SEO tips for the Online Dating Market in Key European Countries

SEO tips for the Online Dating Market in Key European Countries

1.Who I am + what I do

2.SEO-related localization and technical issues

3.SEO issues and tips

4.Search engines and social media use

5.Final takeaways

6.Questions

(Focus on IT, FR, ES)

Who I Am

-Matteo Monari (monari@goadv.com)

-Born in Italy - lived in Sweden – living in Rome

-Background in Languages and HCI

-SEO and Online Marketing Consultant and Affiliate for the past 4 years, focusing on EU markets (mostly IT, FR, ES)

-Recently joined GoAdv (http://www.goadv.net)

What we do at GoAdv

• Independent media company• Broad range of portals and vertical

sites• # monthly uniques in X languages• # sites in the dating and lifestyle

area

Localization and technical issues (Stuff to keep in mind)

Scale up in Europe = Go Local

- Your local site should not be just a translation- Different market

- Different audience (e.g. user age - m/f distribution) Different Focus in the Product

- Targeting different KWs (more/less synonims in the local languages, etc.)

2) Localization is a complex process which will determine your success.

It may involve many different people, possibly with little understanding of your business and linguistic issues (sys-admins, developers, translators, editors, SEOs, etc.)

Right Mindset: You are basically creating a new site.

Localization and technical issues (Stuff to check with your developers)

- Keep dynamic data clearly separated from text in the architecture and CMS (e.g. dates, time, names, etc.), to avoid issues.

- Limit dynamic text insertions as much as possible.

- Clearly document where dynamic text insertions occur, and from what source.

- Avoid fixed-size tables and buttons as much as possible.

- Avoid text in pictures.

Localization and technical issues (Why things can go wrong)

1) Italian, French and Spanish words are divided in two genders (in different ways!). Adjectives and articles have to be modified accordingly:

Eng: Find the right... [boyfriend][girlfriend][man][friend - f]

Ita: Trova il [ragazzo] giusto (M+ il ) Trova la [ragazza] giusta (F+ la ) Trova l’ [uomo] giusto (M+l’ ) Trova l’ amica giusta (F+l’ )

...not very easy if you just have a field/image saying ”right”, used all over the site for all kinds of stuff...

Localization and technical issues (Why things can go wrong)

2) In English, the adjective preceeds the noun it refers to, while in Italian, French and Spanish, it usually follows it.

Example:

Meet Russian Girls Incontra Ragazze Russe

...but not always!

Meet Beautiful Girls Incontra Belle Ragazze

A single <title> may not be able to handle this...

SEO Issues and Tips (Stuff to check with your SEO people)

SEO is SEO (same same, but different...)

-.fr , /fr/ or fr. ?

-Hosting?

-Keywords?

-Content?

-Search Engines and Social Media?

.fr , /fr/ or fr. ? (What TLD to use and when)Top Level Domain: .it - .fr - .es

Use it if you plan to focus on the local market in a proper way (long term strategy)

Pros: More trust from users = higher CTR from results pagesLocal TLD = more trust from search engines than .com/.net/.orgAllows local hosting = more local trust in SEs + possibly fasterNot necessarily connected to main .com site (reduces cross-market penalization risks)

Cons: No domain authority inherited from .com site = slower startMay be harder to obtain (can be fixed with a proxy solution)Possibly more legal implications (talk to your lawyer about local legislations, disclaimers, privacy policies, etc.)

Note: If you do not have a strong brand, consider a local domain name.

.fr , /fr/ or fr. ? (What TLD to use and when)

Folder: /it/ - /fr/ - /es/

Use it to piggyback on existing authority (quick cash strategy)

Pros: Keeps existing domain authority = quicker indexing and rankings Can be geotargeted in Google’s WMT (keep home /fr/, not just /fr)Easier to hide whois info via proxy solutions (if you want to)

Cons:In the long run you will have to campete with local TLDs Can not be hosted locallyDirectly connected to main .com site (in case of penalizations, etc.)Possible TLD theft for type-ins (make sure to get the TLD anyway and redirect it)

.fr , /fr/ or fr. ? (What TLD to use and when)

Subdumain: it. - fr. - es.

