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There are many basic sales principals that you use for your domestic market that also apply to international markets. These principals can help you when planning for your international business expansion.

Your website is an important platform for your business communication. Ideally it is designed to communicate effectively with your market. It is designed to do something specific for your business in your domestic market.

So what happens when you want to open your business up to other markets in other cultures?

Your communication will change.

But what about its platform…your website?

Internationalize Or Go International

How do you decide whether to internationalize your website or to create an international website?

If you are currently just starting to target foreign markets, one of your first questions will be about your website. At least it should be. There are two very common scenarios:



Many small companies assume the website they use for their domestic markets will work well with their English speaking international markets. They fail to realize their website may actually be sabotaging their international communication.

Many companies also assume they do not need to adapt their online communication until they are actually ready for a website in a foreign language.



This means that very few companies actually ask themselves the real question:



Do we need to internationalize our current website or do we need to create a separate website totally dedicated to our international market?



There are two main factors you need to look into before you are able to answer this question:



Is your current website dependent on a culturally specific message? Is your website already in English?

Are you almost ready to launch a localized website? That is, a website dedicated to one country?



Your answers to these two questions will influence your international website.

Too Culturally Specific

This can be a delicate decision. Your main website must continue to sell to your domestic market. There are some basic steps you can take to make your website more international-friendly. These basic steps rarely influence your communication with your domestic market. They rely on sound internet marketing practices.

The question is just how different are the cultures you want to market to internationally. Most people answer this based on gut feelings. These gut feelings often lead you astray.

The best way to look at this is to do a cultural behavioral comparison between your domestic market and the specific foreign markets you want to target.

Different cultures need to be reassured in different ways.

A cultural behavioral analysis will show you these different needs. There are a few web communication tools you use to respond to these needs. The idea is to see if the tools you need to use on your website to communicate better with your foreign markets actually deter your domestic market. Just how much will these changes affect your primary customer base. You have three solutions:



You don’t really know where your foreign markets are and want to plan for the future – Internationalize your website minimally, evaluate your foreign markets and move onto localized websites as soon as you can.

You want to actively promote your products and services to a broad international audience – create a website for international clients in English.

Your website is not in English – you need to start with an international website in English.



Almost Ready For A Localized Website

If you are almost ready for a localized website, you may only decide to implement some small changes to your current website and concentrate on creating your localized website.

Once you have a few localized websites or sufficient international response you will want to look into an international website, or a global gateway

Internationalization Is Always Good

When you go about internationalizing your domestic website, you learn to acquire some good practices for future international websites.



You will see the value of consistency and clarity.

You will learn discipline in embedding text in images.

You will come to appreciate website templates.



In its basic format internationalization makes your website better for all of your visitors, domestic and international alike.

You can go beyond this. There are different degrees to which you can adapt your current website. The degree to which you internationalize your website depends on your communication needs.

How different is the communication with your domestic market compared to your foreign market?

You need to study the behavioral differences between your primary domestic market and your foreign target markets. This is an exercise you should do when starting your international business development.

The process of looking at your website from different cultural viewpoints will highlight the areas you will need to adapt as your international business grows. You will get insights into your future needs.

Internationalization with cultural behavioral comparisons gives you a good idea of when you will need localized websites as you expand.

Internationalization of your website is an ongoing process. You can start with the basic steps good for all of your audiences, and slowing implement culturally specific web tools.

An International Website

Sometimes it just makes sense to start with an international website. A website with a separate domain name and URL makes it easy to drive all international traffic through one online office. Here are some of the reasons you may want to start with an international website.



You need a different sales message to your international visitors

Your website is not in English to start with



Different Message



If your domestic website uses a very specific localized vocabulary you will probably want to look at creating a separate website.

If your sales pitch is also very localized, or your foreign visitors respond to different sales arguments.



English Is Still Universal

Companies with domestic websites that are not in English will often find it easier to start off with an international website. This has been the situation for some time and is unlikely to change in the near future.

Of course, there are instances where an English language website is not obligatory. If you already have sales in one particular foreign country it makes sense to start there.

