The site had multiple regional versions of the same content, each intended for different markets:
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- US Pages – The primary versions intended for US audiences, correctly mapped with hreflang tags but losing visibility in search.
- Non-US Pages (UK, India, Canada, etc.) – Frequently more detailed, better optimized, and lacking proper hreflang connections back to US pages.

Despite correct hreflang implementation on US pages, the absence of reciprocal hreflang links and missing hreflang sitemaps on many regional sites led to search engines misattributing rankings, causing non-US versions to outrank US pages in US search results. This led to:

🔗 Broken hreflang reciprocity – While US pages linked to their international counterparts, non-US pages often failed to point back to the US version. This inconsistency confused Google, preventing it from correctly understanding which version should rank in which region.
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🚫 Missing hreflang sitemaps – Some regional sites lacked an hreflang sitemap entirely, making it difficult for Google to associate the correct language and country variations. Without a structured sitemap, search engines relied on other ranking signals, leading to non-US pages appearing in US search results.

🌍 Stronger non-US content & US content limitations – Non-US teams, particularly in the UK, India, and Canada, created more detailed, optimized, and frequently updated content, giving them an advantage in rankings. However, the US content team resisted improving on-page content, believing it was already sufficient. While the hreflang mismatches were the immediate issue, long-term SEO stability required the US content team to enhance their pages to remain competitive.

⚠️ Lack of global team collaboration – Despite recognizing the issue, the US SEO team faced hesitation from international teams, who were either unwilling or slow to implement changes. This lack of cooperation further delayed fixes, prolonging the ranking disparities.

Since non-US pages were still valuable for their respective regions, we needed a solution that ensured US pages ranked properly in the US without negatively impacting global SEO. In the short term, fixing the hreflang sitemap mismatches was the priority, but long-term success required the US content team to improve content quality to remain competitive.

To resolve ranking inconsistencies and improve global SEO performance, we implemented a structured technical SEO strategy while overcoming challenges with international teams.

🔗 Standardized Hreflang XML Sitemaps – Conducted a full audit of existing hreflang tagging, identifying inconsistencies across regional pages.
1️⃣ Implemented a centralized hreflang sitemap, ensuring proper country-language mapping.
2️⃣ Removed conflicting canonical tags that prevented correct regional ranking.
3️⃣ Ensured all US pages correctly pointed to international versions and vice versa for reciprocal hreflang implementation.

🌍 Fixed Regional Hreflang Gaps – Addressed issues where non-US pages failed to link back to US counterparts, leading to misaligned rankings.
1️⃣ Identified regions where hreflang was partially implemented or missing links back to US pages.
2️⃣ Updated hreflang tags to ensure each international page correctly referenced its US equivalent.
3️⃣ Provided detailed implementation guidelines to regional teams for consistency across markets.

🚫 Implemented Missing Hreflang Sitemaps – Resolved cases where entire markets lacked hreflang sitemaps, making it difficult for Google to associate pages correctly.
1️⃣ Created hreflang sitemaps for regions that previously had none, ensuring full search engine recognition.
2️⃣ Worked with site engineers to automate hreflang sitemap updates, preventing future gaps.
3️⃣ Improved Google’s ability to rank the correct regional pages by ensuring all pages were properly referenced.

⚠️ Coordinated Across 29+ Regions – Overcame resistance from international teams to drive adoption of SEO best practices and ensure long-term success.
1️⃣ Built trust with global stakeholders, educating them on hreflang’s impact and aligning on execution.
2️⃣ Established a shared Google Doc that all teams updated, creating visibility into URL changes across regions.
3️⃣ Successfully implemented technical fixes across 29+ regional teams, ensuring a scalable and repeatable SEO framework.

This technical SEO overhaul not only stabilized rankings but also improved cross-team collaboration, ensuring long-term visibility and accuracy in global search results. 🚀