8 Ways to Handle SEO for Multilingual Websites Targeting European Markets

Diving into the complexities of SEO for multilingual websites, we’ve gathered eight expert tips from SEO Consultants, Heads of SEO, and other professionals. From the importance of focusing on hreflang tags to the value of working with local translators, these specialists provide targeted strategies for engaging European markets effectively.

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Focus on Hreflang Tags

When handling SEO for multilingual websites targeting European markets, one golden tip is to focus on hreflang tags. Imagine your website as a charming European train station with signs in multiple languages guiding travelers to the right platform. Hreflang tags are those signs for search engines, ensuring that German users see the German version of your site, while French visitors land on the French version. 

It’s like speaking to each customer in their native tongue, making them feel right at home. This not only enhances user experience but also boosts your search engine rankings by reducing bounce rates and increasing engagement. Implementing hreflang tags correctly can be a game-changer, as it helps search engines understand the linguistic and regional context of your pages, ensuring that your content reaches the right audience in each European country.

Lukasz Zelezny, SEO Consultant, SEO ANT LTD

Target High-Performing Pages

How you approach web translation for multilingual sites makes a substantial difference to both your SEO success and your return on investment.

Begin by identifying which pages to translate. Blog posts, in particular, need careful consideration. Where you have a lot of posts, examine them in Google Analytics, looking at data from the last three months, or the last year, for seasonal businesses. Review the number of visits and conversions, decide on minimum values required, and only translate recent posts, or older posts that are above these minimums. If they perform well in one country, they’re likely to perform well in another.

Next, create a translation dictionary. List possible translations and variations for each keyword in the new language, then do keyword research and choose those with the higher search volume or lower keyword difficulty. For technical terms, many Europeans use the English variant even if a local translation exists. To take this into account, check keyword volumes on a country-by-country basis.

By targeting high-performing pages and using a translation dictionary, your new content will rank well and generate more organic traffic and conversions for a smaller budget.

Martin Woods, Head of SEO, Indigoextra Ltd

Localize Content and Tags

For effective SEO in multilingual European markets, it’s crucial to localize your content and implement hreflang tags correctly. This ensures that search engines serve the appropriate language version to users in different regions, reducing duplication and improving user experience.

Example:

At J&J Global Fulfilment, we localized the content for our European fulfillment centers, ensuring each market received tailored information in their native language. Additionally, we implemented hreflang tags to indicate language and regional targeting to search engines. This approach significantly improved our search rankings and user engagement across different European markets.

Kristian Longden, Content Marketing Executive, James and James Fulfilment

Specify Language and Region Codes

One effective SEO recommendation for multilingual websites targeting European markets is to implement hreflang tags correctly. The hreflang tag is an essential tool for telling Google and other search engines about the language and regional targeting of your content. 

This helps prevent issues of duplicate content across different language versions and ensures that the correct language version of your site appears in search results for users in different regions.

Specify Language and Region Codes:

Use the correct language and country codes in your hreflang tags. For example, for a French version targeted at France, use hreflang=”fr-FR”, while for an English version targeted at the United Kingdom, use hreflang=”en-GB”. This granularity helps search engines serve the most regionally and linguistically appropriate version of your content to users.

Content Localization: Beyond just translating text, localize content to reflect local culture, currency, units of measure, and legal requirements. This increases relevance and user engagement, which are significant factors for SEO success.

Kev Wiles, Fractional SEO Director, Kev Wiles

Invest in Native-Speaking Copywriters

Tailoring content to local nuances is key for multilingual SEO in European markets. Start with thorough keyword research in each target language, considering cultural and regional differences. 

Localized content not only improves relevance but also boosts user engagement, leading to better rankings. Investing in native-speaking copywriters can make a significant difference in authenticity and effectiveness.

Petteri Pucilowski, CEO, Search Engine Wizards

Ensure Accurate Hreflang Implementation

Implementing hreflang tags correctly is essential for the SEO success of multilingual websites targeting European markets. These HTML attributes signal to search engines the language and geographical targeting of a webpage, ensuring that users are served the appropriate language or regional version based on their preferences and location. 

To effectively utilize hreflang tags, use the correct language and region codes, such as “en-GB” for English content in the United Kingdom. Use “x-default” for default pages, and maintain consistency across all pages by including hreflang tags pointing to all language and region variations. 

Implementation can be done directly in the HTML header or XML sitemap. Finally, verify the correctness of implementation using Google Search Console’s International Targeting report to ensure search engines interpret your hreflang annotations accurately.

Naima Ch, Marketing Head and SEO Manager, Full Name Generator

Dedicate Pages to Each Language

Speaking from my personal experience, and that of those around me, I have learned that the tendency of people to conduct Google searches in their native language is one peculiarity that is too common to be ignored or overlooked, especially when the goal is to boost and improve user experience.

However, as an SEO consultant, one tip I would recommend for handling SEO for multilingual websites targeting European markets is making sure that each country/language has its own page and URL dedicated to it. 

The truth is, I have learned that it can be a costly mistake to assume that there is one generally accepted language that everyone should understand, or to fall into the temptation of having multiple translations on a single page. This is because in a world where personalization has become key to winning and sustaining the attention of a marketing audience, this approach may result in a visual appearance that is either not appealing or simply confuses visitors, because there are just too many distractions going on on the page at the same time.

Additionally, by having separate pages per country/language, it becomes easier for Google to effectively crawl and index the site.

Gideon Omeruta, SEO and Content Lead, Findbyplate

Work with Local Translators

For multilingual SEO targeting European markets, prioritize working with local translators for each language. Here’s why:

– Authentic Language: Local translators capture regional dialects and search habits, ensuring your content resonates with potential customers.

– Accuracy & Nuance: They minimize translation errors and unintended meaning shifts, preventing misunderstandings that could damage your brand image.

– Culturally Appropriate Tone: Local experts ensure your message is delivered with the right tone and voice, fostering trust with your target audience.

By leveraging local expertise, you can create multilingual content that effectively reaches European audiences, boosting your SEO efforts.

Ahmed Yousuf, Financial Author and SEO Expert, Coin Time

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