Adjust Along The Way

Companies can be in many different situations. The main point to remember is:



any communication with your international markets influences your website.



You will have to decide on the best online platform for your business requirements. Some companies have more options than others. This is the movement most companies look at:



from a domestic website

to an internationalized domestic website

to an optional international website

to one localized website

to several localized websites

to a global website – if you have an international website this could slowly become a global website once you start other localized websites.



Along this process you will learn more about marketing your products and services to your foreign markets. You will adjust your communication along the way. You will want your website to be a good platform for your communication and the changes you will need.

The sooner you be
come aware of good website practices for international businesses, the more time and money you will save your company.

Are you committed to speeding up your international sales cycles?

Learn how to combine cross-cultural marketing tools and international sales strategies for faster sales.

Join us on the International Sales Road Map

Would you like to develop your international business?

Are you a beginner at international sales and marketing?

Read the Beginners Guide Discover Your International Business

You can’t learn to ride a bike without… well, a bike. Can you?

International business involves cross cultural communication. It is the inherent nature of the business.

To develop good cross cultural communication skills you need foreign communication exposure. With people. Live.

Cultural skills are fairly easy to develop. But you can’t pick them up reading books. You need hands on practice. Most people only need the desire to communicate with other cultures and some practice to put them on the right track.

But good cross cultural communication skills are not easy to develop if you are an online business without much direct contact with your foreign clients.

If all the cross cultural communication you are getting is through emails or order requests, this is how you are going to pick up the skills. There is simply not enough cultural interaction to actually learn with.

But what can you do if you want to get more international sales? Is there anything you can do to help your online business communicate better with your international prospects and clients?

Well you still need to learn from exposure. But you can laser focus your efforts and make progress.

First, you need to identify the three basic components of cultural communication:



International Communication

International Communication can include all aspects of international communication.

But online, it all begins with adapting your own communication for international audiences.

Make the effort to adapt your all of your communication to speak to all international visitors as well as your domestic market.

Simply make a concentrated effort not to cut out your international visitors by ignoring them.

International communication at this level is more about awareness and being universally polite in written communication. It is is the small details.

Multicultural Communication

Multicultural Communication is when your communication speaks effectively across a wide scope of cultures.

For example you can use International English to target the international English-speaking world.

Multicultural Communication may not be the best solution for your domestic market. Your domestic market might have a very strong sales message that would be weakened by communication aimed at multicultural markets.

You may or may not decide on creating two specific communication strategies: one for your domestic market and one for a wide international market.

This is often obvious to implement in non-English speaking countries. Their local communication in their native language, and their international communication in English for wide multicultural audiences.

It can be an interesting option for American companies, for example, to use International English for a wide international marketing campaign.

This could be an initial option. But this needs to be evaluated carefully. Most international marketing is aimed at specific cultures and countries once the markets are identified.

Cross Cultural Communication

Cross Cultural Communication is about targeting your communication to one particular culture.

This step in international communication requires more specific market knowledge. Your message is totally adapted to one specific cultural environment.

It can be used for effective target marketing in a specific country or ethnic group for example.

The bad news for online businesses is that you really do need some cultural exposure to get it right.

The good news?

Online businesses have the advantage of being able to test, track and analyze statistics. This will help in tweaking cross cultural communication.

If you have identified a country with a large enough market, creating cross cultural communication and working extensively with the statistics will probably be worth the time and effort.

Build On International Exposure

By focusing on each of the three types of cultural communication, you will be able to identify what you are currently doing. You will see where you need to improve international communication.

Use any contact with your international prospects and clients to see what you can do to improve the area you are weakest at.

The more exposure you get with your international markets, the more you will see how you need to adapt your communication. And practice is all it takes.

Your cultural communication skills will improve with time. And before you know it your skills will become as automatic as knowing how to ride a bike.

Are you committed to speeding up your international sales cycles?

Learn how to combine cross-cultural marketing tools and international sales strategies for faster sales.

Join us on the International Sales Road Map

Would you like to develop your international business?

Are you a beginner at international sales and marketing?

Read the Beginners Guide Discover Your International Business