Every few years it seems like something new hits the localization community and changes the way in which localization services are marketed, sold and delivered. In the past, this has meant trends such as CAT tools, XML, internationalization (or globalization, if you prefer) and other changes that require some level of adaptation in order to remain competitive.

I would like to introduce what I believe to be one of the next great GILT (globalization, internationalization, localization, translation) industry influencers: Google-ization. Google-ization refers to the process of optimizing a localized web site so that it will receive high rankings in search engines. The reason this will affect the localization industry so much is that, like localization, choosing proper terminology is vital to the Google-ization process. Simply put, if you translate a web site using the proper search terms or keywords, it can have a dramatic affect on how successful that site will be in receiving relevant traffic from search engines. After all, companies translate web sites in order to drive traffic to them. If your localization process can help to accomplish this goal, then you are way ahead of the game.

Why Search Engines?

Search engines are now the principal tools used to find what you’re looking for on the internet. Next to email, using search engines is the most popular activity among all internet users worldwide. In fact, approximately 90% of the entire online population uses search engines (NFO Research). And it’s not just the online consumer that’s using search engines. According to a survey by Forbes.com, 73% of C-Level executives say that they prefer to learn about companies and products from the internet, and 80% of these executives say they use search engines to find what they’re looking for. Of those online executives, 58% said they’re successful in finding what they’re looking for online.

Search engines are effective in producing not only online revenue, but also leads that turn into offline revenue. In fact, online product research conducted by consumers during the past year was responsible for driving $180.7 billion in offline spending, compared to $106.5 billion in direct online consumer spending (The Dieringer Research Group). According to Piper Jaffray, search engines are also the most cost-effective way to advertise, averaging only about $0.45 per lead. By comparison, the average cost per lead in a direct mail campaign is $9.94.

Jakob Nielsen, who The New York Times calls “the guru of web page usability,” has summarized the importance of search engines as follows:

"Search engines are the entry point for most (online) users when they want to look up something on the web…search engine visibility is the most important way of promoting web sites…"

(Jakob Nielsen, PhD and author of Homepage Usability: 50 Websites Deconstructed)

The bottom line is that international search engine optimization is here to stay and is vital to the success of any localized web site. Those companies that take advantage of the obvious synergies between localization and search engine optimization will begin to reap huge rewards, while those who don’t will lose business to those who do.

The Impact of Google-ization

The impact of international search engine optimization is huge. International markets now account for about 65% of the online community (Global Reach). However, search engine optimization is not nearly as competitive in non-English-speaking regions as it is in English-speaking areas. This makes it easier to get top rankings for the most sought-after localized search terms. Those companies that achieve high rankings now will be in a much better position to maintain those rankings during the coming years.

Here’s a brief outline of how Google-ization will impact both clients and localization service providers.

The Impact on Localization Clients

The logic is fairly simple: the main reason you want localized web sites is to attract potential customers from specific geographies. The way in which you localize a web site – especially with regards to the terminology chosen and the manner in which that terminology is used – has a profound effect on how search engines will rank your site. The higher your ranking, the more qualified the prospects will be who visit your site. The more qualified visitors your site attracts, the more leads and customers that your site will produce. The more leads and customers that your site produces, the more revenue your localized web site will generate. And that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?

Like most worthwhile investments, however, Google-ization isn’t free. Google-ization will take a bit more effort and will cost a bit more than localization alone. However, in most cases, these costs will be a fraction of the cost associated with localization alone.

The additional costs will occur in two main areas:

• There will be some added effort as localized search terminology is selected and additional keyword content is added to each localized web site.
• There will be some additional costs associated with engaging a good search engine marketing (SEM) firm to help with the project. Search engine marketing has become somewhat of a science. With few exceptions, professional firms are becoming a necessary element to success. While well-intentioned web masters will often claim to know all about search engine optimization (SEO), in reality, few of them know as much about it as they think they do. The worst-case scenario, of course, is using outdated tactics that will actually cause a web site to be dropped from search engines results altogether.

By Google-izing web sites, instead of just localizing them, web sites become the useful tools they were intended to be by actively marketing and promoting your business/service. In the end, the benefits of Google-ization far outweigh the costs.

The Impact on Localization Service Providers

In order to remain competitive, localization service providers will need to find effective ways to incorporate search engine optimization into their current workflow processes. For the most part, this will involve two main adjustments:

• You will have to work closely with search engine marketing firms to identify effective terminology prior to translation and learn how to assimilate that terminology into the translation process. This effort may require a higher level of project management and communication with translators.
• There will usually be some additional content to translate that is specific to the keyword terminology. In many cases, this additional content will come from the SEO firm, rather than the client, and needs to be translated using some basic guidelines. These guidelines aren’t difficult, but if done incorrectly, the entire effort may be in vain.

While some localization service providers may view these adjustments as a nuisance, others will see them as an opportunity to generate more revenue and to provide much higher value to their clients. In the end, those service providers who work well with SEM firms will experience higher customer satisfaction, improved client retention, and increased sales by having another arrow in their quiver to entice new business.

