Not before time, Google has announced the release of a geographic targeting tool that allows businesses to tell the search company where their company web site is located and in turn target the correct audience.
Previously Google used the hosting IP address of a web site to determine a site’s geographic location and used that criteria to decide if the site belonged in the region-specific search results.
For example, a French company with a web site hosted with a U.S -based hosting company would have a U.S. IP address. Consequently, Google would determine that the company’s web site belonged in the U.S. search results and not the French-specific results.
While the new tool addresses some problems with geo-targeting it only works with .com, .org and .net domain extensions. According to Google if you have a web site with a .fr (French) domain extension and a French hosting IP address your site is already geographically targeted. Not sure how it works if you’ve got a French domain extension but your web site is hosted in country other than France. Anyone have the answer?
If you’d like to set the geographic target of your business, follow the instructions below:
1. Sign in to Google’s Webmaster Tools using your Google Account.
2. Assuming you’ve already submitted a site map for your site, click on the site’s URL.
3. Click the Tools link then click Set Geographic Target.
4. Select Associate a Geographic Location to This Site.
5. Choose your geographic location and hit save.
Written by Julia Hyde
Interact.
Have your tried this new tool? What do you think? Let us know by commenting below.
Related Articles and Posts.
Lost in Translation: It takes more than a Currency Converter to Sell Successfully Overseas
geolocation
Google Webmaster Tools