We have multilingual websites with some content variations but 60% of the content on site remains the same. Is it still advisable to use:rel=alternate hreflang option on ccTLDs when ccTLDs are in itself strong signal for Google to display result in respective countries 1. example.com 2. example.co.uk 3. example.co.jp 4. example.de
Short Answer: Yes Somewhat Longer Version: You are absolutely correct that a ccTLD is a strong signal to Google, but another strong signal is also hreflang. Google suggests using hreflang ( support.google.com/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=189077 ) + the new BWT specifically states such with their new website optimiser tool (as you likely know depending upon the country, Google is not always the King). Even more detailed and how to properly optimise across multiple countries/languages: I need to make a living somehow