We just came across this great Shop.org interview with Zia Daniell Wigder, a senior analyst at Forrester Research, and a leading expert on Web globalization. In this post Zia offers some key considerations for e-commerce businesses considering geographic expansion.

Specifically, Zia advises e-tailers to take a look at their internal factors prior to determining when and where to go global, such as measuring the amount of international traffic currently on the site, determining how strong the brand recognition is overseas, and identifying whether or not your organization has international staff that’s willing to play a role in this new venture.

Zia goes on to discuss how existing technologies in the US online retail space can prove advantageous as American companies consider overseas expansion. Features such as ratings, user reviews, and increasingly, recommendation engines are more commonly used on US retail sites, yet they do not tend to be as widely deployed in other markets. That’s a key differentiator for US-based e-tailers looking to distinguish their global offerings from those of local competitors.

The post also includes some amusing tidbits that any traveler can identify with (i.e., heading to a business meeting sans luggage), and some others that perhaps are not so frequently encountered (such as her unplanned stay at a Samarkand, Uzbekistan hotel, that formerly served as a “house of ill repute”).

For another take on this timely topic, you may like to view the Webinar that ATG recently hosted with internationalization experts from Deloitte and e2X.

Please share any of your own insights into or plans for e-globalization…of course, we’re always open to hearing any travel mishaps, as well!