SMX West 2010: SEO Domain & URL Strategies for International Websites

Sean Carloswww.antezeta.com/blog

sean [symbol here] antezeta.com

1

Domain & URL Strategies forMultilingual & Multinational Sites

SMX West

Sean Carlos

3 March 2010

http://www.antezeta.com/blog/



2

We're here




3

Many of us are likely from here




4

Our clients are probably here




5

The English speaking world as seen byBing & Google




6

Two Dimensions:Language & Geography

1. The Five Options2. Considerations driving a

domain / URL strategy

Organizing Multilingual & Multinational Website Content




7

1. Top Level Domains (TLDs)

www.mysite.com gTLD

www.mysite.mx ccTLD

www.mysite.it




8

2. Subdomains

en.mysite.comes.mysite.comit.mysite.com




9

3. Directories (Folders) on the Web Server

www.mysite.com/enwww.mysite.com/eswww.mysite.com/it




10

4. URL Parameters

● Set a page's language and/or personalize for a target market– GGooooggllee often uses hl=<code> to set a page's

language, e.g.● http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/

answer.py?hl=en&answer=62399

– Bing country and language settings can be changed by appending setmkt=<code> to the bing URL, e.g. ● http://www.bing.com/?setmkt=de-CH

Not recommended




11

5. Chance(A.K.A. no Organization)● Site pages– are in various languages with no particular

organization.– may contain multiple languages within the

same page.

Not recommended




12








13

Search Engines guess “Intended” Market

● Search engines may associate a website to a geographic market by looking at domain country codes (ccTLD) or server IP for generic domains (gTLD)

Google allows geo assignment of

gTLDs in Google Webmaster Tools –

Google ONLY


http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Webmasters/thread?tid=2e61e49baa5a6eaf&hl=en



14

Influence of Incoming Links

● Search engines will most likely consider the “location” of sites providing incoming l inks when ranking a page for a particular market




15

Users Scan Search Result URLs

● Multiple studies have noted users scan URLs when deciding which search result to select– Microsoft Research– Marketing Sherpa Search Marketing Guide 2008

● Users probably prefer “their” country specific domain in search results


ftp://ftp.research.microsoft.com/pub/tr/TR-2007-01.pdf

http://www.marketingsherpa.com/exs/Search08Excerpt.pdf



16

Specific considerationsfor the recommended options




17

Country Code Top Level Domains(www.mysite.it)

Tailoring for content differences, e.g. $, €Strong signal target marketTrack separately in Webmaster Tools, WAIf language spoken in multiple countries– link dilution (“duplicate content”)

If multiple languages used in country– still have issues, e.g. Canada, Switzerland

Registration hurdles– physical presence or other requirements




18

Subdomains for each Market(it.mysite.com)

No registration issuesHost each subdomain in local market to

set server IP geolocation signal (but will you?)

Track separately in Webmaster Tools, WAMarket needs may require multiple

subdomains for same languageLink dilution (but more relevant)Weaker URL signal for users scanning

search results




19

Directories for each Market(www.mysite.com/it)

No registration issuesAll links going to same domain– but from discordant sources

Need multiple directories for some lang.?Ambiguous geolocation targeting– server IP signal not helpful– Mixing multiple languages in same site

Weak URL for users scanning search results




20

Sean CarlosWeb Marketing Training & Consulting

sean [symbol here] antezeta.comwww.antezeta.com/blog

Tel: +1 617 765 0250 (US) +39 02 69 000 333 (Europe)

Skype: sean-carlosTwitter: seancarlos

Thank You!




21

US only Site? You're not Immune....

● If you– choose a cute domain extension from a

small country– host your site on servers outside the USA

Search engines may not be sure who you're trying to target

bit.ly Libya?Mitigate w/ incoming link selection




1

Domain & URL Strategies forMultilingual & Multinational Sites

SMX West

Sean Carlos

3 March 2010



2

We're here

Setting the stage: we're currently Santa Clara centric.



3

Many of us are likely from here

A majority of attendees are probably from a nearby radius



4

Our clients are probably here

Most businesses are probably targeting a national audience



5

The English speaking world as seen byBing & Google

Yet even if we just consider English speaking countries, the view seen by Google, Bing & Co. is more complicated. We are potentially competing with similar websites from Canada, England, Australia, South Africa.

