International SEO Duplicate Content Issue For Same Content On Different Cctlds In The Same
Dear Community,
we are reaching out to you because we have that problem that many important URLs are not indexed because Google defines pages from other country domains as canonical. About our service, we run an online letter mailing service and we cooperate with the local post office in different countries. Therefore we have different offers per country, so we decided to use country domains (pingen.com, pingen.de, pingen.ch, pingen.at, pingen.nl, etc.). For example in Germany and Switzerland we provide the content in german and the content is around 90% the same. To help Google identify the correct page, we have included the canonical tag and the various href-lang tags in the code.
We have checked in advance if same content on different country domains would be a problem and based on the research it should not be a problem. However, many important pages are listed in the Search Console in the category: Duplicate, Google chose different canonical than user. For example, for the page pingen.de/en/email-letter-service/ the following url is set by Google as a canonical URL pingen.ch/en/email-letter-service/ and the correct page is not indexed.
This is why we kindly ask for your help. We hope that based on our explanation and the images we provided we could add the needed context for you to be able to help us :)!
Best regards Lena Furtwängler
Hreflang tags etc. used on the sites are fine. Check the content part, the more similarity in the content will be regarded as canonical despite an otherwise declaration.
For example, having the exact same content on /fr-fr/ and /fr-be/ directories may cause search engines to treat the pages as equal, which could lead to indexing issues, where one directory is chosen over another, despite hreflang being implemented.
It seems you're facing a common issue related to international SEO and hreflang tags on your multi-country domain e-commerce site. The problem you've described where Google selects a different canonical URL than what you intended can be challenging, but there are several steps you can take to address it:
Review Your Hreflang Tags:
Double-check that your hreflang tags are correctly implemented on all pages. Ensure that they match the language and region of the content on each page. Canonical Tags:
Confirm that the canonical tags on each page are set to the correct self-referencing URL. This should be the URL for the specific country domain. Content Variations:
If your content is similar across multiple country domains (e.g., 90% the same), consider whether you can create unique content elements on each page to help distinguish them in Google's eyes. HTML sitemaps:
Consider creating HTML sitemaps for each country domain that list all of the pages specific to that domain. Include hreflang annotations in the sitemap to provide additional signals to Google. Hreflang Validation:
Use Google's Search Console and other SEO tools to validate your hreflang implementation and check for any errors or issues. Google's International Targeting report in Search Console can be helpful. Geo-Targeting Settings:
In Google Search Console, configure your international targeting settings for each country domain. This helps Google understand the target audience for each domain. Consolidate Similar Content:
If you have content that's almost identical across domains, you can use the rel="alternate" tag to group these pages together. This indicates to Google that these pages are related and might not need individual indexing. Hreflang XML Sitemaps:
Create XML sitemaps for each country domain containing all the hreflang-annotated URLs for that specific domain. This can help Google understand the relationships between the different versions of your pages. User Experience and Content Localization:
Go beyond hreflang and focus on providing a great user experience for each audience. Localize content where possible and make sure the experience is tailored to the specific country. Seek Expert Advice:
If the issue persists, consider consulting with an SEO expert who specializes in international SEO, as this can be a complex problem to solve. Keep in mind that it may take some time for Google to recognize and reflect these changes in search results. Be patient and continue to monitor your performance in Google Search Console. If you're still facing challenges, consider reaching out to Google's Webmaster Support for guidance specific to your situation.
Remember that the correct implementation of hreflang tags and the consistency of canonical tags are crucial to resolving these issues and ensuring that the right pages are indexed for the right countries.
