The first paragraph of this article serves as a summary of the content. It's not always straightforward to adopt a global mindset, especially when a significant portion of our website's visitors reside outside our home country. This reality has necessitated a rapid learning curve for us. We manage and distribute a monthly digital magazine from the small Greek island of Karpathos. Our publication, Kafenio, which launched in March 2000, delves into European life and culture.
Our first step towards global thinking was to accept classified ads in any language that uses Latin letters. This meant that languages like French, Spanish, and German were no longer a hurdle for our software. This decision was crucial for us, as living on a secluded Aegean island, it would be easy to develop a narrow perspective and lose sight of the broader world.
The first significant challenge we encountered was the difference between British and American English. This issue became more complex when we had contributors from Australia and Canada. Our solution was to allow each writer to use their native English dialect. We didn't want to compromise the authenticity of an article by Americanizing it. This approach is in line with global thinking, as discerning readers would easily spot any inconsistencies in language style.
There's a significant difference between editing for accuracy and acting as language police. While we can't please everyone, to connect with a global audience, we need to broaden our thinking.
We recently decided to run banner ads in languages other than English. This initiative began with one German and one Russian banner in our July issue. It's an exciting development, and we believe we can build on this idea over time. Improvements to a site or digital magazine don't have to happen overnight.
Many websites fail to think and act globally. I've often tried to sign up for free subscriptions to newsletters or magazines, only to be rejected because my state and zip code or phone number didn't fit the American format. This oversight can deter not just me, with a Greek address and phone number, but other potential customers worldwide.
It's frustrating when websites offer weather updates or news reports that only cater to North America. What about readers in Tokyo or Paris who want to know the weather or news? It's equally annoying when every reference to "government" in a news story refers to Washington, or every stock quote is from the U.S.
There's a whole world out there ready to visit your website and potentially buy your products. Why exclude them? I'm unlikely to return to a website that only offers weather for North America or rejects my address because I didn't select a state from their list. They won't get my business because they've made it clear that I'm not important to them.
I'm not suggesting we replace webmasters with sociologists, but we shouldn't alienate potential customers from around the world. Review your own site and consider what positive changes you could make in this regard. Once we all start thinking globally, we'll act accordingly. As we attract new customers, our success rates are bound to increase. After all, there's no better place to go global than cyberspace.
