Localization SEO Handoff Template

Localization SEO Handoff Sheet (fill-in)

When to use: One row per page and market, with native keyword, intent note, locale URL, reviewer, owners and a completion check.

Localization SEO handoff sheet

One row per page and market. The SEO fills it before the translator starts, and the native reviewer signs it off before the page goes live.

Per-row detail (fill for every page and market)

• Page goal: [what the page must do in this market, e.g. book a demo]
• Secondary native keywords: [2 to 5 terms locals actually search]
• Keywords not to use: [literal translations nobody searches, or terms that mean something else locally]
• Local SERP notes: [who ranks, page types, questions shown]
• Do not translate: [brand, product and plan names, code, UI labels, legal names]
• Formats: date [DD.MM.YYYY], number [1.234,56], currency [49,00 €], units [km, kg, °C]
• Local proof and contact: [local address, phone, support hours, payment methods, or none]
• Title and meta description: [written for the native keyword, not translated word for word]
• Internal links: [source link - localized target URL]
• Image alt text and file names: [localize / keep]
• hreflang cluster: [handled by dev in [ticket]] - the translator does not edit tags
• Reviewer verdict: [approved / changes needed / blocked], because [reason]

Next action

• SEO owner: [name] - action: fill the row and attach native keyword research by [date]
• Translator or localizer: [name] - action: deliver localized copy, metadata and alt text by [date]
• Native reviewer: [name] - action: review in context on staging and sign off by [date]
• Developer: [name] - action: publish the locale URL and add it to the hreflang cluster by [date]

Completion check

• The primary keyword came from native research in the target market, not from a dictionary.
• The locale URL is its own URL, not a cookie or browser-setting switch on the source URL.
• Main content and navigation are in one language. Not only the boilerplate is translated.
• Brand, product names and code stayed as listed in the do-not-translate list.
• Dates, numbers, currency and units follow the market format.
• Every internal link points to a localized URL where one exists.
• A native reviewer read the page in context and signed it off.
• The developer confirmed the page is in the hreflang cluster.

Native Keyword Research Builder

When to use: Replace translated keywords with terms locals search, and note how local intent differs.

Native keyword research, not translated keywords

A translated keyword is a guess. Locals may use a different word, an English loanword or a longer phrase. Research each market as if the page were new.

Research steps per market

1. Write the source keyword and the literal translation side by side. Treat the translation as a seed only.
2. Ask the native localizer how they would search for this, in their own words.
3. Pull volumes and related terms for the target country in the Keyword Research tool.
4. Group close variants in the Keyword Cluster Tool so one page owns one group.
5. See the current top 10 for the top candidates in that country with the Content Optimizer.
6. Pick the primary keyword the local results support, then 2 to 5 secondary terms.

Keyword decision table

Local intent differences to note

• Different page type wins: locals see guides where the source market sees product pages.
• Different question: price, legal rules, payment method or delivery time matter more.
• Different competitors: local brands own the results, so the angle needs to change.
• Loanwords: the English term may be the one people type. Use it if the results say so.
• Same language, other country: Spanish for Spain and for Mexico can need different terms.

If the local intent is very different, tell the writer. The page may need new sections, not just translation.

Do-Not-Translate List and Local Formats

When to use: Tell the translator what stays as is, and how dates, numbers, currency and units are written.

Do-not-translate list and local formats

Translators change what they are not told to keep. Give them this list with every handoff, and keep it in your glossary.

Do not translate

Local formats

• Date: [format, e.g. DD.MM.YYYY] and month names in the target language
• Time: [24-hour or 12-hour] and time zone shown, if any
• Numbers: decimal and thousands separators [1.234,56 or 1,234.56]
• Currency: [local currency, symbol position, tax shown or not]
• Units: [metric or imperial, sizes, temperature]
• Addresses and phone numbers: [local format and country code]

Google lists local addresses and phone numbers, and the use of local language and currency, as signals of who a site is for. Only show local details that are true.

Tone

• Formal or informal address: [e.g. Sie or du in German]
• Style guide or glossary link: [link]
• Phrases to avoid in this market: [list]

Need one shared voice across markets first? Start from the Content Style Guide Template.

Localized Metadata and Internal Links Check

When to use: Check titles, descriptions, slugs, alt text and internal links on staging before launch.

Localized metadata and internal links

Metadata and links are where translated pages most often keep source-language leftovers. Check each item on staging, not in the translation file.

Metadata

Write titles and descriptions for the native keyword and check their length, as words often get longer in translation. Draft them in the Meta Tag Generator and preview them in the SERP Simulator.

Internal links

• List every internal link in the source page: [anchor - source URL].
• Map each one to the localized URL in the same market: [localized anchor - locale URL].
• If no localized target exists yet, mark it: [link to source URL / remove / wait].
• Localize anchor text too. Do not leave source-language anchors in localized copy.
• Add a visible link to the other language versions, so people can switch.

