Entering new markets almost always starts with a website in the customer's language. But translating copy is only half the job. If search engines do not understand which version is for which country, languages compete with each other and the wrong page shows up in results. Here is how we build multilingual support into website development so that every version works for SEO.
In short: a separate URL per language, reciprocal hreflang links between versions, self-referencing canonicals, translated meta tags and content, and separate sitemap entries. Auto-switching language by IP with no way to choose is a bad idea.
URL structure: what to choose
| Option | Example | Pros and cons |
|---|---|---|
| Subfolders | site.com/de/ | Simple, shared domain strength — our default |
| Subdomains | de.site.com | Flexible infrastructure, but authority is split |
| Separate domains | site.de | Strong local signal, but costly to maintain and promote |
| Parameters | site.com?lang=de | Not recommended for SEO |
Hreflang: telling search engines which version is which
- Each language page links to all its versions, including itself.
- Links are reciprocal: if German points to English, English points to German.
- Correct language (and, if needed, region) codes are used: ru, en, de, ar, es, fr.
- An x-default version is added for users whose language is not supported.
What must be translated
- Title and meta description of every page — with market-specific keywords, not a literal translation.
- Headings, copy, image alt text, buttons and forms.
- Structured data (JSON-LD) — names, descriptions, language.
- URL segments if you use descriptive slugs.
- Legal pages: privacy policy, terms, cookies.
Common mistakes
- Canonicals on all languages point to the English version — the rest drop out of the index.
- Automatic IP redirect with no choice — crawlers see only one version.
- Untranslated meta tags: a German page with an English title.
- Unedited machine translation — low-quality content and weak rankings.
- No interface mirroring for right-to-left languages such as Arabic.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to translate the whole site at once?
No. Start with key pages: home, services, contact and your best articles. Better not to open untranslated pages for indexing in the new language.
Is machine translation good enough?
As a draft, yes, but sales pages need editing by a native speaker or professional translator. Keywords also need separate research for each market.
How do I check hreflang works?
With webmaster tools and SEO crawlers: they show reciprocity errors and invalid codes. After launch, monitor which versions appear in which countries.
Planning to enter new markets? Send a request on the websites page and we will design a multilingual structure and set up hreflang and technical SEO. Google Ads can bring traffic to the new versions.