The world has changed dramatically in past few year. People were increasingly being pushed online, creating new possibilities for businesses looking to compete in global markets.
But to be successful in international SEO, you need to understand more issues from page perception, URL structure, keywords, search results, and global perspective.
To build and expand your company’s digital presence, you will need to be able to face audiences in each of the areas in which you do business, specifically on the search network. Search engine optimization is more critical than ever: 68% of online experience starts with search engines.
Use this guide for a more effective international SEO strategy today and for years to come.
1. Hreflang – International Establishment.
Hreflang is an HTML feature that displays the language in which your content is displayed and the reader’s geolocation. It might look like this:
The “En-UK” HTML tail is used to tell search engines like Google the language and location you want to target your content. It is essential if you are contacting a specific market and language.
Pay attention. Hreflang does not work with Bing or Baidu, who use content-language meta tags:
<Meta http-equiv = "content-language" content = "en-uk">
First, identify the search engine you want to focus on before diving into your site’s technical optimization.
2. Choose the correct URL structure.
To reach your target audience’s content, you will need URLs based on ccTLDs (country code top-level domains), subdomains, and subdirectories.
The method of determining the structure of the URL depends heavily on your resources. If you can manage multiple domains simultaneously, then in an ideal world, TLD is the best approach.
If not, a subdomain is best. Finally, you can select a subdirectory if none of the above options work.
3. Prepare for the page impression.
It seems that with every update made by Google, it focuses more and more on in-page usability.
Case in point: Core Web Vitals will become the ranking factor in May 2021.
It is important to keep in mind, especially if you are doing international SEO.
In working with a page, perhaps the most important thing is a mobile-first index (or a mobile-only index). Targeting mobile is a global challenge, and it is essential to be prepared in every country in which you work.
4. Avoid machine translation.
While this can make life easier and speed up translation, you should avoid machine translation.
I have seen it many times. The marketer wants to target more international markets and translate the entire site using the translation plugin.
A bad translation will not improve your rating. You can use local translators who also understand the importance of context. This will protect your reputation among local consumers from your first search engagement with your brand.
5. Realize that keywords and search results vary by country.
While Google’s algorithm may be universal, search results vary greatly locally. Searching for a particular product in Sweden will give you a different set of results than searching for the USA’s same product.
If you are targeting a specific keyword in many countries, start by analyzing the search results. Also, be aware of the change in search volume for your target keywords for locals.
For example, the word “SEO” is a term used in many countries in the same way. But the discovery of “football broadcasting” in the US means something completely different from “football broadcasting” in the UK.
Consider this when developing a country-level strategy.
6. E-A-T is here to stay.
E-A-T stands for Experience, Reliability, and Reliability.
These content properties, identified in the Google Search Quality Guidelines, help build trust.
Here are some elements:
- Names and biographies of authors in editors
- Cut or edit low EAT content.
- Create a Personal Brand
- Optimize technical security
- Moderate user-generated content (important in YMYL)
7. Do not create a link; Make the relationship.
Yes, links are still important. And since the links are based on recommendations, I never think they will drop the ranking factors.
While Google’s stated that you should not build links, there are strategic ways to get closer to this ongoing credibility building.
Focus on quality over quantity.
A mail link from a site with a domain rating of 50 and more than one outbound link will earn you a higher ranking than ten irrelevant links from sites with less than ten domain authority ratings.
But don’t be tempted by unwanted LinkedIn users who ask you to buy their links. Instead, build relationships with marketers or people in the industry you work for.
Also, remember that links have different meanings for international SEO depending on the origin of the backlink.
Suppose your site is receiving too many backlinks from URLs ending in “.it.” In that case, this gives Google the impression that your site is relevant to Italy’s visitors and therefore may rank according to these local search results is. Local links will have the most impact on search results.
It is not about trying every strategy. It is about discovering what works for you in every country, and it is used extensively.
8. Follow international and local search trends.
The epidemic brought us dramatic changes in search volume and behavior in 2020. In general, however, our priorities are constantly changing, and trends can vary significantly from country to country.
For example, look at “Telecom,” which grew from 22,200 to 40,500 monthly requests in the US – an 82% increase from October 2019 to 2020.
In the UK, the same term’s search volume over the same period increased 175% from 4,400 to 12,100 per month. If you were a company and had to choose where to allocate your budget, the US market would have more potential for the same.
You can use tools like SEOmonitor to find trends and versions, as I did above. Or use Google Trends to find new trends in each market.
Google has also released its Year of Search, which can give you essential insight into the market you operate in.
9. Create and execute a plan
In the world of SEO, you need a lot of analysis, but in the end, it is all about execution. Based on what we’ve just gone through, you should have more options to create a plan – a roadmap – and start implementing it.
Split your list into technical SEO, content, and link building. From there, create your own customizable calendar.
10. Check for Keyword Research
Below is a list of tasks to help you understand how customers search for your brand’s products or services.
Identify topics that your audience cares about
Before starting keyword research, you need to understand the standard set of problems your audience sees on the Internet. We call these issues themes – general concepts that excite the people you want to attract to your site.
For example, “SEO” is a topic in itself, not a keyword. This will include many possible subtopics and keywords that you can focus on on your pages.
Define Seed Keywords
Primary keywords are phrases that describe your product, category, industry, or niche that are unrelated to your brand. These phrases tell your audience what you are doing.
For example, our original keywords refer to SEO tools, SEO platforms, and the like, our product. For more information about keyword research, see this keyword research guide.
See more keywords related to your main topics.
Your audience can also research questions that are not directly related to your product or service. Identifying these additional keywords will help you understand what your audience wants to know as they continue their purchase journey.
Search Long Tail Keywords Based on Original Words
Long-tail keywords are variations on the initial word of 3 or more words. The search volume for these phrases can be low but usually provides a very high conversion rate.
Evaluate the search intent
The search goal defines the reason why a person performs a particular search. To rank, your content must match the relevant search query for its primary keyword. It should include relevant information and have a format and length correct for the purpose.
Conduct Competitive Keyword Research
Competitive keyword research helps you understand who you are competing with within search results and which keywords drive these companies’ success. Through this process, you will quickly uncover new keyword opportunities based on your keyword experience and learn more about your audience.
Check your content gaps.
Content gaps are a process similar to competitive keyword research, which aims to identify phrases for which your competitors are already ranking, and you are not. Comparing your set of keywords to a competitor’s set of keywords can open up new possibilities and give you an idea of where you need to increase your search visibility.
Estimate the difficulty of your targeted keywords
Keyword difficulty determines your likelihood of ranking for a specific keyword. At Zytal, we use page strength, a combination of everything Google sees when evaluating a page, to understand Google’s ranking opportunities.