Best domain for spanish language site targeting ALL spanish territories?
-
hi, we're have a strong .com domain and are looking to launch a site for spanish speakers (ie latin america + spain).
we already have various subdirectories for some foreign language sites (eg. ourdomain.co.uk, us.ourdomain.com, ca.ourdomain.com, ourdomainchina.com, ourdomainindia.com etc)
we already have a B2B site ourdomain.com-es which will remain the same.
I'm thinking best practice would be to launch translated copy for the following:
ourdomain.com/pt etc etc
firstly is this the best option?
secondly, i'm really interested to hear whether there is a less time/resource intensive route that would give us visibility in ALL spanish speaking territories?
Also - if we go with just one of the above (eg ourdomain.com/cl) how likely are we to get traction in other spanish speaking territories?
any help much appreciated!
-
Thanks so much Gianluca, v comprehensive.
I've decided to go for ourdomain.com/es/ as a solution for spanish speakers and i'll be sure to use rel=”alternate”hreflang=”x”.
-
Ok... let's try to answer to all your questions :).
Subdomain, subdirectories or country level domain names?
For sure I would avoid the subdomain option. Even though you can geo target a subdomain in GWT, it has not the same strenght of a country level domain name and, from a link building point of view, it doesn't help creating a larger link profile and it doesn't take any advantage from the root domain backlinks as the subfolder option.
So you have to choose between country level domain names or subcarpet. The choice, more than to SEO factors, depends on the overall business model you have in mind. If the site is - for instance - for a web based service, maybe the subcarpet is the best solution. If the site should reflect a strong presence in the targeted countries, therefore the best choice is a country level domain name.
Said that, both have advantages and defects:
- Country level domain names:
- Google tends to prize these kinds of domain in the regional Google;
- People is used to look for "national" site with its country level domain name
- The worst defect is that you have to build as many link building and inbound marketing campaign as the country that are targeted, because they all start with an empty link profile.
- Subcarpets
- You can geo target subcarpet in GWT
- Any geo targeted subcarpet take advantages of all the domain name link profile. Let's say. If your domain main version obtain a link from BBC, that links is partly benefitting also the other countries based subcarpet
- Subcarpets perform not so well as country level domain names in the regional Googles.
In both option you would remember to implement the use of rel alternate hreflang tag, in order to not having, for instance, the Chile version outranking the Peruan one, or - worst - to have Google considering all those spanish versions as duplicates.
There is a less time/resource intensive route that would give us visibility in ALL spanish speaking territories?
Yes... a good example is the one presented by Apple.com. In fact, it offers www.apple.com /la/ (latin america) subcarpet. They solve the "store" issue addressing the users to its distributors online shops or address.
In the case you have an eCommerce, than you would need to configure all the currencies and prize calculator in order to allow your users to configure the payments using theirs.
Said that, you would need to commit a very strong and "multi-country" link building and inbound marketing campaign in order to rank in every single regional Google with this solution.
Also - if we go with just one of the above (eg ourdomain.com/cl) how likely are we to get traction in other spanish speaking territories?
Theoretically it can happen. But it is mostly an exception, and - sincerely - not very loved by users.
If I look for a content in spanish and I live in Spain (as I do), I would prefer to click on .es or /es/ subcarpet site rather than a /cl/ one of .cl domain name, because I would not consider these latter option useful for my needs.
- Country level domain names:
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
International Targeting: What Does Google Consider an Equivalent Page?
