The document discusses strategies for avoiding international SEO pitfalls, emphasizing the importance of focusing on the searcher, attention to detail, and team collaboration. Key issues include challenges with language translation, geo-targeting, and site infrastructure, as well as the need for optimized templates and centralized best practices. It also highlights the benefits of education and structured audits to improve SEO performance and prevent common mistakes.

1. Preventing International
SEO Disasters
Motoko Hunt & Bill Hunt
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2. 3 Takeaways
1) Focus on the Searcher
2) Pay attention to detail
3) Collaborate as a team
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3. Common Disasters
Language/Culture CMS/Site Infrastructure
Geo Targeting Organizational
International
Challenges

4. LANGUAGE CHALLENGES
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5. Clone & Go
• Don’t just clone a translated site for another
market
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6. Translate Once Copy 50
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”We paid for it so we are using it” = 5 million more pages than necessary

7. Correct or Popular
EN JP Words Search Volume Notes
women 女性 135,000
ladies 婦人 3,600 used often for apparel
women ウィメンズ 22,200
ladies レディース 165,000 used often for apparel
men 男性 40,500
gentlemen 紳士 9,900 used often for apparel
men メンズ 90,500 used often for apparel
price 価格 1,220,000 price of item
price 料金 33,100 as professional fees
fee 費用 5,400 fee (or cost) of school trip
cost コスト 8,100
Japanese food 日本食 8,100 typical translation on non-Japanese sites.
Japanese food 和食 135,000 Japanese food in general
Japanese cooking 日本 料理 18,100 Japanese food restaurants
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8. Local Site Not Optimized
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9. Challenge – String Translation
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10. Challenge – String Translation
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11. GEO TARGETING CHALLENGES
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12. Language Tags are Incorrect
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13. Rank & Geo Reporting
• Are your rank reports giving a true picture?
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14. Rank & Geo
• Run rank reports to monitor if local page ranks
• Simple pivot table or v-lookup to find non-local sites
Source: HREFLang Builder Local Page Performance Report
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15. Barrier – Faulty IP Detection Logic
Searched Google Lithuania
#1 Result: US Site for exact product
Redirected to Swiss Italian
Home Page
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16. Aggressive CloudFlare Settings
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17. IP the Location but Content is Local
• URL changes but content is adapted based on IP even with local page
• AngularJS site with a rendering that was confused by IP
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18. Forced Country Selection
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19. Forced Country Selection Snippets
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20. Barriers – Cookie Settings vs. IP
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21. IP Detect on XML Site Map
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Did not exclude Search Engines from IP detection

22. IP/Language Detection - Tests
• What is the default – non-detected version?
• What happens with search engine visits?
• User Agent detection and allow Engines
access what they are requesting (NOT Cloaking)
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Tunnel Bear VPN

23. #SEJSummit
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Fixing IP Blocked Indexing & HREFLang
SPONSORED BY

24. TECHNICAL CHALLENGES
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25. Multilingual Single URL
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26. Multilingual Single URL
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27. Who gets the listing?
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28. Multilingual Single URL Issues
• Links can go to URL so are diluted
• Cannot use Geo targeting techniques
• Which language shown is often up to which local
indexer visited last
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29. Mixed HREFLang Signals
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30. Confusing Signals
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Canonical was to en-US but HREFLang was to en-us

31. Wasting Crawlers Time
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32. ORGANIZATIONAL CHALLENGES
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33. Global Dysfunction
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187 different
patterns for
setting country
and language

34. Optimize Templates for Scale
Sony.de
Sony.fr
Sony.com.au
Page Title and Meta Data
recommendations
Fully indexable navigation?
Ensure all parts of the page
are indexable
Correct use of Header tags
Can search engine’s follow
all of the links?
Enhancement of cross-links
to distribute link equity
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35. Same CMS but different templates
● US: <meta content="v16 Template Generator" name="Source"/>
● AT: <meta content="v14 Template Generator" name="Source" />
● DE: <meta content="v16 Template Generator" name="Source" />
● JP: <meta content="v15J Template Generator" name="Source" />
1. What is the template deployment and implementation process?
2. Are similar languages aligned in the deployment?
3. Share page level audits to reduce duplication and costs
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36. Benefits of Uniform Templates
• Eliminated need for local market On-page SEO audits saving
over $150k globally
• Centrally managed templates and core content eliminated
need for 40+ local creative/web agencies
• Funded internal dev team that is creating modules for all
market companies
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37. Education Infrastructure
Enhancement
Force
Multipliers
Which are most
effective techniques,
tools and resources?
Uniform
KPI’s
How do we
compliment other
teams for enhanced
outcomes?
Where can we
intersect with
current
activities and
technologies?
What do we
measure and
why?
1 2 3 4
Center of Excellence
Adopt a COE to manage shared services, centralize best practices which have been leveraged to scale search
globally resulting in exponential performance improvements.
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38. #SEJSummit
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• Incremental page audits – on demand page auditing via automation or agency resources to identify problems with
pages outside the Top and Strategic Keywords Lists
• Ad Hoc site and diagnostic audits – leverage agency resources to triage site segments for SEO performance beyond
the page level
• Link building and outreach – leverage external resources to identify and request relevant links from relevant third party
sites
• Market assessment modeling – using localized keyword data and keyword demand tools to develop opportunity
models to understand missed opportunity in non-core markets
Core deliverables (COE-funded)
Incremental “Pay for Play” and engagement model for each
Central/Local Actions
SEO Consulting
• Support development of COE and
GBU SEO strategies
• Identify SEO tools and GBU
optimization best practices
• Create models aligning search
interest and content
• Review PLP relevance and
actionable keywords
• Sponsor “Lunch & Learn” sessions
• Audit underperforming content
• Integrate SEO models into COE
workflows
Basic SEO Services
• Conduct org level keyword research
• Develop keyword
mappings/clusters
• Prepare SEO meta data and
content optimization
recommendations
• Publish text and XML site maps
• Align SEO requirements with Global
IT infrastructure
• Maintain preferred landing page
(PLP) keyword mappings for Top
and Strategic Keywords
SEO
Reporting/Analysis
• Monitor performance of top and
strategic keywords
• Provide reports and analysis
- KPIs (rankings/ traffic/
conversions)
- Compare SEO & PPC results
- Compare SEO and social media
keywords
- Directional metrics
• Establish diagnostic signals
• Maintain Issue Tracker

39. “Always On” Alignment
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Align common overlap pages to keywords to have uniform reporting

40. Keyword Group Performance Report
• Always On/Mission Critical keywords
• Easy to spot market deviations and
underperformance
• Easy to spot missing pages/content
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41. Top 3 Takeaways
1) Focus on the Searcher
2) Pay attention to detail
3) Work as a team not individuals
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