For those in the audience focusing solely on a domestic audience in English, you'll see how these issues can impact you too.



6







7

1. Top Level Domains (TLDs)

www.mysite.com gTLD

www.mysite.mx ccTLD

www.mysite.it

gTLD - generic top-level domainccTLD - country-code top-level domains

Master list of top level domains is managed by IANA (The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority). Contains 251 country codes + Catalonia (CAT) and Europe (EU) http://www.iana.org/domains/root/db/



8

2. Subdomains

en.mysite.comes.mysite.comit.mysite.com



9

3. Directories (Folders) on the Web Server

www.mysite.com/enwww.mysite.com/eswww.mysite.com/it



10

4. URL Parameters

● Set a page's language and/or personalize for a target market– GGooooggllee often uses hl=<code> to set a page's

language, e.g.● http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/

answer.py?hl=en&answer=62399

– Bing country and language settings can be changed by appending setmkt=<code> to the bing URL, e.g. ● http://www.bing.com/?setmkt=de-CH

Not recommended

URL parameters add complexity which may discourage users from clicking on a search result even if a page is indexed by search engines.



11

5. Chance(A.K.A. no Organization)● Site pages– are in various languages with no particular

organization.– may contain multiple languages within the

same page.

Not recommended

Disorganization should be left in the dorm room!



12







13

Search Engines guess “Intended” Market

● Search engines may associate a website to a geographic market by looking at domain country codes (ccTLD) or server IP for generic domains (gTLD)

Google allows geo assignment of

gTLDs in Google Webmaster Tools –

Google ONLY

See also:Google Geo Targeting in Google Webmaster

Toolshttp://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=62399

Binghttp://www.bing.com/community/blogs/webmaster/archive/2009/02/21/going-international-considerations-for-your-global-website.aspxhttp://help.live.com/help.aspx?project=wl_webmasters&market=en-au&querytype=topic&query=wl_webmasters_conc_hostingoutsidemarket.htmhttp://www.bing.com/toolbox/support/how-can-i-increase-the-ranking-for-a-web-site-hosted-in-another-market.aspx



14

Influence of Incoming Links

● Search engines will most likely consider the “location” of sites providing incoming l inks when ranking a page for a particular market



15

Users Scan Search Result URLs

● Multiple studies have noted users scan URLs when deciding which search result to select– Microsoft Research– Marketing Sherpa Search Marketing Guide 2008

● Users probably prefer “their” country specific domain in search results



16

Specific considerationsfor the recommended options



17

Country Code Top Level Domains(www.mysite.it)

Tailoring for content differences, e.g. $, €Strong signal target marketTrack separately in Webmaster Tools, WAIf language spoken in multiple countries– link dilution (“duplicate content”)

If multiple languages used in country– still have issues, e.g. Canada, Switzerland

Registration hurdles– physical presence or other requirements



18

Subdomains for each Market(it.mysite.com)

No registration issuesHost each subdomain in local market to

set server IP geolocation signal (but will you?)

Track separately in Webmaster Tools, WAMarket needs may require multiple

subdomains for same languageLink dilution (but more relevant)Weaker URL signal for users scanning

search results



19

Directories for each Market(www.mysite.com/it)

No registration issuesAll links going to same domain– but from discordant sources

Need multiple directories for some lang.?Ambiguous geolocation targeting– server IP signal not helpful– Mixing multiple languages in same site

Weak URL for users scanning search results



20

Sean CarlosWeb Marketing Training & Consulting

sean [symbol here] antezeta.comwww.antezeta.com/blog

Tel: +1 617 765 0250 (US) +39 02 69 000 333 (Europe)

Skype: sean-carlosTwitter: seancarlos

Thank You!



21

US only Site? You're not Immune....

● If you– choose a cute domain extension from a

small country– host your site on servers outside the USA

Search engines may not be sure who you're trying to target

bit.ly Libya?Mitigate w/ incoming link selection

SMX West 2010: SEO Domain & URL Strategies for International Websites

Technology

Transcript of SMX West 2010: SEO Domain & URL Strategies for International Websites