SEO translation is not just text translation

If you want to be successful internationally, a simple translation of your content is often not enough. The key to success lies in a targeted SEO translation that takes into account the country-specific search habits and preferences of your target groups. Why SEO translations are essential and how to proceed step by step to strengthen your online presence globally.

STEP-BY-STEP

…one step back:

1. How good is your SEO strategy really?
   How does your homepage rank? The underlying question is: How optimal is the implementation in the source language? Has it perhaps been around for a few years and could do with an update?
   SEO translations logically take the source material as a starting point. It is therefore worth taking another look at the SEO strategy for the home market before building on it. Make a tabula rasa: Are you still just as satisfied with the headline and text structure as you were on day one? Are the texts still up-to-date and relevant for the target group? Or has the ravages of time already taken their toll on your content? Then now is the right time for optimization.
2. SEO translations and search engines: In other countries, people don’t (only) google
   Now to localization. Which search engine dominates in your target country? Clearly, the market leader in German-speaking and European countries is Google. In other regions of the world, however, Bing, Yandex or Baidu are ahead. Yandex, for example, has the advantage over Google of better handling of Russian cases and verbs – with corresponding effects on the search algorithm. Country-specific technical issues of this kind must be taken into account by SEO specialists when designing their SEO translations in order to rank just as well in an organic search in the target country as in the source language.
   Because one thing is pretty much the same all over the world: anyone searching for a particular product or service on the Internet expects to find suitable results. Most people buy from a provider that they find on the first page. Good SEO translations ensure that you belong to this illustrious circle.
3. On to Keyword research!
   By now you have good source material and know which search engine is used in the target country. At the same time, you have identified which competitors you are up against there. So it’s time to take a closer look at the competitive situation in the target market with country-specific and target group-oriented keyword research (and keyword analysis!). It is better not to rely on chasing the search terms used to find you at home through a translation tool. The saying “other countries, other customs” applies here. For example, cell phones are only called “cell phones” in Germany. Everywhere else, other terms are used, such as “cell phone” or “portable”. As “handy” as the cell phone is – it is only suitable for your SEO translation in German-speaking countries.
4. Only now do you proceed to transcreation
   You are probably familiar with the unpleasant feeling that creeps up on you when reading a text that is extremely conspicuously optimized for a specific keyword or keyword combination. In fact, the conspicuousness is often caused by the keywords being “stuffed in” afterwards. You may even stumble across this keyword stuffing when reading if the keyword has not been used conspicuously often.
   This is because the sentence does not develop naturally but has been changed afterwards so that the keyword somehow fits in – with negative consequences for the reading flow. A good SEO translation always moves slightly away from the original text and integrates the researched keywords in the target language in a natural way. The humor or other peculiarities of the target country can also be taken into account. Proverbs, for example, make little sense when translated literally. Close is also over – or as they say in English: Close but no cigar.
5. Please do not forget the meta data!
   Now you’re almost there. Of course, your SEO translation cannot do without the metadata in the target language. The title (meta title), page description (meta description) and the page URL round off the good image that you create with your SEO translation. The image alt texts would also like to be translated.