Tips the Experts Give for Getting International SEO Done Right!
International expansion is a milestone for many businesses worldwide and can be exciting, but it’s not easy to rank high with international search engine rankings. The actual work that goes into international SEO is a long process and is complicated when you want to try it yourself. So, let’s look at some top tips for getting international SEO done right.
Choose Localized Keywords for the Region
You might think you understand what keywords work for your business, but the reality is that you can’t rely on your current keywords to work in international markets. You need keywords to work well for their intended region. So, when you want to begin globalization, region-specific links are absolutely necessary. The only downside is that you need to use the right tools to get this information, and even then, the keywords may not be in English either, so you will likely need a local expert to help you along.
Cultural Nuances Matter As Much as Language
International SEO is not a one-size-fits-all process. This idea doesn’t work when considering the diversity of languages and cultures. Even if you use a translation tool, it’s not enough to tap into the cultural nuances that come with the language, and if you don’t get this right, you can alienate your potential customers as they’ll know inherently that the website isn’t user-oriented. If you want to build trust in different regions, hiring locals to manage the content takes a lot of effort, so you can be sure things are nuanced enough to attract the right people.
Don’t Just Look To Google
You might think Google is the holy grail of search engine optimization, and you would be right, but this doesn’t mean it’s the best option worldwide. For example, in Korea, native speakers (and even foreigners visiting) are encouraged to use Naver as an alternative, and countries such as Russia and China also have the platforms that they prefer, and these are not Google. Understanding these platforms’ nuances, algorithms, and quirks is key to international SEO, and this can take a lot of work.
Learn To Use hreflang Tags
Hreflang tags are used to help Google understand which version of the page needs to be shown to its users. For example, if someone in Italy types in a search term relevant to your product page, the hreflang tag is what tells Google to show the Italian version of the page in search results.
With this in mind, the tags need to be as accurate as possible and let people know which language and region the page is for. This, again, takes a lot of technical knowledge, and a lot of work is required to get it done correctly and in a way that works without errors, bugs, and more.
Localized Link Building Matters
Just because you’re branching out to the international market, link-building doesn’t get any less important. To rank high in a specific region, you need great links built just for that region, and again, simple translations aren’t enough. You need content written by locals about local events or things that locals are interested in, so more people click on the links, and your link-building campaign is more likely to be successful.
Need Help? We Can’t Blame You!
Overall, the process of international SEO can be incredibly complicated and takes a lot of experience and knowledge to get right, not to mention a team of translators and locals to help optimize content and people with the technical know-how to implement the strategies. All of these things are usually only found at expert agencies, and that’s why you should learn all about Perfect Link Building.
With their incredible team of experts, they know how to see your globalization process through, from the division of the strategy to the implementation to the maintenance of the strategy and beyond.