Another benefit for both clients and service providers is the enhanced ability to engage high-level decision makers from the client’s marketing and sales departments. For most businesses, localizing web sites is all about marketing. Elevating this marketing effort to the level of search engine marketing makes both the internal and external localization teams that much more important to a company’s overall success.

What You Should Do About It

Clients need to begin by doing one of two things:

• Ask your localization service provider if they are currently working with an SEM firm and, if so, start involving them with your localized web sites, or
• Identify a good SEM firm yourself and ask them to work as a team with your service provider.

Localization service providers need to start creating solid, long-term partnerships with SEM firms that understand the localization process and that can adjust to meet the needs of their globally minded clients. Then, the marketing and sales teams can be trained to include Google-ization as a normal part of their value proposition. “We don’t just translate your web site. We make sure it will become a valuable marketing tool for your global company.” You get the idea.

The ABC’s of Search Engine Marketing Search engine marketing terms can sometimes seem like a foreign language. The glossary below offers some quick and easy definitions. Backward Links: Links (pictures or text) from another web site to your site. These links increase your search engine rankings. Click Through: The process of clicking through an online advertisement to the advertiser’s web site. Conversion Rate: The number of sales compared to the number of visits to a web site. Increasing a web site’s conversion rate usually equates to either increased sales and/or increased leads generated by the site. Hit: A request for a file from a web server. A request for a web page counts as a hit, but so does a request for a graphic on a web page. Because the number of graphics per page can vary considerably, hits mean very little for comparison purposes. Generally, a Unique Visitor (see below) count is a more valid measure of web site traffic. Keyword: A word or phrase used in performing a search. Landing Page: A web page designed to focus on a specific keyword. These are typically the pages that visitors see first after performing a search and clicking through to a site. Pay-Per-Click (PPC): Paid advertisements that often look similar to search results on a search engine. Ad placement is automatically tied to specific keywords. The company placing the ad must pay the search engine every time the ad is clicked on. The amount per click varies from $0.10 to $30 for popular keywords. Search Engine Marketing (SEM): The systematic study of which keywords customers are searching for with regard to a particular product, business and/or industry, and the processes used to obtain web traffic from those keywords in an efficient manner. This may include obtaining natural search results using the search engines’ algorithms or pay-per-click management to ensure a high return on investment. Search Engine Optimization (SEO): The process of boosting a web site’s page ranking during a web search. This is usually accomplished by embedding specifically targeted keyword phrases into site code; optimizing site code for search engines; and generating backward links pointing to the site. Top Ten Ranking: The top 10 search engine results for a particular search term. Web sites listed outside the top 10 are generally visited much less frequently than those that are in the top 10. Unique Visitor: A web traffic measurement that tracks each visitor’s IP address to ensure that person’s visit to a given web page is counted only once during a specific time period.

One Word of Caution

As you proceed, you should be aware that there are basically two types of search engine marketing firms. There are smaller, low-cost companies that frequently produce temporary results, frustrated customers and even de-listed web sites. Many of these lower-end companies are intentional scam artists, who know full well that the results they deliver are temporary at best and potentially damaging in the long run. While the savings associated with these companies are often tempting, you should avoid these types of SEM firms if you want to maintain your reputation

The other type of SEM firm is generally more expensive, but delivers long-term, high quality results. These companies can usually be identified by their use of solid tools and proven, repeatable processes. They will also generally be able to provide you with a well-established list of long-term clients. This type of SEM company will tend to be more methodical and calculated in its approach to search engine marketing. They will provide solid value and promote your services in a positive light as the web sites you localize begin to produce a steady stream of qualified visitors. Your services will become a valuable marketing tool instead of simply an added cost to entering the global marketplace.

When it comes to search engine marketing firms there are two basic rules of engagement:

1) If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

2) You usually get what you pay for.

Google has actually published a list of things to be aware of when choosing a search engine marketing firm.
Click here for a copy.

Expectations For The Future

As all international markets continue to mature, search engines will be the driving force behind most online business activities. Buyers of localization services will either have to engage in effective Google-ization efforts or lose business to their competitors. There is no doubt that an ever-increasing number of potential customers will be searching for your products and services in all major languages. The only real question involves which web sites these prospects are going to find as a result of those searches and, ultimately, where they end up spending their money. As Jim Spanfeller, CEO of Forbes.com, has explained, “Beyond all of the positive attributes of web advertising, like incredibly trackable ROI, the fact is business decision makers don’t look to TV and newspapers anymore as their top sources of information; they go online.”

Currently, localization service providers still have the option of whether or not to become involved with international search engine optimization. This option, however, is a door that will close in the very near future. In the coming years, clients will demand that search engine optimization be integrated with the normal localization process. The terminology issue simply can’t be avoided. Localization service providers that begin to offer these combined services now will have a huge advantage over those who will be playing catch-up a few years from now.

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Curtis R. Porritt is President and CEO of 10x Marketing. He was a part of the phenomenal growth that characterized the early years of WordPerfect Corporation, playing an integral role in designing and managing WordPerfect Corporation's world class international development organization—one of the first in the world to produce software products on a simultaneous release schedule with products in more than 30 languages. Porritt has over 12 years of upper-level management experience in the high tech industry and can be reached at curt@10xmarketing.com.