This document discusses how translation can improve SEO performance and outlines potential issues. It recommends conducting keyword research tailored to specific regions and working with native translators. Translation improves SEO rankings by targeting regions precisely and increasing visitors and engagement. Issues include incorrect keywords that don't account for cultural differences, duplicate content across translations, and language variations. The solution is SEO-localisation - combining keyword research, translation and SEO optimization. A case study shows a 20% cost savings and large traffic increases for Ingersoll Rand's multi-language website localization project.

2. |
Agenda
• How translation can improve your SEO
performance?
• What could possibly go wrong?
• How to avoid it?
• How can translation and SEO work
together? (SEO-Localisation)
• Case study
2|

3. |
Why are we here?
3
Why translate your website?
o Expand your potential audience
o Communicate with a more diverse group
of users will permit to build trust and a
strong competitive advantage
o Increase your number of conversion:
users are more likely to convert if the site
they use is in the native language
o AND mainly will help to improve your
SEO performance

4. How can translation
improve your SEO
performances?

5. | 5
1. Improve your
overall SEO rank
2. Target specific
regions precisely
3. More visitors
and engagement
Creating specific URLs for the
translated versions of your
website will help improving the
SEO ranking of your whole
website, and help Search Engine
understanding your website
better.
Translating your website will
enable a “Global but local”
approach, proving that you fully
understand your target.
You can also use Geo-targeting
to reach your audience better.
More visitors and more
engagement will result in a
better ranking.
Search engines value quality
content and user engagement.
By translating your website
properly, you can easily obtain
both.

6. What could possibly go
wrong?

7. |
What could possibly go
wrong?
7
1. The keywords

8. | 8
1. Keywords
• They will permit the users
to identify what your
website is about
• Translating Keywords
won’t take into account the
cultural differences in the
ways of searching
• Translating Keywords
won’t take into account the
local search volumes

9. |
Austria
Tomaten = 1,900 search volume
Paradeiser = 1,300 search volume
9
Example

10. |
Mexico
Baño = 4,400 search volume
Bano = 2,400 search volume
USA
Baño = 720 search volume
Bano = 4,400 search volume
10
Example

11. |
What could possibly go
wrong?
11
1. The keywords
2. Duplicate content

12. | 12
2. Duplicate
Content
• Duplicate content is
content that appears on the
Internet in more than one
place
• It can results in ranking and
traffic losses
• Search engines will identify
content in different
languages as separate types
of content, except if you
use automatic translation
tools

13. | 13
Example
Situation: You want to translate your website into French for France, Canada &
Switzerland
Approach:
1) Localising your content from the source language (i.e. English) into your target language
(i.e. French for France)
2) Conduct content adaptation into French-Canada and French-Switzerland
3) Create dedicated URLs for each versions of your content

14. |
What could possibly go
wrong?
14
1. The keywords
2. Duplicate content
3. Language variations

15. | 15
3. Language
variations
• Language variations are
differences in terms of
meaning or use of words
• In order to focus on the
user’s experience you need
to take into account these
variations
• They greatly influence the
way users search in search
engines

16. | 16
Dinner Tea Supper
Used mainly in the South of
England to indicate an evening
meal.
Used in Yorkshire, Lancashire
and further north to indicate an
evening meal.
Used in Derbyshire to indicate
an evening meal, and
everywhere else to refer to a
late night snack.
Example

17. How to avoid it?

18. | 18
1. Don’t translate
keywords
2. Use dedicated
URLs
3. Work with native
speaking translators
Always take time to conduct a
Keyword Research, and ensure
that this Keyword Research will
take into account the Search
Volume and the languages
variations depending on the
region that you want to target.
Always keep multiple languages
on separate pages by creating
dedicated URLs for your
translated content, and don’t use
automatic tools to translate your
content.
Working with native speakers
will have a considerable impact
on your SEO campaigns, as they
have a real cultural and linguistic
knowledge of the market you
want to target.

19. |
Our solution…
SEO-Localisation!
o Efficient and cost-effective method
o Permits to combine SEO Keyword
research and translation into one
workflow
o Execute your SEO strategy during
the localisation of your website
o Final result: Fully optimised and
translated content, to increase your
international reach and your organic
traffic
19

20. |
The SEO-Localisation
workflow
20
1. Keyword Research conducted by a
native speaker linguist
2. Keyword Mapping
3. Translation of the content by
including the keywords naturally
4. Linguistic and Contextual review
5. Meta Content Creation
6. Body Content Review

22. |
The client
Ingersoll Rand
Ingersoll Rand is a global
industrial manufacturer,
specialised in the production of
compressor systems, power tools
and lifting and material handling
equipment.
22

23. |
The project
23
o 4 languages
o 306,000 words to translate and
review into 3 language, and to adapt
in 1 language
o Timeline :
• 153 days for the translation
• 44 days for the content adaptation
• 44 days for the review

24. |
The results
o 20% saved of the total cost of
the project
o 130% increase in number of
visitors
o 290% increase in number of
leads
24

25. Key takeaways

26. | 26
1. Translate your
website to
improve your
international reach
and your organic
traffic
2. Work with
native linguists for
your Keyword
Research and
translators to
translate your
content
3. SEO-localisation
enables to combine
translation and
search engine
optimisation

27. Questions?
valentine.lacour@webcertain.com
www.webcertain.com
in/valentinelacour
@WebCertain