International SEO basics with a UK focus

If you only serve the UK

Most UK small businesses don't need international SEO at all. If you only serve customers here, the signals that matter are straightforward:

• A .uk or .co.uk domain, or a .com with clearly UK content.
• Prices in pounds.
• A UK address and phone number.
• British spelling and terms: "colour", "postcode", "estate agent" rather than "realtor", "solicitor" rather than "attorney".
• Content about UK rules, places and customers.

You don't need hreflang tags for a single-language, single-country site. Google works out where you're relevant from your content, links and other signals.

When international SEO matters

You need to think about it when:

• You sell to customers in other countries and want them to see the right prices, delivery terms and language.
• You have separate content for different countries, such as UK and Irish pages.
• You publish in more than one language, such as English and Welsh.

Google's guide to managing multi-regional and multilingual sites covers the options in detail.

Choosing a URL structure

There are three common ways to separate country or language versions:

• Country domains: example.co.uk, example.ie, example.de. Clear signals to users and search engines, but each domain is effectively a separate site to manage.
• Subfolders: example.com/uk/, example.com/ie/. Easier to manage on one domain. A common choice for small businesses expanding abroad.
• Subdomains: uk.example.com, ie.example.com. Possible, but usually offers no advantage for a small business over folders.

Pick one approach and stick with it.

Hreflang explained simply

Hreflang is an annotation telling Google which version of a page is meant for which language or region. If you have a UK page and an Irish page with similar content, hreflang helps Google show the right one to each audience. Google's hreflang documentation explains the formats.

Key points:

• Each version must list all the others, and itself.
• Use the correct codes: "en-GB" for English in the UK, "en-IE" for Ireland, "cy" for Welsh.
• Include an "x-default" for visitors who don't match any version.
• Every listed page must be indexable and return a normal 200 status.

Hreflang is easy to get wrong. Errors usually mean Google ignores it rather than penalising you, but you lose the benefit.

Welsh language content

Businesses in Wales may publish in both Welsh and English. Treat these as language versions with hreflang "cy" and "en" (or "en-GB"), with proper translations rather than machine output. Make it easy for visitors to switch languages, and don't automatically redirect based on browser settings.

Don't auto-redirect by location

Redirecting visitors automatically to a country version based on their IP address can stop Google crawling all your versions, since Google's crawlers usually come from US addresses. It also annoys travellers and people using VPNs. Instead, show a banner suggesting the right version and let people choose.

Prices, delivery and legal details

International SEO isn't only technical. Each country version should show:

• Prices in the local currency, with taxes handled correctly.
• Delivery times and costs for that country.
• Returns information that matches local consumer rules.
• Local contact details if you have them.

A UK page that simply says "we ship worldwide" won't convince a German buyer the way a proper German-language page would.

A worked example

A small UK maker of handmade leather goods started selling to Ireland and the US. At first, all customers saw the same UK pages with prices in pounds.

The business created /ie/ and /us/ folders for its product and delivery pages, with prices in euros and dollars, the right delivery and returns details, and US spelling on the US version. It added hreflang linking each product's UK, Irish and US versions, with the UK version set as x-default. The rest of the site, such as the brand story and care guides, stayed as one shared version.

It replaced an automatic redirect with a small banner: "Shopping from Ireland? See prices in euros." Search Console's indexing report confirmed all three versions were indexed.

Before you expand abroad

Check the practical side before building pages. Can you deliver reliably to that country, and at what cost? Do you understand the returns rules and any product regulations there? Will you answer enquiries in the right language and time zone? International pages that promise more than the business can deliver lead to complaints and refunds. It's better to start with one country, get it working well and then expand.

Common mistakes

• Machine-translating pages and publishing without review.
• Hreflang pointing to pages that redirect or are noindexed.
• Copying UK pages to a .com for "international reach" with no other changes, creating duplicate content.
• Using a country flag as the only way to switch language.
• Mixing American and British spelling on a UK site.

Questions