Search engine optimization (SEO) is a notoriously fickle field. New trends emerge every few days, best practices change every few months, and search engines like Google roll out updates that throw everything into disarray—temporarily, at best. Veterans with decades of experience constantly have to brush up on their skills to stay up to date—making the field both exciting and incredibly challenging.

And it’s a whole new playing field when you throw international SEO into the mix—which involves much more than taking your local SEO strategy and applying it in the global marketplace.

For starters, you’ll have to translate your website content, localize it in each language to resonate more precisely with your target audience, and ensure your target search engines index the appropriate website version. Luckily, the website translation solution Weglot takes care of most of this for you (and more). But it helps to know the technical SEO behind it: the what, why, and how of it all.

Since just about everyone can create their own website and work on getting it more visible, that also means anyone can call themselves an SEO expert these days. So how do you cut through the noise and find out what truly will help round out your global marketing strategy?

Well, by learning from seasoned digital marketing professionals. And what better way to do that than through international SEO courses?

And that’s why taking international SEO courses would come in handy—they’re offered by certified experts who really know what they’re talking about.

What Are the Benefits of Taking an International SEO Course?

Figuring out how to rank high on your local search engine results page (SERP) is tough by itself. And when you try to rank in multiple search engines in different countries, you’ve reached a new level of difficulty. But here are some of the many benefits of taking an international SEO training course:

No Need to Outsource an SEO Consultant

For most cases, it’s typically better to have an in-house expert than to outsource the expertise elsewhere. When you take an international SEO course, you become the go-to source of SEO knowledge for you and your team, helping you save on costs and time.

In fact, taking an international SEO course fast-tracks you into consultant territory. While one course alone won’t give you everything you need to become an expert, it certainly puts you on that trajectory—a huge stepping stone into the exciting world of digital marketing.

Improve Skills

When you take a legitimate international SEO course, you’re learning directly from the experts and bringing your own SEO efforts to the next level. You’ll learn all about the tools and techniques they’ve used in their journey, what worked and what didn’t, and what helped them get the results they achieved.

You’ll learn the secrets that helped them get ahead in their careers, the skills that are currently in demand (and those that will be in the future), and the strategies that will help you work more efficiently—and improve your own.

Even if you already know how to conduct keyword research, write compelling meta tags, and do backlink exchanges, it’s impossible to know all the approaches to international SEO. You’ll learn other, never-before-tried link-building strategies, tactics to increase organic traffic, and figure out new ways to hike up conversions.

Plus, as you learn more sought-after SEO skills, you’ll open new doors for your career—which can definitely help you go a long way.

Retain High Rankings

Being on the first SERP—and the top result, no less—is the key to success. According to Advanced Web Rankings, the first result on the SERP has a 40.05% click-through rate as of May 2023. That means huge visibility for your website if you manage to snag the top spot—but of course, this is much easier said than done.

However, an international SEO course will equip you with the perspectives and knowledge needed to secure the first entry on the SERP across your different target audiences in different countries. You’ll stay up to date on the latest practices for each search engine and maximize your outreach and marketing efforts.

Gain More Detailed, Specialized Knowledge

Taking different international SEO courses will not only augment your existing pool of knowledge, but diversify it. It’s an investment not only in your skill set, but also in your digital marketing strategy since it will be informed by the mastery of advanced SEO specialists.

You can take online courses in specific areas you feel are necessary for your marketing team, such as optimizing your content for international search engines. You’ll have the assurance that all the information you’re getting is verified and credible, giving you the confidence you need to spearhead your strategies.

When you know what you’re doing, it’ll be easier to navigate your digital marketing and identify mistakes before they start costing you. SEO is famously difficult to decipher at times, but you’ll have the edge of understanding even more what might be causing strange results.

Maximize Your Multilingual Website

There are many benefits to having a multilingual website. But you likely won’t know what else to do with your multilingual website to make sure it reaches your intended markets unless you take an international SEO course.

For example, Weglot automatically takes care of the following for your website:

• Multilingual SEO
• Hreflang tag implementation
• User redirection
• Automatic display of translated content under language subdomains or subdirectories
• Automatic content detection and translation

…and so many more. But you can take this to the next level when you know the principles of international SEO. These include localizing your content effectively, learning the fundamentals of multilingual design, international mobile optimization, and more.

