Blog 6: Chapter 9: Glocalization

In chapter 9, there is a small section about glocalization. Glocalization is the idea that organizations must plan and carefully design their global sites so that they also cater to local needs and preferences. The book sites McDonalds as one of the many companies that practices glocalization. I looked into that and found that McDonalds has two websites dedicated solely to African Americans (www.365black.com) and Asians (www.myinspirasian.com). On each website they have a “My Community” link that tells visitors what events and people McDonalds is supporting within their community. On 365black.com, McDonald’s says that “Like the unique African Baobab tree, which nourishes its community with its leaves and fruit, McDonald's has branched out to the African-American community nourishing it with valuable programs and opportunities.”
When it comes to food, I found that McDonalds changes their menu in almost every foreign location outside of the United States. In Asia, they offer a fried shrimp sandwich and a pork patty with teriyaki sauce,; in the Middle East, they offer the McArabia which is a grilled chicken or grilled kofta patty wrapped in an Arabic style pita bread; in Europe, they offer the CroqueMcDo that has 2 melted slices of Emmental cheese and a slice of ham toasted between 2 flattened hamburger buns. In some locations they even offer beer and wine!
Glocalization is an important process because if McDonalds only offered the original menu items in all their locations, they would be excluding certain ethnic groups and alienating themselves to only certain parts of the globe, therefore diminishing business overall.