Complete Wix international SEO and alternative search engine audit checklist

This capstone lesson combines every international and alternative search engine technique from this module into a comprehensive 50-point audit checklist. Use this quarterly to assess your Wix site international SEO readiness, identify gaps in your multilingual and multi-engine coverage, and prioritise improvements. Score each item as Pass (2 points), Partial (1 point), or Fail (0 points) for a maximum score of 100.

Section 1: Multilingual Technical Setup (10 Points)

• Wix Multilingual enabled with all target languages configured
• Hreflang tags correctly generated and verified in page source
• URL slugs translated into native language for each language version
• Language switcher functioning correctly and accessible from all pages
• Self-referencing hreflang tag present on every page
• X-default hreflang set for your primary language version
• Each language version has its own unique title tags and meta descriptions
• Image alt text translated for each language version
• Robots.txt allows crawling of all language version directories
• Separate sitemaps submitted for each language version to relevant search engines

Section 2: Search Engine Registration (8 Points)

• Google Search Console: all language versions verified and monitored
• Bing Webmaster Tools: site registered with sitemap submitted
• Yandex Webmaster: site registered if targeting Russian-speaking markets
• Naver Search Advisor: site registered if targeting South Korean market
• Baidu Webmaster Tools: site registered if targeting Chinese-speaking audiences
• Target region correctly set in each search engine webmaster tool
• Sitemaps submitted and accepted in each relevant webmaster tool
• Crawl errors resolved across all registered search engines

Section 3: Keyword Research and Content (10 Points)

• Native-language keyword research conducted (not just translations)
• Keywords validated by native speakers from target countries
• Bilingual keyword maps created for each target language
• Cultural search behaviour differences documented and accounted for
• Content written or reviewed by native speakers (not machine-only translation)
• Localisation style guide created for each target language
• Content culturally adapted with local examples and references
• FAQs and blog content created in native languages targeting local questions
• Content freshness maintained with regular updates in each language version
• No thin or low-quality machine-translated content published

Section 4: Content Localisation Quality (8 Points)

• Currency formats correct for each target market
• Date formats correct for each target market
• Phone numbers include correct country codes and local formatting
• Addresses formatted correctly for each target country
• Local trust signals displayed (company registration numbers, regulatory information)
• Culturally appropriate imagery used for each market
• Legal requirements met for each target country (e.g., Impressum for Germany)
• Tone and formality level appropriate for each cultural context

Section 5: Technical SEO (8 Points)

• Page speed tested and acceptable from each target country
• UTF-8 encoding rendering correctly for all non-Latin scripts
• Crawl budget managed efficiently across language versions
• Structured data localised with correct currency and address for each market
• No duplicate content between language versions (hreflang handling duplicates correctly)
• Core Web Vitals passing for each language version
• Mobile usability verified for each language version (some scripts require different mobile handling)
• Custom code and integrations working correctly with non-Latin characters

Section 6: Market-Specific Optimisations (6 Points)

• Naver Blog and Cafe presence established for Korean market
• Yandex Metrica installed for Russian market analytics
• Bing optimisation applied for DuckDuckGo visibility in privacy-focused markets
• Local business directories registered in each target country
• Google Business Profile configured for each country with local information
• Social media presence established on locally dominant platforms (VKontakte, WeChat, KakaoTalk)

Scoring Guide

Total your score out of 100. Score 80-100: Excellent international SEO foundation. Score 60-79: Good foundation with gaps in specific markets. Score 40-59: Significant improvements needed across multiple areas. Score below 40: Major gaps in international readiness requiring immediate attention.

Run the complete international SEO audit

• Block 4-5 hours for the full audit (more complex than single-market audits)
• Work through each section systematically for each target language and market
• Score each item per language version (a Partial on German does not affect French score)
• Prioritise Section 1 (multilingual setup) first as the technical foundation
• Then address Section 3 (keyword research and content) for the most impactful improvements
• Next tackle Section 2 (search engine registration) for each target market
• Create market-specific action plans for each target country
• Schedule quarterly re-audits and track improvement by market