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We get it. Search Engine Optimization is a tough topic all on its own. And when you add in the challenges of localization along with SEO, the idea of gaining and maintaining search rankings across multiple languages and markets can get downright intimidating. The word “overwhelming” comes up in conversation far too often regarding this topic. But it doesn’t have to if you look at SEO as a series of opportunities for customer acquisition and sales growth. For this reason, we would like to share 8 SEO opportunities to take advantage of when you’re ready to make the global leap or are already there.
By breaking down SEO opportunities into categories, you can prioritize your efforts to gain maximum impact and progress as you become more adept at tackling the topic.
Adding a second language option to your site to boost sales is a logical business step for many. As an example, Canada is a dual-language country. Therefore, every company should offer a multilingual web experience for its customers. And many companies in the U.S. have seen solid growth by adding a Spanish option to their website.
But going multilingual is not without a few pitfalls that could hamper your SEO results in the original and even the new language. Planning ahead can help you avoid a sales shortfall later.
English: www.sitename.com French: www.sitename.com/fr Spanish: www.sitename.com/es
There are three different options for setting up multilingual domains; each has its advantages and disadvantages when it comes to multilingual testing results. We’ve talked about this in a previous blog post if you’d like to learn more – or simply drop us a line, and we’d be more than happy to discuss it with you!
<link rel=”alternate” hreflang=”fr” href=”https://sitename.com”/> <link rel=”alternate” hreflang=”es” href=”https://sitename.com”/>
We don’t blame you if this all sounds overwhelming. Don’t worry. This is where we can help. We have expert reviewers for any language who can check your existing content to make sure it is accurate and resonates with your target audience. And if you need help with the copywriting process too, our team is here for you.
From the smallest of local “mom and pop” shops to multinational corporations, “Search Engine Optimization” has been a topic that’s loomed at large for nearly two decades. And with constantly changing technology, ever-evolving algorithms, and the advent of machine learning, the topic has spun an industry all its own with courses, consultants, and specialists. And, as if you hadn’t discussed the topic enough, we throw in one more derivation: International SEO.
So, what is international SEO, how does it vary from traditional SEO, and why do you need it? We’ll try to answer those questions and lay out a simple strategy for implementing a successful plan to spur growth in all the markets you work in.
In the simplest terms, International SEO is the process of optimizing your website’s structure and messaging so search engines can tell the countries, cultures, and languages you are trying to reach – and serve up the most relevant content from your website when a person from that targeted area is searching.
Or, to think of it another way, International SEO is everything standard SEO does to serve up relevant search results to prospects, but with another layer of geographical, cultural and/or language segmentation added on top.
If your organization already understands the benefits of SEO in targeting local customers, International SEO is simply an expansion of those concepts. And the result is your company being able to expand into all the markets where there is a similar need for your product and a match with your existing cultural understandings.
This creates an incremental growth opportunity as you expand from markets you have mastered into markets that are similar enough to step into with minimal risk. Each new market represents a launch opportunity for the next as you get better and better at the process. And, of course, International SEO is the tool that allows you to manage that growth.
As a company, you need to have your targeting strategy decided before implementing an international SEO strategy. And in some cases, this strategy may actually steer you away from true International SEO. It’s natural to be confused at this point, but here are some examples of business cases and the strategy they require:
This strategy doesn’t actually fall under the classic definition of International SEO, but it’s often confused with our core topic, so we can start here. Let’s say our business is based in Switzerland and must contend with four different official languages to serve customers inside its borders. Suppose the product we are selling can’t be shipped. In that case, our strategy for expanding the business is to build a multilingual website to target people living inside Switzerland in the language they most prefer. Canadian businesses have faced this problem with English and French, and many local American businesses have created English and Spanish versions of their web content.
A business based in the US has a product that’s also useful in England, Canada, and Australia – and the country can ship the product. The language, with subtle variation, is suitable across all four countries, but the web content needs to cue the search engine to the different targeted areas.
There’s another application to this single language/multiple country strategy. In many technical fields, English is the language that transcends borders. A company in the biotech industry selling lab supplies or production equipment will want a presence in India due to the number of labs and production facilities in the country. Since most customers looking to buy biotech products will be fluent in English due to their education in the US or England, there’s no need for additional language translation. However, consideration still needs to be given to International SEO India’s best practices like specific search engines used and any keyword differences between US, Indian and British customers.
Now things are getting complicated. Or at least complex enough to keep you engaged in the process! As you step up to targeting multiple languages and countries, each added variable adds a level of complexity that, in turn, requires an additional level of organization for your web content. This enters the realm of enterprise systems where your site can have hundreds, if not thousands, of pages that will need to be tagged and indexed into folder structures to help search engine crawlers find the relevant information and deliver it to the user.
This is a non-technical overview of International SEO strategy, so we won’t get too granular. Still, a solid International SEO implementation depends on understanding the web content organization and tagging you need to use to “tip off” the search engine as to which customer you are targeting with each section of content on your website.
ccTLD – Country-specific Top-Level Domain, the tag at the end of the company name (rather than “.com”) identifies this site as being country specific. This country-specific strategy is the easiest way to rank your site locally, as it sends the clearest signal to search engines. However, it’s expensive to maintain, and each site has its own domain authority – making it labor-intensive to keep up.
