How to Identify Your Next Global Market: A Data-Backed Approach

Expanding into international markets can unlock tremendous growth for SaaS and eCommerce businesses. But choosing the right country and language to target isn’t guesswork – it requires digging into data and trends. By taking a step-by-step, data-backed approach, you can pinpoint high-potential global markets and plan a successful localization strategy. In this guide, we’ll walk through how to use tools like Google Analytics, SEMrush, and market research reports to analyze where your opportunities lie, and how those insights inform your multilingual SEO and website localization plans.

Why Look Beyond Your Home Market? 

International expansion is no longer optional for ambitious businesses – it’s essential. Consider that over 70% of web users speak a native language other than English. In fact, 76% of online shoppers prefer to buy products with information in their own language, and about 40% won’t buy at all from sites only in English[MultiLipi]. The takeaway is clear: if you’re not reaching customers in their language, you’re missing out on huge swaths of demand. Even giants like Netflix derive ~56% of their subscribers from outside the U.S., with 90% of new growth fueled by international markets[article]. Going global can dramatically boost your traffic and revenue – if you choose your markets wisely and speak to users in a way that resonates.

1. Analyze Your Existing User Geography and Interest. 

Start with the data you already have. Your own analytics can reveal latent international opportunities that are “low-hanging fruit.” Dive into Google Analytics (GA) or a similar platform to see where your current visitors are coming from. The GA Demographics > Location reports (or GA4’s geographic insights) let you break down traffic by country and even city[source]. Look at your top countries by sessions, users, and conversion rates. You might discover, for example, that you’re already getting thousands of visits from countries you haven’t marketed to yet – say, unexpected organic traffic from Brazil or India. Also check Google Search Console for which countries and languages your site impressions come from. If you see a lot of interest from a particular country despite having no localized content for it, that’s a strong indicator of organic demand you can capitalize on[Multilipi]. Pay attention to engagement metrics too: a country with high session duration or conversion rate, even on an English-only site, could skyrocket if you localize for it. As a best practice, compare conversion rates by country – if users in Germany already convert well in English, imagine their response to a German version of your site! GA4’s new geographic visualization even shows the mix of new vs. returning users by country, which can hint at growing interest in certain regions. In short, your own data can validate where real audiences exist abroad. Many internal analytics platforms track this automatically, so use that insight as your compass for global expansion.

Google Analytics geo report showing website traffic segmented by country. Analyzing your site’s existing audience geography helps reveal which foreign markets already have interest in your product.

One SaaS founder described how they noticed a spike in sign-ups from South Korea in their analytics, prompting them to investigate that market. Sure enough, there was significant demand and low competition – a perfect expansion opportunity. Follow a similar approach: list the top 5–10 countries by traffic and leads in your analytics, then keep those in mind as prime candidates moving forward. Sometimes your next global market is hiding in plain sight in your user data.

2. Research External Market Demand and SEO Opportunities

While your analytics look inward at your site, tools like SEMrush look outward at the whole market[google]. To validate and expand on the findings from GA, perform market-specific keyword and trend research. For each prospective country on your list, investigate how popular your product or service is in that region. Start with keyword research: using SEO tools (SEMrush, Ahrefs, Google Keyword Planner, etc.), switch the location setting to the country or language in question. Check the search volume for your core industry terms in the local language. For example, if you offer a project management SaaS, see how many monthly searches occur for “gestion de projet logiciel” (French) or “software di gestione progetti” (Italian). You might find that some markets have a much higher search volume (indicating strong interest) than others. Also look at trending keywords or topics – a rising trend can signal a market ready to boom. Google Trends is a free way to compare interest by country; try plugging in your product category and see which regions show the highest interest over the past year.

Next, scope out the competitive landscape in those locales. SEMrush’s Traffic Analytics or Market Explorer features can estimate competitors’ traffic by country and show market share distributions. If one country’s market is dominated by a few big players, breaking in might be tougher. On the other hand, a country where market share is more evenly spread (i.e. no single company owns the whole market) could present an easier entry. For instance, Semrush’s market analysis of the payments industry found Japan had a more level playing field than the US, making it easier for a new entrant to compete. Also research if your direct competitors have already localized sites for that country – if none of them have bothered to translate for, say, Japan, you could gain a first-mover advantage there.

Using a combination of SEO tools and market research reports, gather data on: total market size (e.g. number of online shoppers or SaaS spending in that country), growth rate of your sector, and any relevant cultural factors. Statista, OECD, or World Bank data can be useful for economic indicators. For example, you might find that Country A has a bigger economy, but Country B’s e-commerce sector is growing faster year-over-year. A high-growth market might be a better bet even if it is smaller today. At this stage, you’re effectively doing a mini market analysis for each candidate region – considering factors like market size, growth, competition, and consumer behavior. As Maryna Hradovich of Semrush advises, compare countries side by side to reveal opportunities you might have overlooked and to spot any red flags[14]. The data-driven approach might even challenge assumptions; a country you assumed was “too small” could show a big digital audience for your niche, or a hyped market might reveal itself to be saturated or slow-growing. The goal is to ground your expansion choice in real metrics rather than hunches.

