Global gateway notes: Guidewire, Google, Locaria
One of the many things I love about global gateways is that I never stop discovering new ones. Here are notes on a few gateways I’ve stumbled across over the past …
Global navigation
IBM: A tale of two global gateways
IBM, much to my chagrin, has used a lengthy pull-down menu as its global gateway for years. Here’s what it looks like: There are two problems with this menu, the …
What the heck is an IDN and why you should care
Here’s a new article I’ve written for UX Magazine on the emergence of internationalized domain names (IDNs). I view IDNs as an inevitable (albeit awkward) evolution of the Internet. And here are the …
The Mr. Potato Head global gateway
I was happy to discover recently that a toy that I loved as a child — Mr. Potato Head — is still alive and well. Not only that, but Mr. …
3M: Many brands sharing one global gateway
3M finished in the top 10 of the 2011 Web Globalization Report Card. Its global gateway strategy is one reason why it scored so highly. But what’s particularly impressive about 3M …
Web design with the world in mind
I was interviewed recently by Paul Sawers of The Next Web. He wrote a great article about the challenges and opportunities of web internationalization. I recommend sending this link to …
Delta’s global gateway: When complexity kills
I’m always amazed when I come across global gateways that I find complicated in my native language. Like Delta Airline‘s global gateway. What you see here is not one but …
An artistic global gateway
How’s this for a visibly engaging global gateway: It’s the landing page for Protest Boardwear — a Netherlands-based clothing outfit. Unfortunately, the map itself isn’t clickable, which violates a cardinal …
Dear Airbnb: Please take down your mutant flag
Airbnb is one of the hot new travel web service startups. It basically lets you rent out your spare bedroom or look for a spare bedroom when you travel. That’s …
Microsoft launches a new global gateway
I’m happy to see Microsoft launch a new global gateway on its home page. Here’s a detailed view: Notice how the country/region options are all nicely presented in the native languages. …
Starbucks modifies its global gateway, but problems remain
I noticed recently that Starbucks had launched a new web design, probably to coincide with its newly austere logo. Unfortunately, the new global gateway didn’t improve on the old global …
Language negotiation in a mobile world: Improving the global user experience
Language negotiation is the process of detecting the language setting of a web browser and responding with the matching language, if available. Companies such as Google and Facebook have used …
The Top 25 Global Web Sites of 2011
I’m pleased to announce the publication of the 2011 Web Globalization Report Card. This year, we reviewed 250 web sites across 25 industries. The web sites represent nearly half of …
Select Country; Select Language
Just a quick note to highlight a guest article I wrote for UX Magazine on best practices in global gateways. Link
Is Apple giving up on flags?
Apple has been using flags as part of its global gateway for many years. In 2006, Apple’s global gateway was positioned in the footer and featured a different flag for …