Story Based Question
You’re in charge of an international SEO campaign for a global e-commerce brand that’s expanding into new markets, including the UK, Japan, and Brazil. You’ve made many adjustments to your SEO strategy: localizing content, using hreflang tags, optimizing for regional keywords, and building backlinks. But how do you know if all these efforts are actually working? How do you track the performance of your international SEO campaigns across different regions and languages?
Exact Answer
To track the performance of international SEO campaigns, use tools like Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and third-party SEO software. Monitor key metrics like organic traffic, keyword rankings, bounce rates, and conversion rates across regions. Set up region-specific goals and segment data by country and language to evaluate the effectiveness of your SEO efforts in each market.
Explanation
Tracking international SEO performance can be more complex than tracking a single-market campaign because you’re managing multiple regions, languages, and even search engines. Here’s how you can effectively track the performance of your international SEO campaigns:
1. Use Google Analytics to Monitor Regional Traffic
Google Analytics is a powerful tool for tracking how well your international SEO strategy is performing. You can set up region-specific goals and segment traffic by country, city, and language.
- Key Metrics to Track:
- Organic Traffic: See how much traffic is coming from organic search in different regions.
- Bounce Rate: A high bounce rate may indicate that users are not finding what they expected (e.g., if the language or currency isn’t correctly localized).
- Session Duration and Pages per Session: Longer sessions and more pages per visit generally suggest better user engagement.
2. Google Search Console for Regional Search Insights
Google Search Console helps you understand how your site is performing in organic search, and it’s crucial for international SEO.
- Country-Specific Performance: In Search Console, you can view the performance of your site in specific countries. This data includes:
- Impressions and Clicks: See how many impressions your site received in a specific country and how many clicks it generated.
- Average Position: Track where your site ranks for keywords in each region.
- Search Queries: Identify which search queries are bringing traffic from different countries and adjust your keyword strategy accordingly.
3. Set Up Region-Specific Goals in Google Analytics
To track conversions, it’s important to set up goal tracking for each market. This allows you to measure how well your international pages are driving specific actions, like product purchases or newsletter sign-ups.
- Example: Set a goal for completed purchases on your UK site and track how many UK users are completing the checkout process.
4. Track Keyword Rankings with Tools
Tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, and Moz allow you to track your keyword rankings by country or region. This is important to see if localized keywords are performing well in different markets.
- Key Metrics to Track:
- Ranking Position by Region: Track how your target keywords rank in each country.
- Keyword Volume and Trends: Monitor search volume for keywords in each market to see if demand is growing.
5. Monitor Regional Backlinks and Domain Authority
Backlinks are crucial for SEO, so track how many region-specific backlinks you’re acquiring and how this affects your site’s domain authority in each market.
- Key Metrics to Track:
- Backlink Profile by Region: Use tools like Ahrefs to check how many backlinks your site is getting from different regions.
- Domain Authority: Track your domain’s authority in different countries using Moz’s Domain Authority tool.
6. Heatmaps and User Behavior Tools
For deeper insights into how users interact with your site in different regions, use heatmaps and user behavior tracking tools like Hotjar or Crazy Egg.
- What to Track:
- User Interactions: See where users are clicking, how they’re navigating, and if they’re dropping off at key pages (e.g., product pages or checkout).
- Region-Specific Engagement: This can help you identify if there are specific issues in a region that need addressing (like a confusing checkout process for users in Brazil).
7. Track Regional Conversions and Revenue
Ultimately, the goal of SEO is to drive conversions. Use e-commerce tracking in Google Analytics to see how SEO efforts are impacting revenue in different markets.
- Metrics to Track:
- Revenue by Region: Track how much revenue you’re generating in each market.
- Conversion Rate by Region: Monitor if your SEO efforts are translating into actual sales in target countries.
Example
Let’s say you manage an international e-commerce site selling organic skincare products. You’ve just launched localized versions of the site in the U.K., Japan, and Brazil. Here’s how you could track performance:
1. Google Analytics
You set up country-specific goals for product purchases, email sign-ups, and cart completions for each country. You segment the traffic by the U.K., Japan, and Brazil to see where the most conversions are happening.
- Example Insight: You notice that the Japanese site has high traffic but a low conversion rate. Upon reviewing the site with heatmaps, you see that the Japanese users are clicking on the product images but aren’t following through to the checkout. You realize the checkout process needs to be localized further to better match the Japanese market’s expectations.
2. Google Search Console
You track impressions and clicks in the U.K., Japan, and Brazil and notice that your U.K. site is ranking well for targeted keywords like “organic skincare,” but the Japanese site is ranking lower for terms like “natural skin products” in Japanese. You adjust your keyword strategy for Japan to include more localized terms and improve rankings.
3. SEMrush or Ahrefs
You track your keyword rankings in all three countries and notice that in Brazil, your product pages are ranking for local terms like “creme natural para o rosto” (natural face cream) but not for broader terms like “skincare for sensitive skin” in Portuguese. You adjust your content strategy to include these additional terms.
4. Revenue Tracking in Google Analytics
You set up e-commerce tracking to monitor sales in each country. After three months, you see that your Japanese site is underperforming in terms of revenue compared to the U.K. and Brazil, even though the traffic is high. You dive deeper into the regional conversion rates and realize that your payment gateway isn’t optimized for Japanese users, leading to cart abandonment.
Tracking international SEO performance requires a mix of tools and metrics. By using Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and third-party SEO tools, you can monitor organic traffic, rankings, and conversions across different regions. Always segment your data by country or language, and track region-specific goals and conversions to ensure your international SEO campaigns are driving results.