Taking Software to the World

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Download the Executive Summary and Table of Contents (230K PDF - Acrobat Reader 5.0 or later)

As software developers take their products to international markets, they are often faced with a lack of information that can assist them in their strategic planning. While there are surveys about what organizations involved in localization (both as suppliers and consumers) are doing, there is almost no information about the business users who actually purchase localized software. Without a profile of these business users that addresses how they use localized software, what sorts of software they use, and what their priorities are, individuals developing strategic plans for international business are left guessing what their priorities should be. Because of this many developers turn to their localization partners for advice, but their partners are limited to their own perspective on priorities, and their priorities are actually very different from that of their clients.

Taking Software to the World: Results of the 2005 Global Software Survey, recently released by Localization Industry Standards Association (LISA, www.lisa.org), provides the most comprehensive and in-depth analysis of the issues affecting business users of localized software. Some of the results match with conventional wisdom (for example, English is by far the most important language for international business), while others do not (translation errors may generally be a nuisance rather than a real problem, but they affect product loyalty as much or more so than more serious functional problems). It is only when organizations understand the factors affecting use and sales, including those that are never reported back to them by end-users, that they can implement strategies to increase international market share.

Available for sale from LISA, the report features 64 pages of in-depth analysis based on the responses of over 380 users of localized software, and has 36 charts illustrating trends and 33 tables presenting data from the survey. The results cover four main areas: a profile of respondents, an analysis of use of localized software and its business impact, an examination of the impact of functional and translation errors on business activities and the purchasing activities of users, and specific suggestions for how organizations developing international software can improve their products and processes.

1. Taking Software to the World is the most comprehensive examination of business users of localized software, their needs, and the factors that influence their purchase of localized software.
   
   
2. It provides concrete data on the impact of localized software on organizations' internal operations and their ability to meet customer needs.
   
   
3. It provides real information on the languages used by business consumers within their organizations-a critical piece of information for developers of localized business software
   
   
4. It includes listings of the localized application areas that organizations use, with an estimation of sales sensitivity based on localization. Developers looking at where to invest their localization budget will find this information invaluable in developing their localization strategies.
   
   
5. Because the survey was available in mutliple languages, it reached respondents not comfortable responding in English-the users most in need of localized software-to gain their perspective.
   
   
6. LISA is so confident of the research and results in Taking Software to the World that it comes with a money-back guarantee: if you can show us better research or data on the topic of business users' experience with and use of localized software, we'll refund your purchase price.

To order your copy of Taking Software to the World, simply fill out the form