Is a Certificate in International SEO Worth It?

Having a certificate doesn’t guarantee success. But it certainly puts you in that trajectory—much closer than you would’ve been otherwise.

Still, it’s worth noting that there isn’t one standardized SEO certification that companies or executives would try to look for in your résumé, unlike a license or accreditation. There isn’t a uniform curriculum either, nor can you find an actual degree in it.

Though this makes SEO sound less legitimate, the rationale makes sense: SEO is such an enormous field that it’s impossible to master every single aspect. You’ll need several different skills, and you can’t do everything yourself, either: you’ll need a whole team.

Plus, the field changes so rapidly, that any curriculum would become obsolete (one way or another) within just a few months. And while there are many benefits to having a certificate in international SEO, there is, of course, the cost to consider.

With that said, is a certificate even worth it?

If you’re confident in your skills, have many years of SEO experience, and have a lot of happy clients who would eagerly testify to your SEO successes, you can do without a certificate. But if you’re new to the international SEO scene, and believe there’s a lot of room for improvement, it’s definitely worth paying for the extra knowledge.

Still, that doesn’t mean you should throw money at any or all courses you find: there are so many free resources available online, so you shouldn’t aim for basic certificates. That’s why you should go for the courses that take a deep dive into specific areas—and not those that promise their international SEO course to be the only one you need.

The Best International SEO Courses

To get certified in international SEO, you’ll have to choose one offered by a recognized provider. Don’t go for the ones that promise full knowledge at low prices—given the field’s wide range, this is virtually impossible. Most of these courses consist of modules that will need several days or weeks to finish.

The cost wildly varies as well: you can get some courses for free, while others are much more expensive in the $1000s range. So we’ve narrowed it down to these excellent international SEO courses that will get you started with confidence:

International SEO Training by Yoast SEO

If you’re ready to dig straight into SEO, this course will waste no time getting you started. Segmented into four modules, it’s complete with clear instruction videos, quizzes, and reading materials to solidify your training.

To begin, it introduces you to an overview of international SEO by walking you through what goes on behind the way Google’s search engine works. The second module will review international keyword research, how to write copy for different regions, and transcreating international content.

The third module breaks down domain structure—which is crucial for reaching your target audience—and the fourth one talks about hreflang, which is indispensable for going global.

The course takes around 12 hours to complete, but you can go at your own pace. It costs $99 a year, but you can also get a sample lesson for free. You can also watch the free webinar Yoast and Weglot did together on this very subject.

What sets this course apart: You’ll get an international SEO badge and certificate after completing the course and have access to 8 other courses at Yoast. You’re definitely getting bang for your buck here.

International SEO by Traffic Think Tank

Taught by HubSpot’s VP of Marketing and Traffic Think Tank’s co-founder Matthew Howells-Barby, this course explores beyond the basics of international SEO. It also takes you through the various technical architecture methods of the field, ensuring you have the information needed to choose the right setup and strategies for your brand.

Once you’ve got the fundamentals down pat, you’ll then progress to the more advanced aspects, like a complete technical analysis of implementing hreflang into your website. But don’t worry too much about things getting too technical—they’ve put it all together in easy-to-understand terms.

It’s available through two packages: The Full Accelerator, giving you access to templates, live Q&A sessions, their exclusive Slack community, and more at $119 a month. The second one is called Self-Guided Learning, which has the same benefits minus the Slack community membership at $99 a month.

What sets this course apart: It reviews the technical approaches that other brands have used, giving you clear examples to examine for your own implementation.

Multilingual SEO Training Course by Weglot Academy

Our very own international SEO course “Multilingual SEO Training” offers a free introduction to everything that’s needed when implementing an international SEO strategy. It’s also perfect for those who don’t know anything about SEO or even website optimization.

Through this course, you’ll uncover best practices for multilingual SEO, strategies to implement, hreflang tags, and the mistakes to avoid so you successfully launch your global expansion. You’ll even learn how to translate keywords—a crucial part of reaching foreign audiences!