An ’in-between’ solution, which I generally do not recommend.

Pros: Allows local hosting = more local trust in SEs + possibly fasterGets some domain authority (make sure to interlink properly)Can be geotargeted in WMTEasier to hide whois info (if you want to)

Cons: In the long run you will have to campete with local TLDsConnected to .com site (in case of penalizations, etc.)URL will look ”strange” to some usersPossible TLD theft for type-ins (make sure to get the TLD anyway and redirect it)

Hosting(Stuff to check with your Sys-Admins)

Host locally, if possible.

If you can host locally, make sure you are REALLY hosting locally (many resellers, check IP location of servers. Several good plugins: e.g. Flagfox: https

://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/5791).

If not possible, no big drama - it wont prevent you from ranking.

Keywords (How to target the right Keywords)

Do not translate KWs, translate ideas.

1) Do your KW research locally- Adwords KW tool is the best to get ideas for new KWs (and is free)

(...but volumes are even more screwed up than for US.)

- Google search-based keyword tool has more realistic numbers (use it while still available:

http://www.google.com/sktool/)

- Check successful local competitors (they have been there)

- Use your stats Adwords impression share + impressionsCombine ranks + analyticsInternal searches, etc.

2) Use previous knowledge from other markets...

...but do not assume what worked somewhere else will work there

3) Consider that markets can be culturally different, so search volumes are different. (e.g. more or less compact - consider local terms)

What Content Should You Use? (Stuff to check with your editors)

1) Content can be translated from your other sites (no dupe issue)

2) Decide what content to publish basing on locals’ interest (=KW-research)

3) Think properly about how you will handle the localization process...

Localization Tips (Stuff to check with your translators)

1) Make sure you do your KW research in advance and constantly test and refine it.

e.g. a female partner in Italian can be called:

”Ragazza” younger, nation-wide

”Fidanzata” possibly older, more used in the south. In the north it is used for a more serious relation

”Morosa” younger, more used in the north

”Compagna” older, nation-wide

A few questions to ask yourself:

What words do most people use? (test volume)

What words you expect to convert the best ? (test conversion)

Where are most of your clients based? (check your stats)

Where are your best clients based? (check your stats)

Localization Tips (Stuff to check with your translators - 2)

2) Provide translators with guidelines and a list of desired KWs to use when translating certain words.

3) Always ask for translation samples (on the topic) and have a native you trust proof-read them.

4) Make sure the translator gets to see the source site and knows where the texts will end up. (Possible issues with gender, number, this/that, picture captions, etc. )

5) Don’t be cheap.

6) Keep proofreading randomly the stuff you get.

You can get screwed...

...and you won’t know it!

An example from Facebook...

Are you single?

Try XXXXX, where ___________________ girls are

waiting for you! Free! SHOULDER BLADES

(Source: http://www.nerdgranny.com/ragazze-scapole-facebook/ )

...and Don’t Forget (Stuff to check with your translators)

HTML Titles, Meta Descriptions and URLs:- Give translators and local eds. as much info as possible

- Be clear about their purpose and importance

- Always double-check them for key pages

Search Engine and Social Media Use (Stuff to keep in mind)Google and Facebook are kings: stick to them.

Penetration of Social Media in Italy and Spain is now higher than in the US.*

Twitter use in Europe doubled since last year: still low penetration but relatively high penetration on smartphone users**.

Alternatives to FB in France: Copains d’Avant, Trombi, Skyrock

Alternatives to FB in Italy: Badoo (bending more towards dating)

Alternatives to FB in Spain: Tuenti (younger audience)

*+106% june 2009 to june 2010 - source:

http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/social-media-accounts-for-22-percent-of-time-online

*source: http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events/Press_Releases/2010/8/Indonesia_Brazil_and_Venezuela_Lead_Global_Surge_in_Twitter_Usage

Final takeaways:

1. Think and act local.2. Look at localization as a cross-

functional process.3. Don’t translate, localize.3. Localize ideas, not keywords.4. Don’t be cheap.

Questions and Feedback (Let’s keep in touch)

QUESTIONS?

Check out http://www.GoAdv.net for all kinds of company info and proposals.

For slides, questions and complaints: monari@goadv.com