In Open Graph markup, what's the use of 'og:locale:alternate' without the location (href)?

Understanding og:locale:alternate in Open Graph Markup

Explore the purpose and proper usage of og:locale:alternate in Open Graph markup, especially when no href attribute is present, to enhance content discoverability and localization.

Open Graph (OG) protocol allows web developers to control how their content appears when shared on social media platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter (via Twitter Cards). Among its many properties, og:locale specifies the locale of the content, such as en_US for American English. A lesser-understood property is og:locale:alternate, which is used to declare other available locales for the same content. This article delves into the specific use case of og:locale:alternate when it appears without an associated href attribute, clarifying its role in content discoverability and localization strategies.

The Role of og:locale:alternate

The og:locale:alternate property serves as a signal to social media crawlers and other parsers that alternative language versions of the content exist. While og:locale indicates the primary language of the current page, og:locale:alternate lists other languages in which the content is available. This is crucial for internationalization (i18n) and ensuring that users in different regions are presented with the most relevant version of your content.

flowchart TD
    A[User Shares URL] --> B{Social Media Crawler}
    B --> C{Parse Open Graph Tags}
    C --> D{Identify `og:locale`}
    C --> E{Identify `og:locale:alternate`}
    E --> F{Understand Available Locales}
    F --> G[Suggest Relevant Content to Users]
    G --> H{Display Localized Snippet}

How social media crawlers use Open Graph locale information.

Why og:locale:alternate Without href?

Unlike hreflang tags in HTML, which explicitly link to alternative language versions of a page, og:locale:alternate does not have a direct href attribute to point to the URL of the alternate locale. This distinction is key to understanding its purpose. When og:locale:alternate is used without an href, it primarily acts as a declarative statement about the existence of other language versions. It tells the social media platform: "Hey, this content is also available in these other languages." It does not, however, provide the direct link to those versions.

This is useful for several reasons:

1. Content Discoverability: It helps platforms understand the linguistic scope of your content, potentially influencing how it's presented or recommended to users in different locales.
2. User Experience: While it doesn't provide a direct link, it can inform platforms to display a more appropriate snippet or even suggest a localized version if their algorithms can infer or find it.
3. SEO for Social: Although not a direct SEO factor for search engines, it contributes to a better social media presence, which can indirectly impact traffic and engagement.
4. Simplicity: For sites where the URL structure for different locales is complex or not easily derivable, simply declaring the available locales can still provide valuable information without requiring explicit URL mapping in the Open Graph tags themselves.

<meta property="og:locale" content="en_US" />
<meta property="og:locale:alternate" content="fr_FR" />
<meta property="og:locale:alternate" content="es_ES" />
<meta property="og:locale:alternate" content="de_DE" />

Example of og:locale:alternate usage without href

Best Practices and Limitations

When using og:locale:alternate, consider the following:

• Consistency: Ensure the locales declared in og:locale:alternate accurately reflect the languages your content is available in.
• Granularity: Use specific locale codes (e.g., en_GB vs. en_US) where regional differences are significant.
• Complementary to hreflang: og:locale:alternate should be seen as complementary to, rather than a replacement for, hreflang attributes. hreflang provides explicit links for search engines and browsers, while og:locale:alternate informs social platforms.
• No Direct Navigation: Remember that og:locale:alternate does not provide a direct link for users to switch languages on the social platform itself. Its impact is more about informing the platform's algorithms.

In summary, og:locale:alternate without an href is a valuable, albeit subtle, tool for indicating the linguistic breadth of your content to social media platforms. It enhances content discoverability and contributes to a more localized user experience, even if it doesn't offer direct navigation to alternate language versions.