Keyword analysis in a foreign language

Keyword analysis is the basis for any successful online shop expansion abroad. An in‑depth analysis provides important information on how foreign customers search for your products and services on the internet. This helps to precisely identify which foreign language keywords to target and what improvements are required.

Excellent keyword analysis as a basis for successful online store expansion abroad

If you have already undertaken a keyword analysis, we will use this as the basis for an in‑depth analysis in the selected foreign language. If not, we will create it for you directly in the foreign language. We undertake keyword analyses in German, Hungarian, Romanian, Polish, Czech, Bulgarian, Croatian and in the languages of other countries to which we help online shops expand.

The output of a professional keyword analysis is a document that contains the following information:

a list of keywords relevant to your online shop and industry
keywords used by your competition in the selected country
keyword search volume
keyword relevancy
degree of keyword competition
keyword search position
average cost‑per‑click
recommendations on what other keywords to focus on

Keyword analysis workflow

The keyword analysis workflow is complex and involves the work of an SEO specialist and linguist who is a native speaker of the selected foreign language. It includes the following steps:

Data collection ‑ collection of background queries relevant to the client’s field and business. When collecting data, we work with tools such as GGL Ads, Ahrefs, Marketing Miner, Similarweb.
Data mining ‑ determination of search volume, relevance, competition degree and other metrics for individual keywords.
Data revision and cleaning ‑ elimination of irrelevant queries or queries with negative connotations in the given language.
Data categorisation ‑ classification of keywords into groups, usually according to the product structure of the online store.
Data finalisation ‑ creation of an output document (usually an Excel workbook) and interpretation of the data in the form of Pivot Tables for easy understanding of the results and for working correctly with them.

In the last step of the process, which involves interpreting the information obtained, comprehensibility is key. Only then will you know how to work effectively with the keyword analysis. You can then use it from the very start of your planned online store expansion into a new country, as well as in the future.

What do you do with the finished keyword analysis in a foreign language?

The document containing the analysis highlights the most appropriate phrases to use for your online store and in materials that form part of your marketing strategy. The uses for a keyword analysis are broad and do not only cover the initial phase of online store expansion abroad. On what occasions might you use it?

SEO translation and localization of an online store into a foreign language: sensitively and appropriately implemented keywords form the basis of a well translated and localized website and online store. This is the only way to make the texts attractive to search engines, resulting in top positions.
Online marketing: keyword analysis is essential when it comes to designing landing pages, optimising a website/online store for search engines (SEO), designing PPC campaigns or creating texts for the web (copywriting).
Content marketing: the identified search patterns (how people create search engine queries) come in handy when creating a blog, identifying target groups in a selected country and for developing content strategies.
User experience: The analysis will also provide you with valuable information for assigning landing pages ‑ when creating or expanding the structure of your online store or optimising UX (user experience).

Examples of the practical use of keyword analysis

The usefulness of a well‑crafted foreign language keyword analysis in expanding an online shop abroad is best demonstrated through specific examples:

Example 1 ‑ Czech online store selling equipment for computer game players interested in expanding into Slovakia

The online store sells equipment for computer game players and is interested in expanding into Slovakia.

Keyword in Czech: herní křeslo (gaming chair)
Keyword in Slovak: herné kreslo (gaming chair)

Conclusion: The Slovak term ‘herné kreslo’ is a semantically correct translation of the Czech term ‘herní křeslo’. However, Slovak customers are much more likely to search for the term ‘herná stolička’ on the Internet. While the term ‘herné kreslo’ has an average monthly search volume of 2,400, the term ‘herná stolička’ has a search volume of 5,400. More than twice as much! From the point of view of SEO optimization and gaining new visitors to the website, it is much more advantageous for the online shop to use the term ‘herná stolička’.

The above example shows why the cooperation of an SEO specialist and a linguist, a native speaker of the country in which you intend to expand with your online shop, is necessary in the process of creating a foreign language keyword analysis.

Example 2 ‑ Czech online shop selling interior fragrances interested in expanding into Germany

Keyword in Czech: difuzér
Keyword in German (standard version): Diffusor
Keyword in German (non-standard version based on English): Diffuser

Conclusion: From the point of view of meaning and grammar, the correct translation of the Czech word ‘difuzér’ into German is ‘diffusor’. This term has a search volume of 12,100 in Germany. However, keyword analysis shows that Germans use the grammatically incorrect Anglicism ‘diffuser’ significantly more often when searching. It has a search volume of 49,500. Four times higher! In the SEO translation of the online shop into German, and in accordance with the company’s SEO strategy, we therefore used the term with the significantly higher search volume.

Example 3 ‑ Czech online shop selling air conditioning units and air purifiers interested in expanding into Germany

Key term in Czech: klimatizace (air conditioning unit), klimatizační zařízení (air conditioning equipment)
Keyword in German: ‘Klimagerät’, ‘Klimaanlage’

Conclusion: The terms ‘klimatizace’ and ‘klimatizační zařízení’ can be translated into German in two possible ways. While the term ‘Klimagerät’ has a search volume of 74,000, the term ‘Klimaanlage’ has a search volume of 165,000. More than twice as high! In the SEO translation of online store into German, we used both terms because, from the point of view of the SEO strategy, it would not have been appropriate to omit one of them completely. However, we adjusted the frequency of their occurrence in the texts relative to their search volume, with preference therefore given to the term ‘Klimaanlage’.

It simply isn't possible without keyword analysis

Carrying out an in‑depth foreign language keyword analysis is a complex and time‑consuming process. It consists of a number of steps in which an SEO specialist, linguist, editor and coordinating project manager work closely together. The resulting data are segmented according to the structure of the online shop so that the use of the analysis is easy and clear. The keyword analysis report includes interpretations of the results so that they are understandable for online store operators, PPC/SEO specialists, copywriters and other users of the analysis.

Investing in a foreign language keyword analysis quickly pays for itself if used correctly. It ensures the better placement of an online shop in search engines, higher online store traffic and better visitor/order conversion ratios. A professionally conducted keyword analysis in a foreign language is therefore a necessity for the successful expansion of an online shop abroad.

Our specialists at NK Expand are available to help. Contact us for more information.