global websites
(2015) support an
average of 30
languages!

The solution: Google Translate

A big part of translation is planning and
prioritising
Decide
at start
Scope
Translation or
Transcreation
Messages
Style
Ensure
always
Quality & consistency
Keyword focus
Fresh content
Standards & conventions
Avoid
here
Think
carefully
Keywords
Taglines
Ads
CTAs
Non-text content
Google Translate & Co
Translator wannabes
Mixed-language approaches
Creating valid,
fresh,
persuasive,
relevant quality
content for local
users and search
engines

Don’t forget to ‘translate’ English content
Website text and SEO text needs to reflect the ‘language’ used
by your target market
◦ Official language
◦ National ‘dialect’
◦ Words
◦ Spelling
◦ Usage patterns
Search:
UK: 77%, US: 14%
Search: UK: 23%, US: 86%

8. Make your website easy to find
• Give local signals for search engines
• Optimise your website for local search engine/s
• Select best keywords for search engine marketing: SEO and PPC
• Be seen in the ‘right places’ online
• Decide, where and how to ‘socialise’

Local signals for search engines
 Domain URL and domain strategy
 Webmaster Tool settings
 Sitemaps and hreflang tag
 Server Location
 Website – content and metadata language
 Currency and address formats
 Inbound links

Don’t confuse Google with your domain
strategy
CLIENT EXAMPLES
 Client example 1:
 Target markets: 4
 Domain names: 2
 Generic top-level domains: 2
 Country code top-level domains: 5
 Country subfolder: 1
 Client example 2:
 Target markets: 3
 Domain names: 2
 Generic top-level domains: 1
 Country-code top-level domains: 2
 Country sub-folders: 2
DOMAIN STRATEGY
Domain name
 Meaningful
 Works internationally
 Available internationally (if ccTLD approach)
Approach:
 Consistency is key: Country-code OR subfolders
 Decision criteria:
 International strategy – countries
 Domain name availability
 Resources for SEO
 Domain history of company

0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000
health shoes (IRL)
gesunde schuhe
bequeme schuhe
extra breite schuhe
weite schuhe
Monthly search volume
0! Search volume for the Google Translate term
Search terms are thinking patterns
that often DO NOT translate one-to-one
Example: Selling “wide fitting shoes” in Germany

Germany
Austria
Switzerland
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Ackerschnacker
Händy
Natel
Handy
Mobiltelefon
Example: “Mobile Phone” in German speaking markets
Same language does NOT guarantee
same search pattern
Official translation
Colloquial term
Local Swiss term

Be ready for users’ own approaches to
deal with language issues
Accents and dropped accents
Umlauts
Compounds

Competitive differentiation of keyword
varies between markets
Keyword Irish search result
(google.ie)
German search result
(google.de)
butter
Page 1 (Place 5) Page 5 *
* Organic search results only, Google ads shows earlier
** First product in the listing
Example: Kerrygold in the search engine results

9. Face up to special challenges

Provide answers and options for queries
Rich and localised information on website, e.g.
Sitemap
FAQs
Brochures
Downloads
Product selector/configurator
Delivery tracking option
Product availability information
Options for getting answering specific questions
Choice of contact options
Interactive and instant contact options

Building trust: Basics
Contact data
◦ Address, phone number, email, fax etc.
Provide information about company
◦ About us
◦ History
◦ People
◦ Achievements
Provide locally expected or legally mandated
information
◦ E.g. Germany: Impressum
Brand considerations are very important
to engagement as well as acquisition

Building localised trust: Advanced
Edelmann Trust Barometer
2014
L
O
C
A
L

10. Plan for the long haul
74.7 % say availability of
after-sales support in
own language influences
their buying decision
 Web presence in export markets requires time, budget, resources
 Initially – localisation, on-page SEO, e-marketing for launch
 On an ongoing basis – off-page SEO and other e-marketing tactics
A website is for life, not just for Christmas
 Fresh content
 Internet is a 2-way channel
 Enabling and answering incoming queries
=> International Strategy

10 principles for international web
presence at a glance
1. Start with international strategy
2. Prepare for a different business environment
3. Embrace your competitors
4. Tune into local culture
5. Be tech-savvy
6. Provide locally relevant content
7. Speak the right language
8. Make your website easy to find
9. Plan for the long haul
10. Face up to special challenges

Next step, the ‘proper way’: Internationalisation project
Phase1
• Strategy review
& development
of international
web presence
strategy
Phase2
• International
web presence,
optimisation &
localisation
planning
Phase3
• International
web presence
implementation
Phase4
• Internet
marketing
strategy and
approach for
export markets
Phase5
• e-marketing
implementation,
incl. ongoing
refinement and
skills transfer
Launch of SEO-optimised
export website/s based on
strategy developed
International e-marketing
Strategic web presence internationalisation

Alternative next steps: Testing the waters
 International strategy and market research/prioritisation
 (Foreign market) Website audit
 Mini website for foreign markets
 Adwords campaign/s for foreign market/s
 Localised approach using external platforms
 Local presence on Social Media
 Joint distributor e-marketing initiatives

Susanne Dirks
e-Vorsprung Consulting
www.evorsprung.com
sudirks@evorsprung.com
Ph. 086-2375131
Thank You

10 principles for successful international web presence | Susanne Dirks - eVorsprung Consulting

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10 principles for successful international web presence | Susanne Dirks - eVorsprung Consulting