Websites Have to Get Global: How to Handle Language and Location

Look, the world is smaller now. Websites have to give people the right things based on where they live and what language they speak. Giving users tailored content benefits them. And it helps the website show up higher on Google. This article looks at how to handle language and location redirects correctly.

Language: Give Users a Say and Help SEO

When you change a site's language, you're balancing. You want some things to be automatic, but users need control. It's usually better to let the user decide rather than changing the page based on their browser settings. A small box popping up that asks if they wanna switch to their language makes users happier.

For Google and search engines, you have to make sure they can see and read every language version of your content. You use these hreflang tags so search engines know what language each page is for. This is important. It stops Google from thinking you have duplicate content.

You can set up language changes in a few ways. You can do it on the server (like with .htaccess or PHP). That way is fast and reliable, but you have set it up yourself. You can also use JavaScript. That’s more flexible; some browsers might block it. Plugins like Weglot are cool because they do most of the hard work for you.

Location: Redirects and What Not to Do

Geolocation redirects mean the website automatically sends the user to a different page based on their IP address. You can set these up on the server with JavaScript or with plugins like If-So. Every way has its good and bad points when it comes to how fast and easy it is.

When you pick a plan, you have to let the user have control. A pop-up that asks for confirmation prevents users from getting annoyed by automatic changes. Another smart move is just changing small things on the page, like the price or the currency, instead of moving the whole user to a new site.

You have to think about what's suitable for the what's and what's good for SEO. Use 301 permanent redirects when you change a location. Don't redirect when you change a location. Use a 302 temporary redirect instead. You have to make sure Google can look at every version of your site. You still need those hreflang tags here, too. Speed is also key. Make sure the site doesn't mess up the redirect, or the redirect will be wrong.

Real Examples

For example, OtterBox detects a visitor’s location and offers the option to switch to a local site, allowing users to decide whether to change regions. By contrast, ESR Tech, which sells Apple and Samsung accessories, automatically routes visitors to a regional version of its site based on location. Both approaches can be effective, depending on a website’s goals, user expectations, and technical implementation.

Featured Image generated by Google Gemini.