A fair amount of visitors to your website from one country might indicate a potential opportunity. Maybe a public relations campaign became viral and people are now searching for your product all over the world.
No matter the reason for expansion or diversification, it will need to be supported with prompt and detailed analysis of each element, not just in SEO but also in wider strategies.
There are both significant risks and rewards to entering a new market.
Most search marketers agree that there are several factors that contribute to the success of market entrants.
- Research on keywords and competitors.
- Analysis of the target market.
- Analyse of the new entry.
- To allow digital and paid PR campaigns planning, self-contained ecosystems are possible.
These studies can help determine if the brand is able to enter new markets, whether it’s timed well, and if scale opportunities exist. These are, in essence, the key factors to success for any global or market launch.
This article will discuss six aspects that I used to be successful in entering new markets and working with clients previously.
It is crucial to remember that each brand, every agency, and every market are unique before we get into the details. Your work should not be governed by a single checklist.
This and any other suggestions can be incorporated into your strategy to ensure that it aligns with the larger business goals. Finalizing a strategy requires collaboration with all departments within your company.
1. Assessment of market profitability
Keyword research internationally
Your international expansion strategy will be aided by keyword research and in-depth analysis of your market.
- Allows you to collect information about the search volume, traffic and keywords related to your product/service in the original languages for new markets.
- Arrange for possible variations in the language being used. (Remember, translation and localization do not suffice now).
Keyword difficulty, which is a key indicator, can also be used to determine search traffic. It indicates how competitive keywords are in different languages, regions, and language fusions.
This article about is an excellent start.
Tip: When you are going to translate keywords from your existing set, ensure they are translated and localized. Also make sure that they align with how search engines work in the target country.
In the North of Mexico, and in some areas of the Southern U.S.A, Spanish is a common language. You will see many questions in this area of the globe that are done using both English and Spanish.
As an example, take the term maxi dress. People might look for “vestido largo” in Spain. In some areas of Mexico, they may search for “maxi vestido.”
This is Zara Mexico’s example. It shows how people search and influences the presentation of products. The products are known as “vestido maximi,”
Similar products in Zara Spain are called “vestido longo”.
You can do extensive international keyword research:
- This will give you an indication of your resources and abilities to get into the market.
- This will help you determine if you’re ready to grow or whether it would be better to hold off.
Google Analytics data
Analyze the top-converting traffic sources with or other tracker software. You should pay attention to where you brand gets constant traffic around the globe.
Traffic is vital, but it’s important to evaluate conversions before expanding to new markets.
Do a detailed report to determine if you are able to meet the new demand from these countries.
Do you require a new warehouse for your business? You may require a communication strategy to highlight delivery times if you don’t need a warehouse.
You might also consider running an incentive campaign to boost conversions, especially if delivery times are a concern.
Find the Daily Newsletter Search Marketers Rely on.
2. The target market is represented by social networks
When entering new markets, this is the most crucial step.
This might seem unrelated to SEO. You might be wrong at first.
It will also determine your strategy for paid media, and what type of content to produce in order to build brand awareness and get links.
What is the importance of social networks?
A large portion of internet consumers begin their buying journey by researching brands on social media.
It is however important to remember that
- Some consumers may not use social media to research their brands.
- It is possible to start on social media networks but it may not be TikTok.
Below is a chart that shows different age groups and the places they start brand research. This is especially important when purchasing high-value items.
These are useful information for planning.
- What content should you create for your digital PR?
- These are the types of influencers you should work with.
- For launching in new markets, the right paid media channels are required.
Sometimes the campaign can be run on social media networks. In other cases, Google Ads will make it more efficient.
You need to know the top social networks in your target country. This is especially important for those in younger age groups who start to research brands on social media. In certain countries it might be TikTok while it may be Instagram in other.
3. Hreflang
rel="alternate", hreflang=" X".
If your website has similar content in different languages, you should add an .
The hreflang element aids search engines to determine which URL version should be presented to users who are from certain languages or regions in a context.
Hreflang is a contributor to a great user experience by it:
- This function will deliver the search results in the language and location specified by the user.
- Avoid duplicate content problems
Here are some tips to help you implement hreflang.
- Valid hreflang attributes.
