SEO for a specific country

Discussion in 'Search Engine Optimization' started by bloodwrath, Aug 8, 2005.

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  1. #1
    Hi all
    Im working on a site to sell products to canada
    and only canada,
    whats the best way to SEO this?
     
    bloodwrath, Aug 8, 2005 IP
  2. dcristo

    dcristo Illustrious Member

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    #2
    Do your normal good SEO, and get a canadian domain name so your site gets indexed in the local major SEs. Getting canadian web hosting is probably a good idea, but definately not essential.
     
    dcristo, Aug 8, 2005 IP
  3. bloodwrath

    bloodwrath Active Member

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    #3
    thanks for the info
    i have a .com and have been building links for 8 months
    if i get a .ca
    should i forward the .com to the .ca
    or the other way around?
     
    bloodwrath, Aug 8, 2005 IP
  4. dcristo

    dcristo Illustrious Member

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    #4
    From what I understand, you would do a permanent 301 redirect from the .com to the .ca
     
    dcristo, Aug 8, 2005 IP
  5. dct

    dct Finder of cool gadgets

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    #5
    Also try to get links from other Canadian sites and mention Canada on each page, like in the copyright notice in the footer.
     
    dct, Aug 9, 2005 IP
  6. minstrel

    minstrel Illustrious Member

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    #6
    You do not NEED a Canadian .ca domain name.

    You need one of two things to rank well in a regional Google:

    1. EITHER a regional domain name, in this case .ca (which tend to be more expensive than .com names)

    2. OR any domain name hosted in Canada

    Since you already have a .com domain, I'd say keep it -- host it in Canada -- and as DCT says, mention the word Canada frequently in your page titles and on-page content.

    It is probably a good idea to also nail down the .ca version of your domain to protect it but I wouldn't redirect the .com -- do it the other way round.
     
    minstrel, Aug 10, 2005 IP
  7. bloodwrath

    bloodwrath Active Member

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    #7
    thanks all for your info
    i might get the .ca will see
    and its hosted in the us on a ecommerice account
    ill work on having canada & canadian listed on the site
     
    bloodwrath, Aug 10, 2005 IP
  8. dcristo

    dcristo Illustrious Member

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    #8
    SEO aside, your target audience is canadians. Get yourself a canadian domain name if you want credibility :)
     
    dcristo, Aug 10, 2005 IP
  9. minstrel

    minstrel Illustrious Member

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    #9
    If it's not hosted in Canada, then you MUST have the .ca domain. It would be preferable to keep the .com and move your hosting but it's up to you.
     
    minstrel, Aug 10, 2005 IP
  10. minstrel

    minstrel Illustrious Member

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    #10
    Not so. This may be different in other regions but remember that Canada is geographically and culturally close to the US. Canadians are most likely to try putting .com on the end of a domain name first, before .ca -- it's still seen as the default domain extension here.
     
    minstrel, Aug 10, 2005 IP