3. Evaluate Purchasing Power and Market Fit.

Not all traffic is equal – you’ll want to expand where customers can actually pay for your product and deliver ROI. So the next step is to assess the purchasing power and economic fit of the markets on your shortlist. Look at metrics like GDP per capita, median income, and consumer spending in your category. For SaaS, consider indicators like the maturity of the tech sector or cloud software adoption in that country. For eCommerce, look at online shopping penetration and average order values. Sometimes a quick proxy is to check credit card penetration or digital payment usage – countries with higher adoption of online payments may be easier to monetize (though don’t discount markets with alternate payment preferences – you can adapt to those). For example, if you’re an eCommerce brand eyeing Asia, note that China and India have huge populations but very different per-capita incomes and payment infrastructures. A market like Germany might have fewer people than India, but far higher spending per user on online products. Balance the raw size of the audience with their likely spending power for your offering.

Also ensure your product fits the local needs. Are there any localization requirements for it to be viable? For instance, if your SaaS deals with finance or healthcare, certain countries may have strict data residency or compliance rules – you’d need to factor those in. Check if your service supports local currencies and languages, or if that country has unique regulations (e.g. GDPR in Europe, data laws in China). These regulatory and operational factors are crucial to consider[MultiLipi]. Expanding somewhere with major legal barriers or logistical challenges can eat up resources, so weigh the effort versus reward.

A related angle is cultural fit: does your value proposition resonate in that culture? This is harder to quantify, but market research reports or even a few customer interviews can help. For example, a social media SaaS that thrives in the U.S. might need tweaks in Japan, where business culture differs. Or certain product categories (like alcohol, dating apps, etc.) may face cultural resistance in some markets. Ensure there aren’t cultural or language nuances that fundamentally clash with your product’s concept.

4. Prioritize and Select Your Target Market (Data-Driven Decision). 

By now, you have a good mix of data: your internal user geography, external search/market stats, economic indicators, and notes on competition and feasibility. Now, synthesize these to pick the best market to enter first. You might score each country across key criteria – e.g. current traffic, search volume, growth rate, competitive intensity, average income, etc. – and see which one comes out on top. Often, one or two countries will clearly present the strongest opportunity when viewed holistically. For example, you might conclude something like: “Brazil shows high current traffic and search volume for our keywords, moderate competition, and a fast-growing economy – plus our product has Portuguese support. Let’s start there.” Meanwhile another market might be large but heavily dominated by a local competitor, making it a less attractive first move.

It’s usually wise to focus on one market at a time (or a small number) for the initial rollout, rather than spreading yourself too thin. You can treat it as a pilot: succeed in one new country, then leverage that playbook for the next. Also, consider starting with a market that is somewhat closer to home in terms of language or culture as a test run. Many companies choose a market with some similarities to their own as the first expansion – for instance, a U.S. company might target Canada or the UK before jumping to Asia. MultiLipi’s analysis of Amazon’s expansion noted that Amazon initially chose markets like the UK and Germany (shared language or high development) to learn and refine their strategy before tackling more distant locales[amazon success]. You can do the same on a smaller scale. Ultimately, base your choice on data, not hype – don’t just expand into a country because “everyone says it’s the next big thing” if the numbers don’t back it up for your business[MultiLipi]. A clear-eyed, data-backed market selection sets the stage for successful execution.

5. Shape Your Localization and Translation Strategy Based on Insights. 

Identifying the market is half the battle – next, you need to win over that market through effective localization. The research you’ve done should directly inform your localization and multilingual SEO strategy. Here’s how:

