by David Grunwald
Shithole Countries
In 2018, US President Donald Trump famously referred to Haiti, El Salvador and some African countries as shithole nations. His statement rasied the ire of those countries, as well as some US and other world citizens, as being racist. Since then, the President in his second term has doubled down on this statement and has enacted immigration policies that are aligned with that statement.
Not to denigrate any country, but in the world of online translation services (at least as far as GTS is concerned), there are a number of shithole countries. By that I mean countries that send thousands of visitors to the GTS website, without resulting in any sales whatsoever. Not that there is anything illegal in that, but as an online marketer you may want to consider this as you anaylyze your online traffic.
India
GTS gets hundreds of visits from India each week. We also get many emails with RFPs. Out of tens of thousands of visits over the last few years, I can probably count on one hand the number of real orders that we received from Indian customers.
Egypt
Egypt has an inordinate number of LSPs and translators. EGYTA, Egypt’s official translation certification organization, has over 20,000 members. This is more than double than the number of members in the American Translators Association (ATA). This statistic is staggering, as Egypt’s population is about one-third of that of the United States. For GTS, the result of Egypt’s oversized translation community is that a huge number of people are coming to the GTS website in search of work. It is extremely rare that we receive orders from companies or individuals in Egypt.
Pakistan
GTS never received an order from Pakistan, although we get many visitors from there. Perhaps it has to do with Pakistan being one of the 50 poorest countries in the world.
Bangladesh
One of the most densely populated countries in the world, this country drives a lot of traffic but GTS never converted one into any kind of revenue.
Honorable Mentions
Here are some other countries that drive considerable traffic, but zero sales: Iran, Syria, Algiers, Ethiopia, Kenya. Some of these countries are basically not part of western society and some even lack any secure cross-border payment rails to pay online.
Why do so many people from these countries visit GTS Translation Services website?
Naturally, the question arises: if zero percent of these visitors have buying intent, why are they visiting our website in droves. I can think of a few reasons:
Job seekers. Freelance translators, graphic designers, DTP people, software developers-the list is lone. We receive many employment applications.
B2B inquiries. Many translation vendors reach out to us for “cooperation.”
Price positioning. GTS has an online tool for online translation price quotes. Many visitors come to find out what the competition is charging, to help them provide quotes to their clients.
RFPs. Many companies, especially from India, send phony translation Request for Proposals (RFP) that have zero chances of converting.
Scammers. This is one of the darkest sides in the world of online translation. We get dozens of emails and registrations from scammers who prey on innocent clients and translators, posing as GTS staff to bilk people out of money.
Why “More Traffic” Is the Wrong KPI for Translation Companies
For years, digital marketing advice has emphasized one primary metric: more traffic. While this approach may work for media sites, SaaS products, or ad-supported platforms, it is often misleading for translation companies.
Professional translation services are a high-intent, low-frequency purchase. Visitors are not casually browsing; they typically arrive with a specific document, deadline, compliance requirement, and budget. If those conditions are not met, the visit has little or no commercial value. Large volumes of traffic from users who cannot pay, have no purchasing authority, or are searching for employment rather than services do not contribute to revenue. Instead, they distort performance metrics and create the illusion of growth.
This is why raw traffic volume is considered a vanity metric in performance marketing. Google itself recommends focusing on business outcomes such as conversions and revenue rather than sessions alone. See Google Analytics guidance on meaningful KPIs.
For translation companies, more meaningful KPIs include:
- Conversion rate by country or region
- Revenue per session
- Qualified leads submitted with files attached
- Average order value by geography
A smaller number of visitors from markets with purchasing power, functional payment systems, and genuine buyer intent will almost always outperform significantly larger volumes of untargeted international traffic.
The Hidden Cost of Non-Converting International Traffic
Non-converting traffic is not neutral. It carries real costs that are often overlooked.
First, large volumes of non-buyer traffic pollute analytics data. Conversion rates appear artificially low, A/B tests become less reliable, and it becomes harder to identify which landing pages or funnels actually work for real customers. Google discusses this challenge in the context of data quality and segmentation.
Second, non-converting traffic creates operational drag. Translation companies frequently receive inquiries from visitors who are seeking work, or requesting quotes with no realistic intent to proceed. Every response consumes staff time that could otherwise be spent supporting paying customers.
Third, there are SEO implications. Search engines evaluate engagement signals such as bounce rate, dwell time, and rapid backtracking. When visitors land on a site, realize they cannot use the service, and immediately leave, those signals can negatively affect perceived page quality. Google Search Central addresses engagement and relevance considerations.
Finally, there are structural payment and compliance barriers. Certain countries lack access to international payment networks or are subject to U.S. and international sanctions. In these cases, even motivated buyers may be legally or technically unable to complete a transaction with a U.S.-based translation provider. The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) outlines these restrictions.
From a business standpoint, traffic from regions with no viable payment rails is structurally non-monetizable, regardless of how well the website or checkout process is optimized.
Strategic Takeaway
The objective for a professional translation company is not maximum global visibility. It is commercial relevance.
Traffic should be evaluated based on its ability to convert into legitimate, payable orders. By focusing on revenue-based KPIs rather than raw session counts, translation companies can make better decisions about SEO strategy, advertising spend, and market focus.
Not all international traffic is equal, and some of it actively works against business goals by obscuring what actually drives revenue.