What sets this course apart: It discusses international SEO within the context of using a translation plugin, demonstrating how exactly the two go hand-in-hand. It takes the guesswork out of the equation since you’ll get to see setting up your website for international SEO in action. Plus, it offers several downloadable resources so you can continue your learning offline.

International SEO Course by brightonSEO

If you have the opportunity to travel, brightonSEO’s course is perfect for you. This year’s iteration will be on September 13, 2023—in Brighton, of course—and it’s ideal for those who already have some digital marketing experience.

A day-long event, the course touches upon:

• Multilingual SEO
• Effective localization
• PPC campaigns in various languages and countries
• Global search engines, focusing on Yandex (Russia) and Baidu (China)
• Content marketing principles for international SEO
• and much more

All of these will help you figure out which site structure to use for reaching international markets, improve your online visibility, and optimize your website to convert your website visitors into customers.

Clock’s ticking: early bird tickets are at £680+ VAT, with standard prices at £1020. Those are big savings for a day-long event that’s definitely packed to the gills with information that will inform your global expansion.

What sets this course apart: Apart from being an in-person event (it’s highly recommended to bring a laptop!), you’ll not only get theoretical knowledge, but practical training from highly respected industry veterans. As a plus, you’ll also get access to one of the world’s biggest SEO events in the days after this course.

SEO Manager Certification by BlueArray Academy

Though this is a general SEO course, everything discussed will come in handy. It’s important to have a solid foundation of local SEO before proceeding to the international field, after all.

Taught by a team of 13 SEO experts with their own specialties, you’ll undoubtedly receive in-depth, comprehensive instruction in the many different areas of SEO. We’re being serious: there are over 137 videos, 21 modules, 15 quizzes, and more than 27 hours of content. It will also teach you how to use indispensable SEO tools like Semrush, Ahrefs, Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Screaming Frog, and more. Plus, the videos have captions!

The section on international SEO has what you need to gear up for expanding overseas: geo-redirection, hreflang implementation, checking the effectiveness of your strategy, and many more. It also has task assignments for you to ensure you can put what you learn into practice.

The course costs £497 if you pay in one go. If you opt to go the monthly route, it’ll be £49 a month.

What sets this course apart: The course was praised for being the “Holy Grail of SEO courses”—after all, you’ll be a certified SEO manager after taking it. It also comes highly recommended within SEO communities. It’s also accredited by The CPD Certification Service.

International SEO by LinkedIn Learning

Taught by David Booth, whose credentials include instructing and speaking at hundreds of events focusing on digital analytics and search and conversion marketing, this course is a great free source to get your feet wet in the field.

It offers an overview of the basics of international SEO, its technical aspects, on-page and off-page optimization, and how to measure your performance—which can be a tricky thing if you’re not a native of your target markets. It also focuses on how to gain market share in different search engines, like Baidu, Yandex, and Naver (South Korea).  

This course is an excellent introduction to international SEO and giving you a well-rounded idea of what you need to succeed in charming your new audiences, making it perfect for beginners.

What sets this course apart: It’s a short course, clocking in at 1 hour and 25 minutes long. Since it’s also free, that makes it one of the most accessible on this list.

SEO Fundamentals by Semrush

Taught by Greg Gifford, a Semrush trusted partner, this free course is great for reviewing the basics of SEO while exploring the more technical aspects of it. You can’t have international SEO without the fundamentals of local SEO, and luckily, this course has both.

This course covers facets that are important to consider for international SEO: duplicate content (without the right attributes, search engines will index the different language versions of your site as duplicates), URLs, keyword research, on-page elements, local content, and more. Best of all, it’s for free.

What sets this course apart: Apart from being taught by one of the undisputed leaders in SEO, each module consists of a brief 2-6 minute video, making them easily digestible. That means you can easily fit these into your workday and get caught up quickly.

Conclusion

While there’s plenty of free content available to get you started on international SEO, there’s no better way to take information than through engaging videos and content (apart from in-person instruction, of course!).

There’s a world of learning opportunities out there for learners of each level and budget—and these are some of the best ones. With any of these courses, you’ll definitely feel less like you’re lost in the woods, and more confident about translating your website, localizing your content, and putting your multilingual website out there.

Curious about how this all works together? See your multilingual website in action by signing up for a 10-day free trial.