Things to keep out of the page

• Side-by-side translations on one page. Google suggests one language for content and navigation per page.
• Mixed-language templates, such as a translated body with source-language navigation.
• Automatic redirects by IP or browser language. Google advises against them.

After launch, crawl the locale folder with the Website Audit to catch missing titles, broken localized links and hreflang return-link errors.

Developer Handoff and Native Reviewer Sign-off

When to use: Pass hreflang and URL work to the developer and get a named native reviewer to approve the page.

Developer handoff and native reviewer sign-off

The translator owns the words. The developer owns the URL and hreflang. The native reviewer owns the final yes. Write each name down.

For the developer: hreflang and URLs

• Locale URL to publish: [full URL with https]
• Language and region code: [e.g. de-DE]. Google supports ISO 639-1 language codes and ISO 3166-1 Alpha 2 region codes.
• Each version lists itself and every other version, and links must be returned both ways.
• Alternate URLs are fully qualified, with http or https.
• x-default target, if any: [URL for users no version matches]
• Method: [HTML link tags / HTTP headers / sitemap]
• Ticket: [link]

Google does not use hreflang or the lang attribute to detect a page's language. It reads the visible content, so the copy itself has to be in the target language.

Map and QA the full cluster in the International SEO Hreflang Template. This handoff only adds the page to it.

Machine translation rule

• Machine or AI drafts are allowed only if a native reviewer edits them in context.
• Google's scaled content abuse policy lists scraped content run through automated translating, where little value is provided to users.
• Unreviewed pages do not go live. Mark them blocked in the sheet.

Native reviewer checklist

1. Read the page on staging, in the target market's language settings.
2. Does it read as written for this market, not as a translation?
3. Is the primary keyword natural in the title, H1 and first paragraph?
4. Are prices, dates, units and legal lines right for this market?
5. Are brand and product names unchanged?
6. Do internal links go to localized pages?
7. Verdict: [approved / changes needed / blocked], signed by [name] on [date]

Planning a new market and unsure where to start? Book a free consultation with Anatolii Ulitovskyi.

Spreadsheet Header (CSV)

When to use: A paste-ready header row and allowed values to run handoffs in Google Sheets or Excel.

Paste-ready spreadsheet header

Paste this row into cell A1 of Google Sheets or Excel, then split text to columns by comma. One row per page and market.

handoff_id,source_url,market,language_code,locale_url,page_goal,source_keyword,literal_translation,native_primary_keyword,native_secondary_keywords,local_intent_note,local_serp_notes,do_not_translate,date_format,number_format,currency,units,formality,localized_title,localized_meta_description,localized_h1,localized_slug,internal_links_mapped,alt_text_localized,hreflang_ticket,x_default,machine_draft,translator,seo_owner,native_reviewer,reviewer_verdict,signoff_date,developer,live_date,status

Allowed values

• machine_draft: no, yes_reviewed, yes_unreviewed
• internal_links_mapped: all, partly, none
• reviewer_verdict: approved, changes_needed, blocked
• status: brief, translating, review, dev, live, paused

Sheet tips

• Block the status "live" unless reviewer_verdict is approved.
• Highlight rows where native_primary_keyword equals literal_translation. Check those twice.
• Highlight machine_draft yes_unreviewed. Those pages are not ready.
• Filter by source_url to see every market for one page.

Worked Example (fictional shipment tracking app)

When to use: One filled handoff for an invented app localizing a feature page for Germany.

Worked example: Brambletrace delivery notifications page, German market

Example only. Brambletrace is an invented shipment tracking app. Its URLs, names, keywords and dates are made up to show a filled-in handoff.

Filled detail

• Literal translation: "Lieferbenachrichtigung". The localizer and the local results pointed to "Versandbenachrichtigung" instead, so it became primary.
• Secondary: Sendungsverfolgung für Onlineshops, Versandbestätigung E-Mail.
• Intent difference: German results showed more questions on data protection. The writer added a short data section.
• Do not translate: Brambletrace, the plan name "Relay", the code snippet and the {order_id} variable.
• Formats: dates as 03.11.2026, prices as 29,00 € per month, formal Sie.
• Metadata: title "Versandbenachrichtigung für Onlineshops | Brambletrace", written fresh, not translated.
• Internal links: 4 links mapped to /de-de/ pages. One target had no German page yet, so the link was removed until it exists.
• Machine draft: yes, edited by the localizer, then reviewed in context by Lena K.
• Developer: added de-DE to the existing en and fr cluster in ticket WEB-412, with return links.
• Verdict: approved on 6 Nov 2026 after one change: "Abo" replaced "Subscription" in the pricing line.

Why this works

• Native research replaced a word locals rarely use with the one the results support.
• The do-not-translate list kept the plan name and code intact.
• The reviewer caught a leftover English word before launch, not after.