Multiple Language Websites are the way Forward

In the global world we live in it doesn’t matter if you are in Zanzibar, Tanzania, Kenya, East Africa or in Europe; if your website doesn’t rank in Search Engines in any language, nobody sees it… 

But what if you have reached good visibility on search engines like Google in English, what next?  Is it worth translating your website into other languages?  Is there a right way and a wrong way to add language translations of your website?  Doesn’t Google allow translations ‘on-the-fly’ in your browser anyway?

Clients often ask us “What is the benefit of multilingual websites?” or “How do I get to the top of Google or AI searches quickly?”  The answer to the first question is Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), and SEO plus multiple language websites is the answer to the second question.   Websites that are translated into another language with good SEO will help you rank higher than your competitors on search engines and in AI tools.  Multilingual websites are very affordable too.

So our advice is simple: Multi-Lingual websites developed well bring in more visitors, help your customers trust you, and increase sales.  The ROI (Return on Investment) can be great for your business. 

In fact we would go further and say if you are selling products or services to customers for whom English is not their first language you are missing out big-time!

At Simply IT we are tried and trusted Multi-Language SEO experts.  Simply IT offers years of expertise, a suite of ‘Industry Standard’ tools and now the added ingredient of AI, that all helps build a strong SEO presence for your multilingual website. 

We know that businesses wherever they are in the world, big or small can attract more visitors to their website by using the native language of a website visitor.  What’s more, statistics prove that website visitors have a better experience and are more likely to engage with your product.

So, Multilingual SEO is definitely the way forward to get an edge on your competitors because it drives traffic and revenue. Translate your website content into other languages, apply SEO and to index the content into search engines like Google and you have a winner.

The facts speak for themselves:

•  According to Pagely, translated versions of your website improves its overall SEO rank.
• According to Statista, in 2023, 58% of all website content is in English, which still leaves 42% in other languages that your competitors probably never reach.
• CSA Research found that 76% of online shoppers prefer to buy products with information in their native language. In addition, did you know that 40% of visitors will never buy anything from your websites in any other language than their own?

What Is Multiple Language SEO?

Multiple language SEO is the process of optimizing your website for different languages, so that users who search in those languages can find your website in the organic search results. 

For example, if you have a website in English and you want to reach users who speak French, you can create a French version of your website and apply SEO best practices to rank higher in Google.fr (The French Search Engine).

Benefits and Challenges of Multiple Language SEO

Some of the benefits of multiple language SEO are:

• You can expand your audience and reach new markets by targeting users who speak different languages.
• You can improve your user experience and engagement by providing content that matches the language and culture of your visitors.
• You can increase your conversions and sales by offering products or services that are relevant and appealing to your potential customers.
• Gain a competitive edge over your rivals
• Your visitors get a far better user experience in their native tongue.

Some of the challenges of multiple language SEO are:

• You need to create high-quality and relevant content for each language, which can be time-consuming and costly.
• You need to ensure that your website is properly structured and coded to support multiple languages, which can be technically complex and require maintenance.
• You need to avoid duplicate content issues and signal to Google which version of your website is intended for which language or region, which can be tricky and requires careful planning.
• You need to know how to research the keywords in the language that users actually use in Search Engines.

Examples of Good Multiple Language Websites

Some examples of websites that use multiple language SEO successfully are; Wikipedia, Netflix, Amazon and the website you are currently on!

Yes, our website is a great example of good multiple language SEO. The Simply IT website is not only translated into other languages it appears at the top of search engine results pages in other countries simply because of the best-practices we use in our multi-lingual SEO strategy.

See for yourself; Imagine you are a French speaker looking for SEO experts in web development in Tanzania you may type this search phrase, in French, into Google:  les meilleurs experts seo en “tanzanie”  

Here is the result:

Here are our 5 Tips for Best Practice Multi Language SEO

When developing an effective multiple language website it is vital that visitors find you in their native language.  Otherwise there is very little point in providing a translated option on your website in the first place.  The expense, time and effort put into producing the translation is wasted.  

Here are a list of our 5 top best practices for a multiple Language SEO strategy for your website:

Tip 1 – Setup website structure for different language versions

Use different URLs for different language versions of your website.  You have some options here, but be sure you know exactly how they work, along with the pros and cons of each.

For example:

www.yourdomain.fr
www.fr.yourdomain.com
www.yourdomain.com/fr

Talk with us if you want to know more.

Tip 2 – Let Google know that your site is translated

You will need to let Google know the languages and the structure of your website by using special language tags.