• Language Selection: Decide which language(s) to use for the market, if it’s not obvious. Some countries are multilingual or have preferred business languages. Your data might show, for example, that in India a large segment of your target users search in Hindi vs. English. You may choose to localize in multiple languages for one country (like Canada needing English and French content). If your chosen market has a primary language (e.g. Japan -> Japanese), that’s your main target for translation. The rule of thumb is to speak to users in their dominant tongue – remember, customers are far more likely to engage and convert when content “speaks” to them in their language[MultiLipi]. And if one language can reach multiple countries (Spanish for Spain and Latin America, for instance), plan for regional variants if needed (think Castilian Spanish vs. Latin American Spanish phrasing).
• Keyword and Content Localization: Use your earlier keyword research to drive your translated content strategy. Don’t simply translate your English website word-for-word. Instead, identify the top local search terms and localize your SEO keywords accordingly. For example, if you found that Germans search for “Projektmanagement-Tool kostenlos” for free project management tools, ensure your German site uses that terminology in titles and headings. This is the essence of multilingual SEO – optimizing content for how locals search[Multilipi]. Your insights into local user behavior (from tools or surveys) also guide content tone and examples. Adapt your marketing messages to local pain points and cultural references. If your research showed that French users care more about data privacy, you might emphasize that aspect more on your French landing page. Essentially, let local consumer preferences and search intent shape your translated content so it feels native and relevant, not a clunky one-size-fits-all copy. Companies that invest in true localization (beyond literal translation) see higher engagement and conversion because the experience feels native to each market.
• Website Structure & Technical SEO: Determine how you’ll structure your global website for the new market – this could be a country-specific domain (ccTLD like .de for Germany), a subdomain (de.yourwebsite.com), or a subdirectory (yourwebsite.com/de/). Many SEO experts prefer subdirectories for ease of management and sharing domain authority, but any structure can work if implemented correctly. What’s important is to set up proper hreflang tags and language-specific URLs so search engines know which content is for which locale. For instance, your Spanish pages should have hreflang="es" (and region-specific codes if targeting a country like es-MX for Mexico) to ensure Spanish speakers (and Google) see the right version. Your research into target countries will inform the hreflang values and how you segment the site. Also consider creating localized metadata (titles, descriptions) that incorporate local keywords – a translated site is only as good as its SEO meta tags in the local language. If this sounds daunting, the good news is that modern platforms can automate much of it. MultiLipi, for example, automatically generates SEO-friendly, language-specific URLs for each translated page, inserts hreflang tags, and translates your meta tags, ensuring your multilingual site gets indexed properly in each market. This removes a huge technical headache so you can focus on content and strategy.
• Cultural and UX Adaptation: Beyond text, decide if you need to adapt elements of your site or product for local culture. Your earlier analysis might have uncovered things like preferred payment methods (e.g. offering Cash on Delivery in regions where credit card use is low, which Amazon famously did in India) or differences in color symbolism, units of measure, date formats, holidays, etc. Make a checklist of such adaptations: currency conversion, local shipping info, customer support availability in local time zones, and so on. These operational tweaks can dramatically improve user trust. For instance, showing prices in Japanese Yen or offering a WeChat Pay option for Chinese customers can make or break a sale. While not all of this is “translation,” it’s part of the localization strategy [MultiLipi]– molding the entire user experience to local expectations. The insight here is to use the knowledge you gathered (from market research or even competitors in that region) to fine-tune your approach. If domestic competitors in that market all use a certain formal tone in marketing, you may follow suit. If certain features are non-negotiable (like WhatsApp support in some countries), plan to provide them.
• Localization Workflow and Quality: Decide how you’ll translate your content – in-house bilingual team, professional translators, or AI-powered tools with human review. For scaling efficiently, many businesses use a mix of machine translation and human editing. AI translation tools (like the one integrated in MultiLipi) can rapidly produce a first draft for dozens of languages, which you can then polish for accuracy and tone. Leverage things like glossaries for key terms (to ensure brand/product names and technical terms stay consistent) and translation memory to maintain consistency across pages. Earlier, you identified content scope and complexity – now plan resources accordingly. If you have a lot of content to translate, prioritize the highest-impact pages (e.g. your homepage, product pages, top blog posts) for professional review, and perhaps use AI for less critical content to save time. To get an idea of the translation effort, you can use a tool like MultiLipi’s free Website Word Count Tool, which scans your site and instantly calculates the total word count that would need translation[Word count tool]. This helps scope the project and budget (e.g. finding out you have 50,000 words to translate might influence whether you do it all at once or in phases). Once you launch the localized site, have a process for ongoing updates – new blog posts, product updates, etc., should be translated so the local site stays in sync and continues to feel fully maintained for users.

6. Test, Launch, and Monitor Results (Optimize Continuously).

 With your plan in place – target market selected, site localized, SEO optimized – it’s time to go live and closely monitor how the new market responds. Treat the first few months as a learning period. Keep a close eye on your analytics again: Are users from the target country finding the new localized pages? Is organic traffic growing now that you have local-language SEO in place? Track keyword rankings in the target language to see if your multilingual SEO efforts are paying off (for instance, monitor if you start ranking on Google.fr for French keywords after launching a French site). Also watch on-site behavior: is the bounce rate lower now that visitors see their language? Ideally, you should see engagement and conversion metrics improve significantly compared to when those users only had an English site. If something is underperforming – e.g. lots of traffic but low conversions – that may signal a need to tweak your messaging or UX for that locale. Perhaps the call-to-action isn’t compelling in the translated version, or maybe an element of your offer needs adjustment for local tastes. Use tools like heatmaps or user feedback widgets on your localized site to gather qualitative data too.

