Ewom Marketing

Just because your website has had great success in your domestic market, it does not guarantee the same success internationally!

At the beginning of the computing era, programs were written only in English, the problem being that at this time only people who spoke English as their mother tongue, or who had studied the language to a high degree at school could access these resources. Therefore millions of potentially lucrative customers were lost as they could not understand the programs.

If you are looking to enter international markets it is crucial to translate your website into the language of your target market. A product or service on your website will appear much more attractive if it is presented in the language of your target customer, whilst also allowing you to compete with locally produced products or services. Research has shown that web contact time is doubled on sites which have been correctly translated. But it is not all about language, knowledge of the cultural and business norms is necessary for successful localisation and international marketing.

Problems can occur with the design of internet forms designed to gather data from customers. In the English speaking world there is often no field on such forms for academic titles such as Professor or Doctor, but research shows that customers from European countries such as Germany and Italy respond more to direct e-marketing when they are addressed as Professor or Dr....

Another common problem with international internet forms is the postal code field, as postal codes come in various forms in different countries. The American field “State” also causes problems in Europe, as many countries are not split up into states. There have also been cases, where in order to proceed with an order the customer has to choose a state from a predetermined list! Confusing or unclear fields in an online form not only irritate the customer but they can also lead to inaccurate or incorrect information, meaning that the entire reason for the form is invalid.

The internet offers a great advantage in that you can go and check out how local competitors construct their sites before implementing any changes to your own, so get researching.......

The collapse of Woolworths is by far the largest retail failure this year, symbolising the high street's woes, this is a major blow to all those involved within the retail sector.

Woolworths evokes nostalgia for precious pocket money spent on fizzy cola bottles and chart singles. Last week it became clear that Woolworths itself was worth only pocket money, with management in talks to sell the 800-store chain for £1. Woolworths once had a shop on every British high street and a special place in the hearts of millions of shoppers. It was famous for selling anything from toys to brown paper, plants, Cd's, DVDs, Games, Clothes and more. Many will say that the recession has caused Woolworths death, of cause that is a factor, but Woolworths just didn't move with the times!

E-Marketing could have saved Woolworths. I know that's a pretty bold statement to make, but I believe it is true. After getting £385m in debt, Woolworths wont be the last victim of the recession. As the credit crunch continues to bite, this time of year is the most important part of the retail year. However sales on the high street are slumping, while sales on the Internet are soaring. As we become a nation full of bargain hunters, we are more than happy to search online for a cheaper priced item than those offered on the high street.

But still many high street retailers are just not switched on to E-marketing, unless potential new customers know the website address, they will typically look for product or services via a search engine such as Google or Yahoo! When Searching for say "DVDs" or "Children's Clothes" Woolworths, and many other major retailers, are nowhere to be seen. If Woolworths would have incorporated more "E" within their marketing mix, maybe this could have helped to save them.

Although high street shops often have a snazzy website with a fancy design, it doesn't make much sense to spend a lot of money developing websites, and then not marketing them.

Therefore the message to take from this sad news, is to ensure customers know your website address, to help skip the search engine process.