Global SEO: Definition and impact on international business

Global expansion offers incredible growth opportunities, but brands will struggle to make an impact in new markets without a strong international SEO strategy. To stand out and connect with local audiences, businesses’ search engine optimization (SEO) must reflect their target audience’s linguistic and cultural preferences.

This article covers what brands need to know to build a winning global SEO strategy.

What is international SEO?

International SEO, or global SEO, is the practice of optimizing websites to rank highly in search engine results across multiple countries and languages. A well-executed international SEO strategy helps users worldwide find relevant, localized versions of your site.

Key benefits of international SEO include:

• Increased global visibility: Strong search engine rankings in different languages and regions help brands expand their reach and tap into new markets that would otherwise be inaccessible.
• Improved user experience: Localized content speaks directly to users’ language and cultural expectations, enhancing trust, engagement, and brand loyalty.
• Higher revenue potential: Connecting with international customers through a seamless user experience can significantly boost sales, brand reputation, and market share.

Note that international SEO differs from local SEO, which focuses on improving visibility within narrow geographic areas, such as specific neighborhoods or cities. International SEO requires careful consideration of linguistic nuances, cultural preferences, and keyword optimization across countries and regions.

Creating a global SEO strategy: 4 international SEO best practices

During international expansion, most brands take one of two approaches with their website:

• Create country-specific versions of the website with local domains for each target market
• Maintain a single multilingual website with localized content for each target audience.

Typically, companies that employ the first approach use country code top-level domains (CCTLDs) for each region. For example, if a brand’s U.S. domain is “yourwebsite.com,” it might create duplicate sites at “yourwebsite.es” and “yourwebsite.jp” to serve Spanish and Japanese customers, respectively.

The second approach uses subdomains, subdirectories, or language parameters to serve visitors localized content based on their geographic location or self-indicated preferences.

Whichever approach you take, the core steps for an effective global SEO strategy are the same:

1. Understand each target market

Successful international SEO strategies begin with a deep understanding of the audience, including local customs and traditions that influence consumer behavior. Content consumption and search habits differ wildly between regions, as do laws and regulations that impact search rankings.

Companies also need to know which search engines dominate each market. Google might dominate the global market share, but other search tools have a strong presence in specific regions. You’ll have to rank well on Baidu to reach customers in China. Conversely, brands entering Russia should optimize for Yandex, the country’s leading search engine. A tailored SEO strategy for each platform will grant your international businesses a competitive edge.

2. Create content that speaks to international audiences

Content creation for global audiences requires more than just translating existing material. True localization means adapting marketing messages to fit cultural norms and sensitivities. Don’t underestimate the power of localized content to build familiarity and trust with customers.

Adjust content tone and style according to regional expectations, as content that resonates in one culture may fall flat in another. For instance, humor may not translate well—or could even offend. Smartling’s marketing translation software and services help international brands meet the growing demands of global markets without sacrificing quality or budget.

3. Conduct new keyword research

International markets have their own search behavior patterns and cultural contexts. Translating target keywords from your home market isn’t enough; you’ll need new keyword research to understand what global audiences are searching for.

Identify competitors in the new target market and analyze their activity to pinpoint content gaps and high-potential opportunities. Use region-specific tools (e.g., Baidu Keyword Planner for Chinese markets or Yandex Wordstat for Russia) to identify the keywords your audience uses. Remember that seasonal trends, including major holidays and shopping events, often differ across cultures.

4. Develop a language-specific URL structure

A well-planned URL structure is vital to a user-friendly experience. Region-specific URLs help search engines match website versions to appropriate languages or countries. They also help search engine bots crawl and index localized content. 

Here are some of the approaches Google recommends to international businesses:

• Use a country-specific top-level domain: A separate CCTLD for each market (e.g., “yourwebsite.es” for operations in Spain) tells users and search engines what content to expect. However, this approach doesn’t transfer hard-earned domain authority from existing domains. It also requires brands to keep multiple website versions up-to-date.
• Set up subdomains with a generic top-level domain (gTLD): Another option employs distinct subdomains for each region, such as “es.yourwebsite.com” and “fr.yourwebsite.com” for Spain and France, respectively. This is easy to set up and preserves domain authority, but search engines may not immediately understand whether the subdomain refers to a region or language.
• Create subdirectories under the gTLD: This approach uses different folders, or subdirectories, for each region, such as “yourwebsite.com/es” for Spanish content. Subdirectories are simple to set up, but location targeting isn’t as clear as with country-specific domains.

