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Jennifer Grappone
      @jengrappone


International SEO: Best Practices
     Gravity Search Marketing
International SEO: Best Practices


                             Jennifer Grappone
                     Partner, Gravity Search Marketing LLC
                        Los Angeles and San Francisco, CA
    Co-author, Search Engine Optimization: An Hour a Day
                                             (Wiley, 2011)




                                          www.yourseoplan.com
                               Twitter: @jengrappone, @gradiva
What is International SEO?

        Site Hierarchy       Natural translations
        Language Signals     Cultural appropriateness
        Location Signals     Compelling message




      Being Visible to the    Resonating with Your
      Right Audience          Audience
International SEO Goals:
Language & Geographical Targeting

• Search Engines clearly understand which
  language(s) your site
  is written in

• Search engines display
  your site’s pages to searchers
  in the appropriate region(s)
International SEO Market




 Source: Karmasnack.com




                          http://gs.statcounter.com/
Multilingual/Multiregional Search Results
Multilingual/Multiregional Search Results




                 Google.com
Multilingual/Multiregional Search Results




     Google.co.uk          Google.fr
Multilingual/Multiregional Search Results




               Google.com
Multilingual/Multiregional Search Results
                             Language of
                             Query

                                    Location of
                                    Website


                                           Language of
                                           Website

Location of
Searcher




                Google.com
Site Hierarchy

Fictional Example: a movie website for the new
blockbuster, “The Zombit”

US site
thezombit.com
Site Hierarchy




        ccTLDs, subdirectories, or subdomains?
Site Hierarchy:
ccTLD vs Subfolder vs Subdomain




 thezombit.com   lezombit.fr        ilzombit.it        elzombit.es
                 thezombit.com/fr   thezombit.com/it   thezombit.com/es
                 fr.thezombit.com   it.thezombit.com   es.thezombit.com
Site Hierarchy:
ccTLD vs Subfolder vs Subdomain
                        ccTLD         Subdomain          Subdirectory
                        lezombit.fr   fr.thezombit.com   thezombit.com/fr
Strong geotargeting
signal for search               ✔
engines
May be more
appealing to                    ✔
searchers
Easy to maintain
                                             ✔                  ✔
Easy to share
authority between                             ?                 ✔
versions
Possible to host
different versions on           ✔            ✔
different servers
Site Hierarchy:
Geotargetable Domains

      ccTLD          gTLD*
       .mx           .com
       .de            .org
        .it          .info
       etc.           etc.


       *Geotargetable in Google Webmaster Tools
Site Hierarchy:
Geotargetable Domains

      ccTLD          gTLD*          gccTLD*
       .mx           .com             .me
       .de            .org             .tv
        .it          .info            .fm
       etc.           etc.            etc.


       *Geotargetable in Google Webmaster Tools
Site Hierarchy:
Discoverability
  • Do provide search-engine-followable links between
    translated versions of each page

  • (Usability) Do allow users the opportunity to navigate
    to a page containing a different language
Site Hierarchy:
Discoverability
  • Googlebot crawls from
    the US, so don’t block
    US visitors from seeing
    content that you want
    Google to find

  • Don’t automatically redirect
    users based on their
    perceived language
Language Signals




           Strongest signal: visible content
Language Signals:
Do Not Mix Languages
Don’t confuse the bot!

Anything that is both human-readable and search-engine
readable on your page should be presented in the target
language
Language Signals:
Weak Signals

  • Language declaration tags:
    <meta http-equiv="content-language" content="en-gb" >
     don’t influence Google, but are used by Bing

  • Clues in URLs (thezombit.com/fr) don’t influence
    Google

  • hreflang annotations send signals (suggestion, not
    directive)
Language Signals:
Quality
  • No auto-translations!

  • If you must auto-translate, use robots.txt to prevent
    Google from crawling.
Location Targeting
How Does Google Determine Location
Targeting?
  • ccTLDs send the strongest signal

  • Server location may or may not influence Google.
    Don’t obsess over it for geotargeting, but you may
    need to think about it in terms of site speed.

  • Text in HTML titles (“Official UK site”) doesn’t influence
    Google but can help orient users

  • hreflang annotations send signals (suggestion, not
    directive)
How Does Google Determine Location
Targeting? Webmaster Tools Settings




  Not for use with ccTLDs, or if your site is targeting
  multiple countries.
How Does Google Determine Location
Targeting? On-Page

  Google may be influenced by certain localized elements
  within the visible content on the page, such as:
  • local currency
  • local addresses
  • local phone numbers
How Does Google Determine Location
Targeting? Off-Page
• Links from local sites

• Google+ Local
Duplicate Content
  Translated pages do not pose duplicate content risks
Duplicate Content
  Multiple pages targeting the same language for
  different regions are typically not at risk for duplicate
  content worries, but it’s best to differentiate as much
  as possible.


