How to do international keyword research in any language

If you’re looking into international SEO, you’re going to need to conduct keyword research across different markets, and sometimes this can mean doing so in languages that you don’t even speak a word of. So, how exactly do you go about this?  

At Connective3, we have multiple languages in– house, such as Spanish, French, and German, to name just a few. However, we’re not limited by that, and have seen great results across multiple territories which is why we want to share our process.  

Of course, there will be other ways to approach this, but hopefully this guide can give you a starting point and ensure your international keyword research is both accurate and effective.

Three ways to kick off your international keyword research 

1. Identifying search demand and market landscape via broad keyword analysis  

In some cases, you might be provided an initial keyword list or translations by the client or another team, and this can be a really helpful base to work from. If you’ve not been given anything to get started, you can do some independent research to get an idea of core words and phrases that may be relevant, whether that be via searching around online or translating from your native language. 

Quick tip: When looking at translations, it’s worth bearing in mind that these aren’t always reliable or the only way to phrase something, so it’s worth double– checking with a native speaker and/or doing some further research to see if it’s commonly used by other trusted sources. 

From here, input these words and phrases into your chosen keyword exploration tool, such as Ahrefs, to get a full list of all the possible related terms and corresponding search volume.  

Quick tip: Remember to have your location set to the right place. 

Using this extensive list, you can then delve further and nail down potential topics of interest and begin to build out keyword sets which you can use as a starting point. 

2. Perform a keyword gap analysis against competitors to highlight possible opportunity 

Performing a keyword gap analysis against competitors is great for giving you an idea of the overall market opportunity and highlighting potential target keywords that you’re missing out on. It’s especially helpful if you’ve got nothing else to work with yet. 

From here, you can then review search intent and group terms into relevant keyword sets to refer back to and see which areas offer opportunity. Generally speaking, aside from demand being a big factor, terms with higher search volume may be more ‘colloquially worded’, as it shows there are more people using those particular words or phrases in that order. You can then run the terms through a translation tool to get an initial idea of what they might mean. 

Quick tip: Make note of translations as you go along so that it’s easier to refer back to later on. It’s also worth considering looking into possible impacts due to variants and dialects.    

3. Look at what other similar existing pages rank for 

Another way to identify relevant keywords is by finding other relevant pages covering the topic you’re interested in, in the language/domain you’re working with.  

Quick tip: Make sure to use localised search engines and/or country-specific Google domains when looking for similar existing pages.   

From here, you can use a tool like Ahrefs’ Site Explorer to look at what keywords this particular page ranks for. Those that rank in higher positions (i.e. pos. 1-20) can be a good indicator as to the most relevant terms for that page, and those that you’ll also hopefully be able to capture and rank for. 

Whilst this process is a bit more manual, as you’ll need to find relevant sources and then individually review these pages and their rankings, it can be particularly effective if you’ve already identified your topics and want to finalise your target keywords and ensure you’re covering all bases. 

Last but not least, bring a native speaker on board for validation

At this point, you should ideally have a big bank of keywords and have noted down what you believe the translations to be. It’s worth adding that having more keywords is potentially for the best, as it may be that during this final step, some end up getting cut.  

The best way to ensure your international keyword research is on point is by having a native speaker look over your list. This person doesn’t necessarily need to have super in-depth SEO knowledge, as the most important thing is that they can sense-check your keyword list to point out any spelling errors, odd phrasing, or mistranslations.  

And with that final step, you should have a nice bank of accurate keywords, without actually being able to speak the language! 

If you’re in need of international services to support your global marketing plans, make sure to get in touch so we can figure out how we can work together. 

The insights don’t stop there – the international team at Connective3 have also shared top tips on how to run a successful international PR campaign and best practices for international SEO.