The best URL structure depends on your goals, resources, and long-term SEO strategy. No matter which option you choose, you’ll need to implement hreflang tags correctly to ensure search engines deliver the appropriate language version to each user.

4 essential tools for global search engine optimization

Wondering how to do international SEO? These tools help brands rank high in search results and reach global audiences:

Ahrefs

Ahrefs is one of the most trusted platforms for SEO professionals worldwide, and its versatility makes it especially powerful for international SEO efforts.

In addition to identifying keywords across multiple languages and tracking backlinks from different regions, Ahrefs offers a robust Site Explorer tool that supports in-depth analysis of any domain’s international SEO performance. Marketers can monitor each country’s top pages, organic keywords, and traffic trends for a granular view of the content’s global performance.

Ahref’s Content Explorer is another standout feature, helping international brands find high-performing and low-competition content ideas within different markets. The Site Audit tool guarantees websites are optimized for Google and other search engines, calling out potential technical issues, such as hreflang errors, slow-loading pages, or poor mobile performance.

With daily data updates and one of the industry’s largest backlink indexes, Ahrefs helps businesses stay ahead of global SEO trends and leverage opportunities before competitors.

SEMrush

SEMrush is another powerful toolkit for building and refining global SEO strategies. Beyond core features like global keyword tracking and content gap analysis, SEMrush offers specialized tools for the unique challenges of international marketing.

SEMrush’s Market Explorer and Traffic Analytics tools provide insight into audience demographics and behavior, uncovering growth points across different countries. This helps marketers uncover high-volume, low-competition keywords in specific target markets and tailor campaigns accordingly.

SEMrush provides a Position Tracking tool with granular geographic targeting, enabling marketers to monitor keyword rankings at the country, region, or city level. The platform’s on-page SEO checker includes multilingual recommendations to optimize each localized version of a webpage. SEMrush’s comprehensive backlink auditing tools also protect a website’s global reputation by identifying toxic backlinks.

Google Search Console

Google Search Console is indispensable for managing and optimizing international websites. It helps brands measure their sites’ search performance, fix issues, and make data-driven decisions to improve global visibility.

One of Google Search Console’s core strengths is its ability to segment search traffic by country and language. This shows marketers exactly how international users find and engage with content so they can assess the impact of their global SEO strategies.

Beyond traffic segmentation, Google Search Console enables brands to submit sitemaps with hreflang tag implementations for each language and region. These maps improve indexing and ensure each market receives appropriate content. It also checks for URL and server errors across international pages, identifying technical issues that could hurt rankings abroad.

Smartling’s AI-powered translation

Smartling's AI technology and robust translator network empower businesses to launch multilingual campaigns faster, more accurately, and with greater cultural relevance—essential ingredients for a successful global SEO strategy.

Smartling’s AI translation solutions supports international growth without sacrificing speed or quality. With Smartling, your brand can access powerful machine translation workflows, expert human translation, or an efficient hybrid approach. 

Smartling’s translation management system stands out in the way it leverages linguistic assets. It empowers brands to leverage their translation Memory – a database of previously approved translations – to not only ensure consistency but also to cut down on translation costs. With easy access to glossaries and style guides, translators lock down key terminology and usage rules, protecting the brand’s identity across different countries and languages.

Level up your global SEO strategy with Smartling

A strong global SEO strategy is no longer optional; it’s a necessity for businesses that seek to connect with international audiences, boost organic search traffic, and drive sustainable, long-term growth.

Smartling’s AI Translation and localization platform, brands can:

• Reduce time-to-market for localized campaigns
• Ensure international messaging is culturally appropriate and brand-consistent
• Automate workflows to scale content quickly and efficiently

Global expansion doesn’t have to be overwhelming. With the right strategies, tools, and partners, you can unlock growth opportunities and achieve sustainable success.

Ready to elevate your international marketing and SEO efforts? Download a copy of “The Ultimate Guide to Translating Your Marketing Materials.” This free eBook from Smartling is packed with valuable insights into translation and localization processes you can use to expand into new markets.