- Return links.
- Hreflang Link to Self
-
Hreflang elements within your
head>. - Hreflang HTTP headers.
- An XML sitemap hreflang implementation.
- Tools: hreflang generator, hreflang sitemap generator.
4. URL structure
The hreflang principle, which allows you to serve your users results that are relevant to their location and language, is similar to URL structuring. It will provide both search engines as well as users an indicator.
These are common URL structures that can be used in different ways: subdomain, parameter, gTLD and ccTLD.
When it comes to URL structure, there is no one size fits all. Your goals and objectives should guide your choice.
You should also consider your CMS’s limitations. Parameters are still used by some brands. Parameters are acceptable but not the best.
content. Content should also be compatible with the common language patterns and uses in the target country (e.g. Spanglish).
The same principle applies to the shopping cart on your website. It is important to remember the following when a customer is close to making a purchase:
- Currency : It must match the country of the user.
- Language : This must match the country of your user.
- Payment Methods: Include Apple Pay (crucial), Google Pay and various credit cards as well as payment methods like Klarna or Paypal.
- Delivery information and options for quicker and more cost-effective shipping methods.
- Section Coupon code
Consider that Apple Pay is 80% more popular among customers between 16 and 34 years old than other payment methods if they’re your targeted customer.
Cart abandonment can be caused by insufficient information, unclear language or a lack of the desired payment method.
6. International digital PR
It is essential to establish a specific link strategy per country for every market. You might only need to use a handful of tactics depending on the niche you are in.
You should identify which social networks are most popular by your target audience to find out the best way of working with them.
While you are laying the foundation for organic marketing, it is worth working with an influencer within a social network.
Digital PR offers many opportunities for brand recognition and earning links.
These tactics can be used if you don’t have a traditional PR department for your brand.
- Monitoring Brands
- Events.
- Promotional content
- Influencers.
It is crucial to adapt your approach to each market in order to build lasting partnerships.
Here’s a sample of a possible approach:
- Find influencers with TikTok
- Establish collaborations.
- Make assets that you can promote through media outlets.
- Use paid media.
- To increase trust and relevance, you can earn local connections.
To get started, read ” “.
is another interactive map which shows all the available online outlets in any region in the globe.
Click the pink bubbles to open a link that will take you to an online newspaper.
This is an example of zooming in on central London to see where the Financial Times office location is.
RocketReach is a tool that allows you to manually find the contact information of journalists once you’ve identified your preferred media outlet.
Use the best SEO strategy to go global
Failure to expand is the most frequent reason for failure
- Impulsivity. Financial decisions made based upon temporary high demand for a product in a particular location.
- Common biases.
- Lack of analysis.
- Bad strategy.
The best SEO strategy can be implemented by your SEO team. Poor negotiation skills and inability to work with others may cause friction and poor implementation.
It is crucial to thoroughly study each element in the article in order to avoid making costly errors.
Do not base your expansion plan on a list. Use resources that are relevant to your company and the overall organization plan.
Below is a table that shows common biases and offers suggestions on how to overcome them.
|
Analysis of the Core Market Entry |
Description |
Common biases |
How do you tackle |
| Value proposition | Your business model. Are I able to afford the resources necessary? | Impulsivity and an egocentric view of resources. | Determine the extent of variation in the required capabilities to the new market. |
| Size of the market | What is the best geographic area for expansion? | Inadequacy of initial value, anchoring and overconfidence | Forecasts of competitors within the target market are a good basis for making decisions. |
| Concurrence | Competitors in the market | Competitive blindspots | Analyze in-depth the potential competitors and other related industries to our target market. |
| Market share estimates | Sales expectations for our product | Failure to take into consideration the competition response from existing competitors | Do in-depth research on competitors. |
| Cost estimates in detail | To be considered are the costs of distribution, input and economy | Costs are underestimated | After you have completed all cost planning, it’s a good idea to get an outside consultant to look at them and determine if they are feasible. |
Keep in mind that success factors for expansion include:
- Timing.
- Capacity to use assets.
- Scalability.
- More than anything else, you must work together!
These opinions are not necessarily those of Search Engine Land, but they do reflect the views of the guest author. Here are the names of staff authors.
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