Whether e-commerce or corporate marketing, your site needs to localise content and that includes which language you use to set up your site. In the mixed and multicultural society of the Gulf, having it all in English might not be enough

Via the Internet and the World Wide Web, the world now sits on our desktops, literally at our fingertips. According to market research posted on Headcount (http://www.headcount.com), the total number of Internet users in the world is expected to grow to 707 million by 2001, from 102 million people in June 1998.

As global Internet and web usage continues to increase, the demographic profile of the international on-line user is quickly moving from highly technical, English proficient professionals to include a wide range of users with all levels of linguistic and technical ability. As a result, increased international usage translates into decreased feasibility of an English-only web. The message for companies attempting to market to global customers via the web is clear: the effectiveness of your web presence will be greatly diminished if you do not address an international, non-English speaking audience.

By 2003 non-English material will account for over half the content published on the web, up from the current estimate of 20 percent, according to a report in TechServer (http://www.techserver.com). In order to meet the anticipated demand for translation services, a growing number of ISPs, portals and newspaper publishers are developing existing or new translation search engines on their sites. Improved browser capability, which will enable users to read non-Roman script, will also help to alleviate language barrier problems.

Nua Internet Surveys estimates that there are more than 159 million people online, over half of which live outside of the United States.

Nonetheless, much of the content on the web remains US-focused.

There is no one-size-fits-all solution for how to put together your international web strategy. Your web site globalisation plan must be customised to highlight those areas most critical to your business goals. Budget, the nature and mission of your site, which market segments you are targeting, and where you are in the development process must all be taken into account. Additionally, you will need to clarify what will be relevant to the international user, as well as which products and services will be available in what markets. You will also need to decide what must remain uniform for consistency and global branding and what, if anything is open to local interpretation.

Whether your site is a corporate marketing site or an e-commerce site, providing multilingual content augments the marketing benefits and cost savings you already derive from your web presence. Localisation of corporate information provides your international customers with the opportunity to learn about your company, its financial status, and your products and services. Customers begin to develop a relationship with your company that fosters long-term loyalty. By localising data sheets and FAQ sections, your international customers have direct access to the technical information and on-line product support they require, thereby reducing the need for in-country sales and technical support staff.

As much as possible, the look and feel of your site should create a positive on-line experience for all of your visitors. It is important to remember that international customers may find the subtler messages of your site inviting or alienating, unintentionally humorous or insulting.

In addition to colour and content, the size of the graphics need to be considered, especially if you are targeting low bandwidth markets like Brazil or China.

Once you have localised your web site to reach your overseas target markets, how can you ensure that international audiences will be able to find it? Web users will tend to search for sites in their own language first, so localising meta tag content and getting your site listed in the appropriate language search engines are some of the most important ways you can promote your web site online. You can drive additional traffic to your site by localising banner ads and setting up reciprocal links to multilingual, non-English sites.

The web provides companies with constant and immediate global exposure, heightening the need for careful attention to global branding and international product marketing. The question is no longer when or whether to go international, it's how to plan and manage the process to derive the greatest benefit from your global web presence.

Whether you opt for a multilingual, multi-local site or a site that is uniform across language versions, multilingual content adds a layer of richness and functionality to your site. Creating a multilingual web site for your overseas target markets is one of the best ways to transcend linguistic barriers and "speak" your customer's language.

Everyone talks about web site design, marketing, and promotions and of course hits, but how does one turn a site into profitable lead generating resource? Generating leads and making sales is why many of us have spent our time and resources into creating a presence on the Internet.

Now is the time to use the resources we have created even more effectively. The visitor may not be buying or requesting direct information, but you can create potential leads, which can become future clients.

One unique tool is contests. Contests are an easy way to get people to tell you who they are. You do not need to necessarily know their life's history, but enough to create a lead, allow follow up and of course send them their prize if they are the lucky winner. A few words of advice, if you have a contest on your site, keep it simple and keep it honest.

Dishonest sites receive a lot of negative response very quickly.

Make sure your visitors enjoy a very "rewarding" visit to your site and that will make them return to your site, even if it is to check out the list of winners, or to get their prize, reward or a mention of their name in your monthly newsletter. A contest is one great idea but if contests are not your style, then maybe you might be interested in a questions and answer forum. This can be as simple or complex, as you like. The simpler, the better, generally. Simply create an email form where visitors can ask you questions.

Add an auto-responder thanking them for their question (just a personal touch) and make sure to follow up and answer their question in a reasonable amount of time. Not only have you gained a new friend who may return in the future for business, but also again you have obtained information about a visitor to your site which is now a lead that may become a sale in the future. Word of mouth can help your business.

A final thought on forms is a registration form. Maybe you have special tool or a database full of great information that your site visitors can access. This is a great opportunity to ask them a few brief questions about who they are and once they finish they are instantly sent on to where they were going. This is their payment in exchange for your time and resources in providing that tool or database, or any information.

There is talk about email forms versus an email link. For the time being, it is better to create forms as not everyone has email access.

Many clients have the ability to surf the web, but do not have email. In this case, a basic email link is useless to them and you will never know who they are. However, an email form operates right from your server and they can fill it out and hit the send button right from their web browser. This ensures maximum exposure as well as tells your visitor that you care enough to ensure that everyone can contact you.

So what do you do with all this information? How you use the information is up to you. You could use it as a mailing list for a newsletter you create and send out monthly. Maybe store the information and do a follow up mailing asking people from time to time if there is any further information that they are looking for. You can even use the list when you have press releases. Let the world know when something new has happened like a site redesign.

But if you want to stay in favour, then use the information responsibly and ethically. Do not spam people and do not sell your lists to spam companies.

There are so many ways to turn visitors into leads and leads into clients. Many people worry about not getting enough hits, or not being on all the search engines. These are valid concerns, but in the end, you can have a million visitors and 10 sales where as another site can have 100 visitors and 25 sales figuratively speaking. The more visitors generally means more sales, but you can not just sit back and hope they come to you, you have to do a little work. Remind them from time to time of your products, services and that you are there for them.

That extra item such as a newsletter or just a simple email follow-up three months from now can go a long way.