WEB SITE LOCALIZATION AS A METHOD OF QUALITY IMPROUVEMENT

Abstract

Integration and globalization processes increase the need for companies to be competitive; at the same time the Internet allows expanding products and services distribution channels. Thus, the company's presence online is becoming a question of vital importance for business prospects. The growing use of the Internet has caused the expectation that the Internet will create a new standardized method of communication, which would allow the seller and buyer to communicate comfortably despite their cultural differences. However, empirical studies have shown that even in the electronic communication customers still need to feel associated with seller by culture. Thus, in order to meet customer expectations and expand the markets, it is necessary to know the differences of Web site quality perception in different countries. The cultural analysis of user interface should provide useful information for designers, and perhaps, even change the perception of web site functionality, aesthetic and emotional experience. The article aims to review and compare the different classifications of cultural dimensions, to identify the most important cultural dimensions in the web site context, the priorities of web site localization and to propose the algorithm of cultural dimensions’ integration into web site quality model.