SUCCESS FACTORS IN INTERNATIONAL EXPANSION

Sammanfattning: The Internet has lowered the barriers for international expansion and made it an important tool in order to succeed in the globalized world of today. Studies have been made on how companies use the Internet as a tool in their expansion strategy, however an overlooked field has been how Internet companies expand their business internationally.This study focuses on international expansion of six Swedish-founded Internet-service companies. It is a qualitative case study mainly based on a numerous interviews with top management and founders of the companies. The case study subjects’ international expansion has been analyzed within six key areas found crucial for success in the expansion process, with the purpose of determining possible general success factors within international expansion of Swedish founded Internet- service companies.Varying generality has been identified within these areas, with the organizational structure, marketing and sales, and economic factors being the most standardized amongst the case study subjects. Although the limited number of case study subjects, including variety in business models, the results can be used as an example of general success factors in international expansion by other Internet-service companies.