  The Zombit: Official US Site        The Zombit: Official UK Site

  Sure to be your favorite movie of   Sure to be your favourite movie of
  the year!                           the year!

  In theaters January 19!             In cinemas 19 January!
Hreflang Annotations


These are annotations that send signals to Google about the
targeting of a set of pages.

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-gb" href="http://www.thezombit.com/uk" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-us" href="http://www.thezombit.com/" />


                                                           “My pages are
                                                          useful variations
                                                            of each other,
                                                           not duplicates”
Hreflang Annotations

     hreflang=“en-au”
                       Language   Region



           Language: ISO 639 format

           Region: ISO 3166 format
Hreflang Annotations
Option 1: In the <head> section          Option 2: Sitemap
of the page:

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-us"
href="http://www.thezombit.com/" />

<link rel="alternate" hreflang=“it-it"
href="http://www.thezombit.com/it/" />

<link rel="alternate" hreflang=“fr-fr"
href="http://www.thezombit.com/fr/" />

<link rel="alternate" hreflang=“es-es"
href="http://www.thezombit.com/es" />
Targeting Multiple Locations
With One Language
Targeting Multiple Locations
With One Language

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="http://www.thezombit.com/" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang=“it-it" href="http://www.thezombit.com/it/" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang=“fr-fr" href="http://www.thezombit.com/fr/" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang=“es" href="http://www.thezombit.com/es" />
Targeting Multiple Locations
With One Language




                 Google.mx
Resources: Browsing Like A Local




     tunnelbear.com (UK)   trustedproxies.com
Resources:
Is Your Proxy Working?
Resources: Search Engines & Domains


List of Google Regional Search Engines
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Google_domains

Google’s List of Geotargetable Domains
http://support.google.com/webmasters/bin/answer.py
?hl=en&answer=1347922
Resources: ISO Codes


Language: ISO 639
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ISO_639-1_codes

Region: ISO 3166
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_3166-1_alpha-2
Thank you!


             Questions? Feedback?

                 @jengrappone

             www.yourseoplan.com

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International SEO Best Practices

