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name	international-seo
description	Implements and validates multilingual/multi-regional setup including hreflang. Use when launching locales or fixing wrong-language/region landing.

International SEO

Overview

Tell Google about language/region variants clearly and consistently.

When to Use

hreflang errors, locale subfolders/domains, regional targeting

Not for: Translation quality alone without URL/locale signals.

Official sources

Process

Map language-region → URL for each variant.
Add bidirectional hreflang annotations (HTML, HTTP headers, or sitemap).
Include x-default when a sensible default/chooser URL exists — treat absence as a review signal, not an automatic failure.
Ensure each locale page is self-canonical and returns 200.
Run python skills/international-seo/scripts/hreflang_audit.py <url-or-file>.
Avoid automatic redirection solely by IP that blocks locale choice.

Common Rationalizations

Rationalization	Reality
"One language is enough; skip hreflang."	Without annotations, Google may show the wrong locale in Search.
"Missing x-default always fails."	Flag it for review; add x-default when you have a default/chooser URL.
"Auto-redirect by IP is fine."	It can block users (and crawlers) from choosing a locale — avoid hard IP-only locks.

Red Flags

One-way hreflang (A→B without B→A)
Locale URLs that 404 or canonicalize to another language
Inventing geo-targeting rules not in Search Central

Verification

Locale map documented
hreflang entries reciprocal or gaps listed
missing_x_default reviewed (add or accept with rationale)
Script JSON or manual table captured