As businesses expand their reach across borders, international SEO becomes essential to ensure the right audience finds your content. Up until recently, Google Search Console’s International Targeting feature played a key role in helping website owners manage their international presence by allowing them to set geotargeting preferences and monitor hreflang tag implementation. However, as of September 2023, Google has retired this feature, leaving many to wonder how they can continue optimizing their sites for different countries and languages.
We’ll explore how you can manage your international SEO without relying on Google Search Console’s International Targeting feature and provide you with alternative strategies to ensure your content reaches the right audience globally.
Why Did Google Remove the International Targeting Feature?
Google’s decision to retire the International Targeting report stems from the ongoing effort to streamline and focus on the features that provide the most value. The feature, while useful for geotargeting and managing hreflang tags, wasn’t widely used by webmasters and can be replaced with other modern SEO techniques and tools.
How Does This Change Affect Your SEO Strategy?
While the geotargeting settings and hreflang error monitoring are no longer available in Search Console, you can still implement these elements through manual techniques and third-party tools. The fundamental elements of international SEO remain unchanged; it’s now just about finding alternative methods to manage them effectively.
Let’s look at how you can continue managing your site’s international visibility.
1. Continue Using Hreflang Tags for Language Targeting
Even though the Hreflang monitoring report in Search Console is gone, hreflang tags remain essential for ensuring that the right version of your page is shown to users in the correct language and location. The hreflang attribute signals to Google which page is intended for users based on their language and geographic region.
Best Practices for Hreflang Tags:
- Ensure that each page includes a self-referencing hreflang tag.
- Define all language and region-specific pages with the correct ISO language and country codes (e.g.,
en-USfor American English andfr-FRfor French in France).
Example:
<link rel="alternate" href="http://example.com/en-us/" hreflang="en-us" />
<link rel="alternate" href="http://example.com/fr-fr/" hreflang="fr-fr" />To avoid errors, regularly check the implementation of your hreflang tags using third-party tools like Screaming Frog or Ahrefs, which can scan your site for missing or incorrect tags.
2. Leverage Country-Specific Domains or Subdirectories
While the Geotargeting setting in Search Console is no longer available, there are other effective methods to signal to Google which countries you are targeting. The use of country-specific domains (ccTLDs) or subdirectories can help.
Country-Specific Domains (ccTLDs)
If your business operates primarily in specific countries, using country-specific top-level domains like .uk for the UK or .de for Germany can help search engines prioritize your site in that region.
Example:
example.co.ukfor the United Kingdomexample.frfor France
Subdirectories and Subdomains
If you want to serve a global audience while targeting specific regions, consider using subdirectories or subdomains to organize your content for different countries and languages.
- Subdirectories:
example.com/uk/orexample.com/fr/ - Subdomains:
uk.example.comorfr.example.com
This structure makes it clear to search engines which part of your website is meant for each target region or language.
3. Focus on Content Localization
While targeting specific countries or languages is important for international SEO, localizing your content takes it a step further. Localization involves not only translating content but also adapting it to the cultural preferences, search behaviors, and keywords of each region.
Tips for Effective Localization:
- Localized keywords: Research local search terms and phrases using tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush to optimize your content for regional searches.
- Tailored content: Adjust your content to resonate with local audiences by considering cultural nuances, local trends, and user preferences.
- Localized metadata: Ensure your title tags, meta descriptions, and alt text are also localized to enhance the relevance of your pages in search results.
4. Optimize for Language in the URL
Using language codes or region-specific URLs is another way to enhance visibility for different languages or regions. This helps both search engines and users understand which version of your content they’re looking at.
Example:
- For French users:
example.com/fr/ - For Spanish users:
example.com/es/
Including language and country-specific indicators in your URLs also improves user experience by making it clear that the content is tailored to their language or region.
5. Utilize Google Business Profile for Local SEO
If your business has physical locations in multiple regions, optimizing your presence through Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is key. This helps ensure that your business appears in local search results and Google Maps for users in specific regions.
Key Features to Leverage:
- Accurate business information for each location, such as addresses, contact numbers, and operating hours.
- Localized reviews to build trust and credibility with local customers.
- Region-specific Google Posts to share promotions or updates relevant to specific audiences.
6. Monitor International SEO Performance with Other Tools
Although Google Search Console no longer provides the International Targeting report, you can still monitor your international SEO performance through other reports and third-party tools.
- Google Analytics: Analyze traffic by language and location to see how well your site is performing in different regions.
- Google Search Console’s Performance Report: Filter by country or language in the Performance report to track which pages are gaining visibility in specific regions.
- Third-Party SEO Tools: Use tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, and Screaming Frog to monitor international rankings,
hreflangimplementations, and keyword performance.