Hi All, We are working with an international brand that owns several domains across the EU and in North America. Our team is in the process of setting up international targeting using sitemaps to indicate alternate language pages. This is being done to prevent North American pages from being served in the UK, Spain pages from being served in Portugal, or any other combination of possibilities... Currently we are mapping duplicate or “equivalent” pages and defining them as rel="alternate" on their respective sitemaps. The problem is, it’s not always explicitly clear what Google considers “equivalent.” 1. In this instance, URL structures vary by domain,
International SEO | | MetaPaul
2. in most cases the content is similar (but unique),
3. the landing page templates vary is design and functionality,
4. and lastly, services often contain nuances that make them slightly different from one another (Professional Liability Insurance vs Professional Indemnity Insurance). All things considered, these pages are offering the same service, but are vastly different (see above). Q: Is it appropriate to use these attributes to serve the correct language / regional URL to searchers? Q: Is there a rule of thumb on what should be considered an "equivalent" page? Thanks All, Paul3 -
Web Site Migration - Time to Google indexing
Soon we will do a website migration .com.br to .com/pt-br. Wi will do this migration when we have with lower traffic. Trying to follow Google Guidelines, applying the 301 redirect, sitemap etc... I would like to know, how long time the Google generally will use to transfering the relevance of .com.br to .com/pt-br/ using redirect 301?
International SEO | | mobic0 -
Opening Up Webmaster Tools Geo-Targeting to Everyone Instead of US
Hi Mozzers, I wanted to get everyone's opinion on this. We have an e-commerce site that was targeting 3 different geo-locations. The main one is a .com. The other two were Canada and UK based. We recently turned off our Canada site and 301 to the .com. The .com site had been targeted towards United States in Google Webmaster Tools. Should I remove the Webmaster Tools geo-targeting now that Canada is pointing towards our main site? I don't want to lose rankings for US since that is our main market and the .com site is our main revenue driver and focus. I'm inclined to leave it as is because I still see our .com site ranking when I search in Google CA. From what I've seen is that it can take months for something to change and I definitely don't want anything to go awry. Just wanted to get everyone's thoughts on this. Thanks in advance.
International SEO | | SylviaH0 -
Any practical examples of ranking 1 domain in multiple countries?
Hi, I've done a fair amount of research on international SEO including here on MOZ but was hoping some fellow Mozzers might have some practical examples of how they have got 1 domain to rank in multiple countries, ideally US & UK. Im possibly looking at getting a high authority domain which ranks great on US into the UK engines. I want to keep to the 1 domain to benefit from the high authority and for logistical reasons. Thanks in advance, Andy
International SEO | | AndyMacLean0 -
Best process to 301 ecommerce store?
Hi, We have decided to segment our products and languages on to different country tlds. I know how to 301, but I am curious as to how I should actually do this, in what order to do it. Let's call the existing site with all products on OLDsite, and the new tld, where the products will also appear NEWsite. I am thinking of: Setting up NEWsite, but no sitemap. On launch of NEWsite, 301 all products on OLDsite to NEWsite (they will no longer appear on OLDsite) After some time, add sitemap, google verification in GWT, etc... on NEWsite. My thinking is that if I launch NEWsite and notify Google it will index the same products and content as OLDsite, and not necessarily check the 301 right? Which could lead to dupe content issues... Any ideas? We are only redirecting part of the site, so not all of it. Thanks!
International SEO | | bjs20100 -
Improving Search Rankings in other Countries for an existing site
Hello SEOmoz, I have a very well respected international client who ranks high in the US and for English language Google search results worldwide. However, the client's foreign language pages for specific countries do not show up on the first page of SERPs in those specific countries. The foreign nation/language pages are served on the same root domain as the main English language site it this fashion: www.client.com/france www.client.com/brazil Here are my questions: What can we do from an SEO standpoint to improve SERPs in Google.fr or other countries What is the best way to prevent duplicate content errors or prevent the wrong page from being indexed abroad. What are some best practices when using Google Webmaster tools in this regard? Thanks
International SEO | | BPIAnalytics0 -
Tips for optimizing sites for arabian countries?
I'm going to assist a customer with SEO and we will also have to optimize the project for arabian countries. I'm looking for any helpful tips (links, blog-posts, experiences) like relevant search engines, best practices with keyword translation/localization, impact of mobile search/usage, recommendation for partners/companies... Thank you!
International SEO | | kqkq0