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Going Global - Make Your Jewelry Website Appeal to
International Audiences
by Pamela Bruce
We tend to forget that the first two "W"s in WWW stand for "world-wide".
You might have set up your jewelry website to reach a national audience,
but in effect you are going global. Here are a few tips for appealing to
that wider audience:
1. Watch your references. While about 30% of the users of the WWW
speak English(http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats7.htm), many of
them might not understand pop culture references aimed at a US audience.
So go easy on names of celebrities or TV shows - not everyone might know
what style of jewelry Oprah wears, for instance.
2. Keep your forms in shape. If buyers have to fill out forms,
make sure that these don't force them to enter US-style zip codes or
two-letter state abbreviations and display error messages if these are
not completed. Otherwise, potential buyers might just give up in
frustration.
3. Show international shipping rates. If you intend to ship
internationally, you should also display international shipping rates.
The US postal service, FedEx and UPS all provide the required data on
their websites, as well as country-specific regulations. Also, be sure
to mention possible custom fees
that the buyer might be responsible for.
4. Go metric. Most of the rest of the world does not use inches
or pounds. If you state that a necklace is 16 3/4 inches long, that
number will not call up a mental image for your international buyers.
Don't make them convert inches to centimeters (and maybe add errors in
the process) - do it for them. You can use one of many measurement
conversion websites, or download the free program "Convert" at http://joshmadison.net/software/.
Appealing to an international audience can increase your market, but you
also have to be careful. Here are some warnings:
- There are lots of scams out there. I receive several e-mails a week
from countries associated with lots of internet scams, offering to buy
hundreds of my items or to pay $2,000 for a $25 bracelet. Just ignore
these. You might also want to restrict shipping to particular countries
or regions.
- Do not "translate" your website with a translation program such as
Babelfish. I have talked to native speakers, and they say that the
results are often confusing or even ludicrous. If you want your website
translated, hire a professional translator.
Pamela Bruce designs and creates one-of-a-kind bead jewelry - wearable,
attractive and reasonably priced.
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com
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