Common International SEO Mistakes to Avoid

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Are you going global but worried about more complex algorithms? Your concerns are justified, because according to Dataprovider51%

of all websites in the world are in English. Accordingly, the competition in the international market is significantly greater, and the promotion algorithms are more complex. For example, there is a difference in the format of audience queries. In the West, voice search is often used, so such queries can contain ghana cell phone number list more than 6 words. And this is just a drop in the ocean among all the nuances that should be taken into account when promoting an international site.




1. Optimization of the desktop version only
Most requests, and especially purchases, are made abroad from smartphones. Therefore, when entering the international market, it is worth taking care of high-quality mobile optimization of the new version of the site.

2. Incorrect weight and currency
The situation with currency is much simpler here - specify dollars or euros, and this will be a good solution in most cases. However, it is better to specify the value of local currencies for each language version of the site.

You should also be careful with weight, height, width, etc. One audience is comfortable using kilograms and centimeters, another - feet. Take this into account and make sure that the measurement is in the generally accepted units for this region. Or at least give customers the opportunity to choose the parameters that are convenient for them.

personal adjustment of website parameters
Example of settings from the iHerb website

3. Poor translation of keywords
The easiest way to optimize a site for a new market is to translate existing keywords and use them. However, be honest - just because a certain keyword works in your market does not mean it will bring the same result in translation. Study the trends and collect relevant "semantics" for the new market, and then optimize the site.

Read also : How to find keywords in Similar Web?
4. Translating website content instead of optimizing it
Yes, automatic translation tools are available to everyone. They save time and money. That is why some companies simply use them to translate the content of their website. However, here, as with keywords, literal translation does not always work. It is better to pay attention to each block or page on your website. Take care of high-quality translation and optimize this content. For example, if you sell cosmetics of a Ukrainian brand and on the Ukrainian-language version of the site you indicate something like “quality products from a domestic manufacturer”, then on other versions of the page “domestic” should be replaced with “Ukrainian”. Optimization is needed even when the site is maintained in one language in different markets. For example, Adidas distinguishes between the “football shoes” section for customers from Britain and the USA. Since in English the lexeme football is used for classic football, while for Americans this sport is called soccer.

Screenshots of the Adidas website
Screenshots of the Adidas website

Also, when you transfer articles from a blog to another language version, it is worth taking care that all examples and instructions in the materials are relevant for the new market. The same applies to images. It is not always worth simply duplicating them, sometimes it is better to translate them or choose another - relevant one.

5. Optimization only for Google algorithms
In most countries, Google dominates, with83.49%market, but this is not the case everywhere. Therefore, you should first check the search engine ratings in the country in which you are starting to work. After all, it may turn out that the local audience prefers other search engines. For example, in China, the most popular is Baidu, which owns almost80%market, while Google has about 3%. So you should first find out what your customers use. Then adjust your approach according to the research results.

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