Customer Reviews

Business Without Borders: A Strategic Guide to Global Marketing

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Guiding Principle for Going Global Online

A solid piece of work, highly recommended to anyone who must understand how to develop a successful global Internet business. De Palma comes with an ace pedigree, widely respected, coming out with "customers are three times more likely to buy from websites in their own language", an industry standard mantra.

De Palma hits key areas, highlighting best practices of the market leaders and their global websites and systems. For once, we have web-based globalization ("Marketing and Selling on the Eight Continent") analysed within a business context. If only pets.com had read this book ...

Content is extensively researched. Case studies are made; corporate budgets, marketing plans, infrastructure, etc., are dissected. Plenty of practical examples, including the names we're all familiar with for the right reasons (eBay, etc.) and the wrong reasons (boo.com et al) too.

If you're in the business of expanding your markets through the web this is the book for you. Increasingly, "E-Commerce" is less dependent on the US ($600 billion worldwide versus $850 billion in the US estimated for 2003). If you want to grow your business, look outside your own borders.

De Palma shows how a successful web business deals with "big issues": Education about global and local markets; planning for international web business; implementing technology and translating into foreign languages, organizing people and resources and, crucially, measuring the return on investment. Of course, parts of what he says applies to international business in general, so don't think this book is just for the web-literate.

The tone is pragmatism. De Palma is realistic about the planning and management of a global web business (it does NOT mean translating into every language under the sun). Much to his credit, he provides valuable information on areas that competing titles duck to avoid, e.g., international tax, contractual and legal requirements - and provides good advice for staying out of trouble.

A technical foundation is included. This isn't a book for techies, but it does educate the executive and student audience about implementing globalized web technology. Experts will contest his comments on TMX, Machine Translation and Unicode, however, the rest of the technical stuff is sound (no "did you know that they have different shaped mailboxes in England?" nonsense).

De Palma, throughout the book, underpins his thesis with the need for a Chief Globalization Officer (an executive to champion web globalization in a company). You can cringe at Grand Poo-Bah titling redolent of dot coms, but fair enough, it does underline the critical importance of bringing globalization issues to senior management attention. Basically, if you're not getting the message through to board level, your enterprise will remain a beggar at the globalization banquet.

In sum, you can take this book as The Guiding Principle for Going Global Online. Recommended to seasoned executives, students of international commerce and technology, globalization gurus and the plain interested. OK, we know business book sales are down 30% since the end of the 1990's. So, if you're going to buy one, buy this one.

Hats off to Mr. DePalma! As a long-time marketing professional who has grappled with trying to help upper management "get" the importance of the web as a co-equal channel within the marketing mix-particularly as it relates to drumming up business globally- "Business without Borders" delivers the information and strategic paths that any business thinking of going global needs to know and understand. I highly recommend this book to anyone who already is engaged in doing business overseas or is simply thinking of doing so; "Business without Borders" delivers comprehensive "glocalized" web marketing strategies and important lessons learned for everyone.

DePalma has produced a detailed, well-reasoned tour de force for companies who need to act on the globalization imperative. He touches on every aspect of the globalization process, including target market analyses, localization, internal corporate issues, and much more. Even companies who are well along in their efforts to operate globally (in every sense of the word) could learn a thing or two from DePalma's book.

He personalizes what could easily become a dry subject by regularly invoking a fictitious model protagonist named "Mira Vozreniya" - meaning "world view" in Russian (with tongue planted firmly in cheek) - to guide the reader through the intricate and complicated process of taking products global. His approach is hands-on, with many summarizing charts, tips, data points, and tools for would-be globalizers. And he spends significant time on the 8th Continent and web-related issues, in the process dispelling many a myth about the instant globality of a web presence. The book is filled with real-life examples of what to do and what not to do to be successful globally.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone who is, or soon will be, involved in the massive undertaking that is globalization in a corporate environment. There is a great deal to digest in DePalma's book (dare I say, too much?), but if companies implement even a fraction of what he lays out, they will do well for themselves.

Having spent too many years of my professional career on personalization, I picked up this book to find out the personalization angle in e-business globalization. The author didnot disappoint me as the book succintly describes globalization as full-context personalization. However, the book is much more than this viewpoint. Mr. DePalma makes the business case for e-business globalization, and gives concrete steps for planning, implementing and measuring a globalization strategy. I liked both the content and its presentation. First, the author has a knack for getting to the gist of an issue such as 3 P's of global marketing. Second, the presentation is very precise with the right amount of details such as the elements required for correct language representation from scripts to encoding methods. Third, the material is action oriented as the example for when to use machine translation vs. human translation. Well done!

This book is as pragmatic and current as I have ever seen. Depalma takes the concepts and current challenges associated with international commerce and provides practical guidance for anyone seeking to start or improve their worldwide practice.

Well worth the time and money!

Managing myself Web sites in the EMEA region, I have recognized Don's expertise as a globalization veteran. By reading his book, you will understand and learn how to take up the multiple challenges of going global. A must for anybody who is thinking about a global business approach.

A very good reference book examining some of the strategic issues involved in planning an effective global web presence. Chapters 4: Deciding which Markets Matter and Chapter 8: Organizing to Serve the Eighth Continent are especially good chapters for anyone on a corporate international marketing team. An elusive global website topic is also covered very well which is how to measure ROI on a website.

In Business Without Borders, Don does a fine job of addressing vital globalization issues ranging from business strategy to tactical implementation. His common sense approach makes it required reading for anyone wishing a primer in the pitfalls and opportunities for the aspiring global villager.

As a veteran in the localization/globalization industry and an MBA student, I found Mr. DePalma's book extremely helpful both in my professional life as an Operations Manager and as a student. What Mr. DePalma's book did for me was that, with hindsight, he provided me with the theoretical background for many of the practical decisions I have taken in my daily professional life thus far (and still do)! The book was also a great help when I wrote my international marketing assignment for my MBA. Thanks Mr. De Palma!

Mr. DePalma has written a clear, easy to read, comprehensive book on conducting international business over the Internet. No company, large or small, should embark on a Web-based marketing project without consulting this practical and informative guide. Mr. DePalma's strategies and insights are extremely valuable and are presented in a fashion that makes this book a fun read even for those who may not have a high-tech background. I highly recommend it.