Don’t forget to iterate. Global expansion is an ongoing process of optimization. Continue researching and refining your approach: add more localized content (like region-specific blog articles targeting local trends or holidays), improve your site’s load time in that region (maybe using a CDN or local hosting), and build local backlinks if possible to boost SEO. Essentially, treat your new market as you did your original – invest in marketing, SEO, and customer experience, all tailored to that locale. The difference now is you have a framework and tools to do this efficiently across languages.

One powerful ally at this stage is a platform like MultiLipi, which not only helps with the initial launch but also with ongoing global SEO management. MultiLipi’s dashboard provides analytics on your top languages and visitor locations, so you can continuously track which regions and languages are driving growth. For example, you might discover through MultiLipi’s analytics that your Spanish pages are getting a lot of traffic from Argentina – which could hint at a next expansion focus (e.g. creating region-specific content for Latin America). The platform also flags any untranslated content or SEO tags, ensuring nothing slips through the cracks as you update your site. In other words, it simplifies the maintenance of a multilingual website that keeps performing well.

Case in Point: Braux.ch, a Swiss luxury real estate firm, faced a plateau with their French-only website. They noticed interest from international buyers searching in English, German, Chinese, etc., but those users weren’t engaging. After partnering with MultiLipi to launch an 8-language site, the impact was dramatic: Braux’s pages were quickly indexed in all new languages and started ranking for valuable local search queries (e.g. German searches for Swiss chalets)[Case Study]. Within one quarter, their multilingual SEO strategy led to a 300%+ increase in organic traffic and a surge in qualified leads from abroad. The key takeaway is that by identifying demand from specific countries and providing a localized web experience, Braux.ch massively expanded its reach. You can replicate this playbook – use data to find where the demand is, then use the right technology to serve those users in their language.

Leverage the Right Tools to Execute.

We’ve mentioned MultiLipi’s capabilities throughout this guide, and that’s because having an all-in-one multilingual website solution can accelerate and de-risk your expansion. MultiLipi supports subdirectory and subdomain setups (so however you choose to structure your site, it works), and it automates the heavy lifting of multilingual SEO (like injecting hreflang and managing translated URLs). It also offers AI translation with human refinement, glossary management for key terms, and even a visual editor so you can fine-tune translations in context. Essentially, it’s designed to help businesses launch multilingual sites fast without compromising on SEO or quality – a perfect match for a data-driven expansion strategy where timing and precision matter.

Before launching your localized site, you can take advantage of free tools to get prepared. For example, run your current site through MultiLipi’s Free SEO Analyzer to catch any SEO issues (broken links, missing tags, etc.) that you should fix before duplicating the site in another language[SEO tool]. A healthy base site makes for a stronger multilingual foundation. And use the Word Count Tool mentioned earlier to estimate translation workload[Word count tool] – this helps in budgeting and setting realistic timelines. These tools are available for anyone to use and can be a quick “global readiness” check for your website.

Finally, when everything is ready: launch, promote, and invite the world. Announce your new localized site or service availability in the target market. Maybe run a region-specific marketing campaign to kickstart awareness. Continue measuring results closely and don’t be afraid to iterate on your strategy with new data. Global expansion is an ongoing learning experience, but with each market you conquer, the next one becomes easier as you build institutional knowledge.

Conclusion & Next Steps: 

Identifying your next global market is an exercise in turning data into decisions. By analyzing where your users come from, researching market conditions, and understanding local language preferences, you take the guesswork out of international expansion. The result is a clear choice of country (or countries) that offer the best shot at ROI. From there, it’s about executing a smart localization plan – translating and optimizing your website, adapting to cultural nuances, and leveraging tools for multilingual SEO. Services like MultiLipi can support you in not only validating which market to pursue, but also executing the launch with confidence, thanks to features like SEO automation and AI-driven translation. As you take this exciting step, remember that going global is a marathon, not a sprint: start with data, localize thoughtfully, and keep learning from your new audience.

Ready to grow your business beyond borders? 

MultiLipi is here to help turn your data insights into a fully localized, high-ranking website. 🌏✨ Begin by trying our free SEO Analyzer and Website Word Count Tool to audit your site’s global readiness, and when you’re ready, start a free trial of MultiLipi to launch your multilingual site with ease. The world’s online marketplace is vast – with the right approach and the right partner, your product can find its next 100k customers in a new language. Don’t let language be a barrier; let it be your competitive advantage. Take the leap into your next global market backed by data – and watch your international growth take off! 🚀
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