Internet irony
Came across this web form during my Web Globalization Report Card research. When is an input field both optional and required? Here’s when. Thought you’d enjoy… PS: Have you tested your input forms lately?
The inherent flaw of the translation icon
There is no internationally accepted definition of what a “translation” icon should look like. But here’s the icon websites tend to use: You see it many places these days — most often used to indicate the availability of automatic translation, …
Language is a feature (to be promoted)
One of the takeaways from the Web Globalization Best Practices & Emerging Trends report is that language is a feature, every bit as important as many other features. After all, what’s the use of a cool new travel app if …
Speed Kills: Your web globalization investment
Website performance is like the weather — everyone talks about it but nobody seems to do anything about it. I read a great article recently on website performance — do check it out. In it, Tammy Everts writes: Slow pages …
For global brands, Russian is no longer a “top 10” language
Russian was once considered a “top 10” language — one that any company serious about global growth would support. But Putin’s horrific actions have put an end to that. Over the past two years, global brands have made a hasty …
Q&A with Multilingual Magazine on 20 years of the Web Globalization Report Car
I was happy to connect with Multilingual on the most recent Report Card. Here’s the interview!
The top 25 global websites from the 2024 Web Globalization Report Card
Twenty years ago, Wikipedia was just a few years old and available in about a dozen languages. Today, Wikipedia supports more than 300 languages and has emerged on top of the 2024 Web Globalization Report Card. Here are the top …
The Year of the Dragon
As we say farewell to the Year of the Rabbit we greet the Year of the Dragon. And, with it, my whirlwind tour of global and local websites taking advantage of this holiday. And, yes, lots of celebratory red! Let’s …
Krispy Kreme goes to France
Late last year Krispy Kreme entered its 39th foreign market: France. And it launched a localized website to match. The company plans to open 500 stores in France over the next five years. France is attracting a number of American …
The 2024 Web Globalization Report Card is coming soon…
For those of you keeping count this is number 20. Yes, as in 20 years. I’ll have much more to share about that later this year. But for now let’s focus on the next report. I’m in the middle of …
This year, Singles Day is looking like just another day
It’s not secret that China is going through an economic rough patch. So it’s probably not surprise that might brief tour of Singles Day website promotions came up lighter than usual. Compared with 2021, this year’s Singles Day is, well, …
GEICO’s Spanish-language website: 15 minutes could make it better
As I prep for two classes on best practices in global navigation, I came across the Spanish-language website for GEICO and I noticed a small but non-trivial error. See if you notice it as well. GEICO does a number of …
Mailchimp keeps making rookie mistakes
I know it appears that I’m out to punish Mailchimp — as I first started calling out its rookie mistakes back in 2021. I am a paid subscriber so I feel as if I’ve at least earned the right. What …
Mailchimp’s curious global gateway misstep
A little more than a year ago I wrote about Mailchimp’s improved global gateway. Here is what you would have seen in the header back then: And here is the header today: Much has clearly changed, but I’d like you …