Destination Europe: Getting E-Noticed, Site Selection Magazine, September 2002

etting e-noticed involves far more than simply replicating your organization’s brochures online. Economic development agencies in Europe ? that might previously have sat back and let their regions’ charms speak for themselves ? are increasingly adopting a far more polished approach. This might not necessarily involve investment in all-singing, all-dancing flash-enabled Web sites, but ? perhaps more usefully ? through sites that incorporate powerful and speedy information-gathering tools.

       
Standard features on most economic development agency Web sites include: details of the industry sectors in which the region specializes; lists of major investors in the region; background statistics; information on the available workforce, transport and infrastructure; maps; tax rates and incentive information; a comparison of labor costs with other regions; success stories; news and announcements; and property information. These are the features we have come to expect of investment promotion agency sites. But some agencies have reached beyond the predictable to tantalize the corporate user with a rich mixture of information.

Data Galore

The most meaningful economic development agency sites are those that never lose sight of the end user: the corporate investor. One of the key elements that a company decision-maker considering investing in a region will look to uncover is the identity of other companies in that company’s sector ? both rivals and suppliers ? already located in that region. The “follow me” syndrome is never to be underestimated in the world of foreign direct investment.

       
Economic development agency Web sites that work well are those that present databases of companies already located in that region which are easily searchable by criteria such as sector and country of origin, and are in alphabetical order.


       
The Industrial Development Agency of Ireland (IDA) is a case in point. Through its Web site, the IDA provides international corporate decision-makers with the ability to search its databases for the 1,200 overseas companies that have set up operations in Ireland. The superbly detailed search facility allows the user to use a number of clear parameters, and is much more user-friendly than the search engine most development agency sites offer. The database contains comprehensive information on each company, including name, address, product, main contact and link to company Web site.

       
In terms of online databases, CzechInvest provides another online winner. Three databases are readily available: one on key sites for development, another on suppliers and a third on key educational facilities in the Czech Republic. A different approach from that taken by the IDA, but still hugely useful and relevant for a different type of European investment region.

       
Alsace Development Agency in France provides a “Who’s Who in Alsace”: a low-down on all the companies that have located in the region with links to their Web sites. It is an extremely useful tool for checking which companies got to the region first and what they are doing there. The Bordeaux Region Development Agency is also strong on letting the user know which companies are located in that region and in which sector they fall. The Industrial Investment Council of East Germany presents the information in an imaginative and compelling manner, via neat maps of their industry sectors, showing the types of companies present and their activity, although the depth of information presented here is not as impressive as some of the other sites.

Info That Beats the Rest

Perhaps not quite so database-oriented, Invest in France’s Web site delivers a potted plethora of information on undertaking business in France. The site provides data on: legal structures, taxation, employment regulations, expatriate staff, industrial and intellectual property rights, financial assistance, environmental protection, accounting procedures, international trade and frequently asked questions. This is all vital to the harassed investing corporate user who could take months gathering this information if the agency had not assumed the burden itself.

       
Operating along very similar lines is the Invest in Northern France (Nord France eXperts) Web site, which also provides lucid and appropriate business information. The section under this heading that is invaluable to the busy international investor is the grants and subsidies area, which covers: state subsidies, local subsidies, assistance, tax exemptions and real estate aid. After all, the potential incentives to be offered by a government agency can make all the difference to the site selection decision.

Looking Good

In terms of classy presentation, some of the U.K. sites have stolen a march on some of their continental cousins. One North East is a case in point. This offers an impressive flash presentation once the enhanced Web home page is activated. It clearly outlines what area the agency covers and where it is situated. This site also boasts a “knowledge exchange” area, where the user can access information on individual investment packages as well as schemes already in place to help integrate new businesses into the area.


       
Invest East of England provides much the same brackets of information found across most of the sites, but does so in an interesting and attention-grabbing manner, using the best that flash tools have to offer. Through this medium, the user gains significant access to the location of major towns, roads, airports, seaports and universities in the region. The user simply selects an icon for the facilities he wishes to display and then rolls over the map icons to reveal details.

       
Cote d’Azur ? which represents a region of Southern France ? uses its bright and bold design to lure the user in to delve deeper into the information held in its midst. And all this in French, English or Japanese for the truly international investor.

       
Another winner in the stylistic stakes, Copenhagen Capacity is an extremely visually appealing site, incorporating a good balance of photos and flash presentation to drive home the information content.

In the Final Analysis

When the chips are down, the true out-in-front European agency Web sites are the most recently launched and brand spanking new with up-to-date information, modern tools and information-sharing in the most clear-cut and accessible manner. Sites launched in the past few months by Invest in Denmark and the Flanders Foreign Investment Office in Belgium can legitimately lay claim to the accolade of being amongst the best of the bunch.

       
Invest in Denmark’s site is incredibly accessible. On entering, two elements hit you: the first is an arrow to an investor’s kit and the second is an arrow to the press room. Both areas of the site are clear, useful and impressively up-to-date. The site also features a fascinating “Benchmark Denmark” feature, which challenges visitors to “test Denmark’s competitiveness.” It ranks Denmark against other European countries and cities and the United States across a range of key benchmark criteria, including: Business Costs and Conditions; IT/Telecommunication; Infrastructure; Labor Market; Education; and Living Conditions. The sub-categories are fascinating, ranging from GDP and computers per capita to a Corruption Perceptions index.


       
The Flanders Foreign Investment Office has adopted a simple approach, but the site is clearly laid out, with instant search buttons immediately apparent and a full range of information above and beyond the purely economic to give a holistic view of conducting business in the region — yet without confusing the user with too much tourist information. The new FFIO site also boasts a colorful and fun set of interactive maps, highlighting different aspects of the region — cities, regions, road networks, and so forth — at each click.

       
So, to get e-noticed, clarity, relevance and keeping it current are intrinsic to best-of-breed success.