Because companies grow on the international level, an international audience has to be a necessity. The possibility to prepare your WordPress site for different countries can increase your audience significantly and also improve the experience of your global visitors.
Below is the complete guide on how to properly internationalize your SEO efforts for your WordPress website.
Table of Contents
Understanding International SEO
International SEO is the technique of the site optimization which is necessary for the search engines to determine the countries and languages the site is aimed at. It is a combination of technical SEO, content translation, and link-building, which are the key components of SEO.
1. Implementing Hreflang Tags
Hreflang is a hypertext link attribute that helps to specify the language of the linked webpage as well as its target location. They perform the segmentation of the audience of the content; therefore, the correct version of the page is provided to users based on the language and country.
Why Use Hreflang Tags?
It prevents the problem of having duplicated content and guiding the users to the proper version of a site. They also improve usability as it presents the content in the user’s desired language.
How to Implement Hreflang Tags in WordPress:
You can use a plugin like “Hreflang Manager” or add hreflang tags directly to the header section. For example:
- <link rel="alternate" href="https://example.com/" hreflang="en">
- <link rel="alternate" href="https://example.com/es/" hreflang="es">
2. Using Geotargeting
Geotargeting means creating a content that depends on the geographic location of the user. This can be done through:
Country Code Top-Level Domains (ccTLDs):
Applying the ccTLDs informs the search engines and the users that your content is relevant to the particular countries only.
Subdirectories and Subdomains:
You can divide your site geographically using subdirectories (for instance, site.com/fr/) or subdomains (for instance, fr.example.com).
3. Content Localization
Localizing content is not just about translation but also encompasses other aspects. It is a process of making adjustments to the content to reflect the culture, language, and tastes of the target population.
Local Keywords:
Incorporate the local keywords in your research for each target market to use the most appropriate terms. Google Keyword Planner and Ahrefs are some of the tools that can be used to gather information on the frequently used local searches.
Cultural Adaptation:
Translate the content in a way that it will be appealing to the local people. This involves incorporating local currencies, dates, and units of measurement in the translation.
4. Monitoring and Analytics
It is also recommended to check your site’s performance in various regions on a daily, weekly and/or monthly basis using Google Analytics and Google Search Console. Monitor certain parameters like organic traffic, bounce rates, and conversion rates in order to find out what needs to be changed.
Also, the competitors’ analysis should not be ignored. To get a clearer picture of the ranks and the current positions of competitors in various languages, one can simply switch his/her IP to the target country and then open the search engines one by one. To achieve this there is a provider that offers a free trial for VPN to help you complete the process without incurring any cost.
5. Technical SEO Considerations
Some of the technical aspects of international SEO include the following; This is the process of aligning your site’s structure and performance to cater for international audience.
Site Speed:
Optimize your website to load quickly for users from different parts of the world by utilizing Content Delivery Networks (CDNs). CDNs replicate your site’s content on different servers around the world, thus, eliminating latency.
Mobile Optimization:
It is also important to check whether your site is mobile friendly because mobile usage differs from country to country. Make sure the site is mobile friendly, and that images and scripts are properly formatted to load quickly on a smartphone.
6. Building Local Backlinks
Local backlinks from high-authority websites can help improve your site’s credibility and ranking in certain geographical areas. Make use of digital PR, guest blogging and local influencer collaborations to create a strong backlink profile.
7. Multilingual SEO Plugins
Several WordPress plugins can simplify the process of optimizing your site for multiple languages and regions:Several WordPress plugins can simplify the process of optimizing your site for multiple languages and regions:
WPML (WordPress Multilingual Plugin):
WPML enables you to have different versions of your site in different languages, translations of the posts, pages, and other CPTs.
Polylang:
Another commonly used plugin is Polylang that allows to create WordPress site in multiple languages. Yes, it supports hreflang tags and it also works well with most popular SEO plugins.
Conclusion
WordPress internationalization is a process that is a combination of technical SEO, content translation, and localization to target specific regions. Using hreflang tags and employing geotargeting, translating content and using the right plugins one can improve the site’s presence and usability in several countries. It is, therefore, important that you keep on monitoring and revising your international SEO strategy regularly.