Multilingual Keyword Research: the Key to Effective Website Localization
When it comes to attracting customers in overseas markets, more and more companies are realising the power of adapting their websites into local languages.
Indeed, according to a global survey from CSA Research, 76% of consumers say they prefer to purchase products with information in their own language.
But is translation alone, enough?
While web copy in the local language can better connect with users once they’re on your site, getting them there in the first place is the biggest hurdle.
Search terms that offer high yields in English don’t necessarily translate to other markets. Search habits can also change from one region to the next.
This means effective website localization requires thinking beyond just basic translation. Which is where multilingual SEO – and specifically multilingual keyword research – comes to the fore.
Here we look at the importance of effective keyword localization, and why it is the crucial step every company should weave into their website adaptation workflow.
What Is Multilingual Keyword Research?
In essence, multilingual keyword research is about identifying the most effective local-language keywords for each of your target overseas markets.
It considers the search habits of local users, nuances in language and phrasing that direct translation doesn’t account for and, crucially, the yield and performance of search terms for each language and market, backed by reliable data.
The result? A list of highly relevant, high-yielding keywords that provide a solid base upon which to create perfectly optimised web copy in local languages.
How Important Are Localized Keywords?
Most would agree that a website’s performance – that is, traffic generated via organic search – is dependent on the strength of its SEO. Too often, however, multilingual keyword research is the forgotten step in the web localization workflow, which will have a significant impact on the performance of localized websites.
Let’s look at two scenarios.
First, a company provides their English web copy to a translator, without supplying localized keywords. Sure, that translator could do a great job at producing creative, natural-sounding copy, but without localized keywords to use within their translation, hitting the highest-yielding keywords is more down to chance than intention.
Second, a company provides their English web copy to a translator, along with list of auto-translated keywords. Yes, the translator now has a base to work from. But without research, those translated keywords are highly likely not to be the highest performing for the market – again resulting in less effective copy in terms of SEO.
The optimal scenario would introduce a step prior to translation, where the best performing local keywords are identified using reliable research tools and local insights.
‘What to Do’ vs. ‘What to See’
Let’s take a real-life example.
A lifestyle and tourism site has a page entitled ‘What to do in London’. In English, this key phrase yields 10K to 100K in search volume.
However, a direct Spanish translation – ‘Que hacer en Londres’ – yields just 1K to 10K – ten times less traffic.
Multilingual keyword research, on the other hand, would have identified a more market-relevant keyword phrase ‘Que ver en Londres’ (‘What to see in London’), and a much higher yield of 10K to 100K – the equivalent of the English original.
The difference between one word – ‘see’ or ‘do’ – could mean ten times more traffic. Which is why multilingual research can be so important.
How Mother Tongue Can Support with Keyword Localization
Mother Tongue offers three levels of service in relation to keyword localization, depending on time and budget.
Our entry-level service involves the transcreation of a master English keyword list by a team of SEO-savvy copywriters. These in-market specialists draw upon their linguistic and cultural expertise and inherent SEO knowledge to provide the most suitable list of localized keywords.
While this is a cost-effective option for tight budgets, the absence of dedicated keyword research could still mean missing out on high-yield terms.
Our mid-level service involves research on an approved English master keyword list. Here, our team of market-based SEO specialists use leading research tools to identify the most effective transcreation for each English keyword.
This option is highly scalable, which makes it the ideal solution when working across multiple languages or when significant investment has been put into the English keyword list.
Out top-tier service sees our SEO specialists working from scratch to find the most market-relevant keywords for each web page. Here, they will review the source copy file or work from a copywriting brief to conduct in-depth research and provide the most effective keywords for your audiences.
Our research services make use of the most reliable keyword research tools such as Google Ads and Semrush, to ensure what we deliver is backed by reliable data.
Get in touch to find out more about how Mother Tongue can support you with multilingual SEO.