  • 1. Jennifer Grappone @jengrappone International SEO: Best Practices Gravity Search Marketing
  • 2. International SEO: Best Practices Jennifer Grappone Partner, Gravity Search Marketing LLC Los Angeles and San Francisco, CA Co-author, Search Engine Optimization: An Hour a Day (Wiley, 2011) www.yourseoplan.com Twitter: @jengrappone, @gradiva
  • 3. What is International SEO? Site Hierarchy Natural translations Language Signals Cultural appropriateness Location Signals Compelling message Being Visible to the Resonating with Your Right Audience Audience
  • 4. International SEO Goals: Language & Geographical Targeting • Search Engines clearly understand which language(s) your site is written in • Search engines display your site’s pages to searchers in the appropriate region(s)
  • 5. International SEO Market Source: Karmasnack.com http://gs.statcounter.com/
  • 10. Multilingual/Multiregional Search Results Language of Query Location of Website Language of Website Location of Searcher Google.com
  • 11. Site Hierarchy Fictional Example: a movie website for the new blockbuster, “The Zombit” US site thezombit.com
  • 12. Site Hierarchy ccTLDs, subdirectories, or subdomains?
  • 13. Site Hierarchy: ccTLD vs Subfolder vs Subdomain thezombit.com lezombit.fr ilzombit.it elzombit.es thezombit.com/fr thezombit.com/it thezombit.com/es fr.thezombit.com it.thezombit.com es.thezombit.com
  • 14. Site Hierarchy: ccTLD vs Subfolder vs Subdomain ccTLD Subdomain Subdirectory lezombit.fr fr.thezombit.com thezombit.com/fr Strong geotargeting signal for search ✔ engines May be more appealing to ✔ searchers Easy to maintain ✔ ✔ Easy to share authority between ? ✔ versions Possible to host different versions on ✔ ✔ different servers
  • 15. Site Hierarchy: Geotargetable Domains ccTLD gTLD* .mx .com .de .org .it .info etc. etc. *Geotargetable in Google Webmaster Tools
  • 16. Site Hierarchy: Geotargetable Domains ccTLD gTLD* gccTLD* .mx .com .me .de .org .tv .it .info .fm etc. etc. etc. *Geotargetable in Google Webmaster Tools
  • 17. Site Hierarchy: Discoverability • Do provide search-engine-followable links between translated versions of each page • (Usability) Do allow users the opportunity to navigate to a page containing a different language
  • 18. Site Hierarchy: Discoverability • Googlebot crawls from the US, so don’t block US visitors from seeing content that you want Google to find • Don’t automatically redirect users based on their perceived language
  • 19. Language Signals Strongest signal: visible content
  • 20. Language Signals: Do Not Mix Languages Don’t confuse the bot! Anything that is both human-readable and search-engine readable on your page should be presented in the target language
  • 21. Language Signals: Weak Signals • Language declaration tags: <meta http-equiv="content-language" content="en-gb" > don’t influence Google, but are used by Bing • Clues in URLs (thezombit.com/fr) don’t influence Google • hreflang annotations send signals (suggestion, not directive)
  • 22. Language Signals: Quality • No auto-translations! • If you must auto-translate, use robots.txt to prevent Google from crawling.
  • 24. How Does Google Determine Location Targeting? • ccTLDs send the strongest signal • Server location may or may not influence Google. Don’t obsess over it for geotargeting, but you may need to think about it in terms of site speed. • Text in HTML titles (“Official UK site”) doesn’t influence Google but can help orient users • hreflang annotations send signals (suggestion, not directive)
  • 25. How Does Google Determine Location Targeting? Webmaster Tools Settings Not for use with ccTLDs, or if your site is targeting multiple countries.
  • 26. How Does Google Determine Location Targeting? On-Page Google may be influenced by certain localized elements within the visible content on the page, such as: • local currency • local addresses • local phone numbers
  • 27. How Does Google Determine Location Targeting? Off-Page • Links from local sites • Google+ Local
  • 28. Duplicate Content Translated pages do not pose duplicate content risks
  • 29. Duplicate Content Multiple pages targeting the same language for different regions are typically not at risk for duplicate content worries, but it’s best to differentiate as much as possible. The Zombit: Official US Site The Zombit: Official UK Site Sure to be your favorite movie of Sure to be your favourite movie of the year! the year! In theaters January 19! In cinemas 19 January!
  • 30. Hreflang Annotations These are annotations that send signals to Google about the targeting of a set of pages. <link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-gb" href="http://www.thezombit.com/uk" /> <link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-us" href="http://www.thezombit.com/" /> “My pages are useful variations of each other, not duplicates”
  • 31. Hreflang Annotations hreflang=“en-au” Language Region Language: ISO 639 format Region: ISO 3166 format
  • 32. Hreflang Annotations Option 1: In the <head> section Option 2: Sitemap of the page: <link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-us" href="http://www.thezombit.com/" /> <link rel="alternate" hreflang=“it-it" href="http://www.thezombit.com/it/" /> <link rel="alternate" hreflang=“fr-fr" href="http://www.thezombit.com/fr/" /> <link rel="alternate" hreflang=“es-es" href="http://www.thezombit.com/es" />
  • 34. Targeting Multiple Locations With One Language <link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="http://www.thezombit.com/" /> <link rel="alternate" hreflang=“it-it" href="http://www.thezombit.com/it/" /> <link rel="alternate" hreflang=“fr-fr" href="http://www.thezombit.com/fr/" /> <link rel="alternate" hreflang=“es" href="http://www.thezombit.com/es" />
  • 35. Targeting Multiple Locations With One Language Google.mx
  • 36. Resources: Browsing Like A Local tunnelbear.com (UK) trustedproxies.com
  • 38. Resources: Search Engines & Domains List of Google Regional Search Engines http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Google_domains Google’s List of Geotargetable Domains http://support.google.com/webmasters/bin/answer.py ?hl=en&answer=1347922
  • 39. Resources: ISO Codes Language: ISO 639 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ISO_639-1_codes Region: ISO 3166 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_3166-1_alpha-2
  • 40. Thank you! Questions? Feedback? @jengrappone www.yourseoplan.com

Hinweis der Redaktion

  1. Translate “the” in CCTLD Il El Le and movie posters
  2. Translate “the” in CCTLD Il El Le and movie posters
  3. Transition?
  4. Transition?
  5. IP Address/Browser LanguageRedirecting based on cookies after the first visit is fine
  6. Improve auto translation example
  7. Some ccTLDs are treated as generic TLDs by Google for example(.com, .tv, .fm)