Example: companyname.us
Subdirectory – One “Digital Folder” for Every Country You Target. This organizational strategy separates each block of international content from your main site to make managing different messaging easy. However, with such ease comes a drawback: subdirectories generally send a weaker signal to search engines, so a local competitor may outrank you as a result.
Example: companyname.com/us
Subdomain – “Third Level Domain” Separation for Internationalized Content. This subdomain structure contains all your internationalized content that the search engine separates from the root domain. Like a subdirectory structure, this makes maintaining content easier but creates a weaker signal to search engines. Additionally, it may dilute your domain authority, reducing your SEO ranking.
Example: Us.companyname.com
As with all SEO, the path to getting results is to create the most user-relevant content. Organizing your domain structure (see above) tells the search engine where to look for content. But the content it finds in the location must match what the market user is likely to be searching for.
Keyword Targeting: Even in a single language strategy, different countries have different words: The American “Car Hood” vs. the English “Bonnet” or “Mom” vs. “Mum.” A thorough understanding of international SEO keyword research can yield an incredible lift in total results.
By using local currencies, phone numbers, addresses, and conversational styles that will resonate with your local customer (a.k.a Transcreation), you are telling the search engine and the reader that you are committed to serving the local market. And that means better results all around. Some other considerations to help your content feel local:
And if it seems confusing, don’t worry; our international SEO team at Chillistore has decades of accumulated experience and worldwide resources to create exactly the structure and content you need to implement a complex strategy like this. Drop us a note- we’re happy to help!
International Search Engine Optimization (SEO) — when used correctly, it can boost you to the top of the web, increasing your global marketing presence. But how does it work, exactly? And how can you be sure you’re implementing it correctly?
We’re providing you with our definitive, comprehensive guide to successfully implementing international SEO. This is our best advice, all in one place. Read on!
When it comes to international SEO, native languages are key; visitors will spend more time on a website if it’s in their native language (twice as much time, to be exact). That means your SEO keywords need to not only be translated, but translated well. A direct translation doesn’t always account for cultural specifics and regionally varying dialects. Culture is fluid and mobile, and so are keywords. Conducting regular keyword research is crucial to staying up-to-date with evolving markets.
Take time to consult a subject matter expert or an experienced linguist who understands your target location are qualifying research approaches, Native speakers and in-country linguists will provide you with the nuances necessary to appeal to your target audience.
Comprehensive “research” isn’t limited to researching keywords. You want to understand how your users operate and what they respect. What search engines do they use? What websites do they link to in their own work?
For example: if you’re looking to enter Asian markets with your content, you can’t just assume Google is the go-to. There are other search engines, which you’ll need to acknowledge and understand if you want to appeal to your audience.
Stay on top of your multilingual SEO strategy by making sure your research and your technical strategies are up-to-date.
Search engine algorithms seek out quality. But what does “quality” mean, in the context of content? Well, that varies from search engine to search engine, and between countries. Spend time understanding the specifics of your target countries, and make sure your content is aligned. Generally, producing “quality content” means producing original, relevant, frequent content that sparks meaningful interactions with your users.
Video is becoming more and more popular among users around the world — it’s quick, visually stimulating, and — when done well — can be memorable. People are more likely to click on websites if they contain video content, and search engines fish through videos that have attached scripts. If your content has video components, take the time to pair your multilingual videos with multilingual SEO. This will help boost visibility.
So, you’ve spent time choosing contextually, culturally, and regionally appropriate keywords. They’re specific and targeted. Congratulations! That’s the foundation for strong international SEO. But if you really want to take your SEO game to the next level, you can make a number of technical tweaks to complement your SEO keywords. Here are five things you should consider:
Let Google and other search engines know which languages your site targets by using the hreflang attribute in your XML sitemap. You can specify both the target language and the target country in the code. This makes it even easier for search engines to help users find your localized website in their language.
Ever wonder how search engines decide to rank websites? They consider a number of characteristics, including how many other websites link to it and the text within those links. But getting a lot of inbound links isn’t enough — they have to come from quality sites in the same language, ideally in the same country as your localized site. Global marketing is like domestic campaigning, in that you should spend time and money building quality backlinks or incoming links. This will help you make an impact on your international traffic, search engine ranking, and conversions.
Does having your site hosted locally influence SEO? There’s some debate. According to Google, as long as you use the right ccTLDs, hreflang attributes, and geo-targeting with Webmaster Tools, it doesn’t matter where your site is hosted. However, it’s important to remember that Google isn’t necessarily the search engine of choice in your target country. Research which engine is most common for local users, and then decide if that search engine cares about local hosting.
The ccTLD (country code top-level domain) usually indicates the target country for your website. For example, search engines immediately know that a domain that ends with “.in” is targeted to users in India. Many SEO experts argue that Google and other search engines like Naver, Yandex, or Baidu favor ccTLD for searches in countries outside of the US.
If you have multiple sites with a lot of duplicate content because they are in the same language (for example, .com, .co.uk, and .au might share common text), Google says to use the rel=“canonical” link element, to avoid being penalized for duplicate content.
If you’re ready to build your own multilingual SEO strategy, Chillistore is ready to help! We provide keyword research and localization, website localization, cultural adaptation and a range of other global marketing services. Find out more about our multilingual SEO and cultural adaptation services, or contact us to request a consultation.
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