HOW TO TURN A KEYWORD GLOBAL

June 2014

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Clients trust us to deliver better digital campaigns globally. We work wherever business needs to be. Go online to read more of our success stories to discover how we use local insights to get results in-market. These are just some of the brilliant brands and businesses we work with.

WHY PERFORM A GLOBAL KEYWORD RESEARCH FOR SEO PURPOSES?

Why perform global keyword research for SEO purposes?

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o To understand what keywords are less competitive in-marketbut have a higher search volume

o To create an understanding of all the idiosyncrasies of yourtarget audience, language use and culture

o To inform your strategy for adapting site optimisations

Good keyword research reveals search habits on SERPs!

The right keywords, the right audience

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Identify your landing pages

Identify your target audience

Research your online competitors

Establish a rough list of keywords in your own native language first

Language localisation, not translation

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Language and culture is habitual

It’s a behaviour

“A language is a imagined community” (Benedict Anderson)

Only native speakers immerged in their native culture can point out accurate keywords and behavioural, linguistic habits

Target local search engines

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Google is not always the most popular local search engine worldwide.

Different countries have different preferences.

Russia favours local search engine Yandex. It also has its own Keyword research tool ‘Wordstat’. It helps you create your own bespoke keyword strategy.

China’s most popular search engine is Baidu, which has more than 60% of market share

Chinese's language is spoken by 509 million of internet users compared to 536 million English speakers

Naver is the most widely used search engine in South Korea.

3 main challenges for global keyword research

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1) The challenge of multilingual countries- Many countries have several official languages spoken simultaneously

such as Switzerland and Belgium

- Some former colonies of European countries are still speaking French, Spanish, Portuguese, English etc. even when it’s not an official language

2) The challenge of one language spoken in many countries- When the same language is spoken in different countries, it naturally

adapts to a culture

3) The challenge of hybrid use of languages- Globalisation and IT have led to more hybrid use of language and

sometimes almost newly constructed languages are formed

1) The challenge of multilingual countries

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One market does not always equal one language For instance, Switzerland has four official languages which means a Swiss keyword strategy could encompass four keyword research strategies

In Indonesia, 700 languages are spoken Moreover, Indonesian keyword research would have to take dialects into account as this influences search intent

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Egypt has different search terms for the same meaning due to dialects

Phrase Translation Country Volume

االخبار العاجله Breaking news Egypt 18,100

اخبار عاجله Breaking news Egypt 14,800

األخبار العاجلة Breaking news Egypt 2,400

اخبار عاجلة Breaking news Egypt 1,600

1) The challenge of the multilingual countries

2) The challenge of one language spoken in many countries

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The use of Spanish language depends on the culture of the countryKeyword research created in Spanish for Spain wouldn't give the same results if executed in Argentina

Arabic has many dialects, worldwideArabic keyword research must be regularly checked by a native speaker of the given target market

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The terms “tragamonedas online” and ”tragaperras online” are Spanish for “slot machines”. The ways Spanish-speaking countries interchange these terms vary greatly.

Country English meaning Keyword Avg. monthly searches

Argentina Online slots machines Tragaperras online 170

Argentina Online slots machines Tragamonedas online 2900

Spain Online slots machines Tragaperras online 320

Spain Online slots machines Tragamonedas online 90

2) The challenge of one language spoken in many countries

3) The challenge of hybrid use of languages

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Globalisation gave birth to the use of “local English” words in many languages

Some popular terms are widely used in English on the web including “low cost”, “discount” and “web”, as well as, “Swenglish”, “Frenglish” and “Arabizi”

Some industries have introduced mixed-language worldwideIT technologies: keyword research often needs to be done in English, in the local language and using hybrid words of the target country

Intercultural online chat has largely influenced language use and terminology

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Globalisation has influenced the use of “local English” words globally.For instance, one of the most popular Italian search terms for ‘cheap flights’ is in fact ‘voli low cost’, which mixes Italian and English.

Phrase Translation Country Volume

Cheap flights 4,400 Italy English

Cheap flight 880 Italy English

Voli low cost 246,000 Italy Italian/English

Voli economici 33,100 Italy Italian

Offerte voli 22,200 Italy Italian

Compagnie low cost 14,800 Italy Italian

3) The challenge of hybrid uses of languages

How does Oban defeat the challenges of global keyword research?

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1) The challenge of multilingual countriesOnly a native speaker fully understands the official and unofficial use of different languages in a target market

2) The challenge of one language spoken in many countriesAt Oban, we check and perform global keyword research using in-market experts

3) The challenge of hybrid use of languagesOnly local people still immersed in their native culture can really, truly dig out the exquisite jewels of keyword research

Website: www.obanmultilingual.com Telephone: +44 (0) 1273 704 434

Email: info@obanmultilingual.com Twitter: @ObanSearch