Keyword Cannibalization is Killing Your SEO: Know How
Keywords can be general, like "dogs" or specific, like "Dalmatian puppies for sale." When you enter a keyword into a search engine, the engine will return a list of websites that contain information about your topic. You can also use keywords to target ads online. By using specific keywords, you can ensure that ads are seen by people who are interested in what they have to offer.
For suppose you are an online user and are researching to find answers for some issue. Would you be typing the whole sentence in or just the main key words that represents your topic?
Obviously, it’s the keywords!
As a business with online presence, it is important for you to use keyword research tools to find the best keywords to target. These tools will help you to find the most popular keywords that people are using to search for information on your topic. You can then use these keywords in your content to make sure that your website comes up when people search for your topic. Organic search is a vital part of your audience’s overall experience – it will be their first impression of your brand. Always make sure, to choose the keywords that represents your business right on spot.
Keywords cannibalization is the act of using the same keyword or phrase too many times on a single web page. This can be done unintentionally, as a result of multiple people working on the site, or it can be done on purpose in an attempt to gain an edge in search engine rankings. For example, if you have a page about "dog food" and another page about "cat food," both pages may be competing for traffic from people who are looking for information about pet food. In this situation, it's likely that the page about "cat food" will cannibalize the traffic from the page about "dog food."
Whichever way it happens, cannibalization can be harmful to your site's SEO because it muddies the waters and makes it difficult for search engines to determine which page is most relevant for a given search.
This "keyword stuffing" can hurt your site's ranking on search engines and make it difficult for users to find the information they're looking for. When writing content for your website, be sure to use a variety of keywords and phrases, rather than repeating the same ones over and over. This will help you avoid keyword cannibalization and ensure that your site is optimized for both search engines and users.
If you're not sure which keywords to target, use a tool like Google AdWords Keyword Planner to help you find the right ones. And be sure to write for humans, not search engines; focus on providing valuable information that users will appreciate, rather than trying to game the system. By following these tips, you can avoid keyword cannibalization and improve your website's ranking and visibility.
How does this effect SEO..
When it comes to SEO, keyword cannibalization is a big no-no. This is the act of using the same keyword or phrase too many times on a single web page. This "keyword stuffing" can hurt your site's ranking on search engines and make it difficult for users to find the information they're looking for. To avoid this, be sure to use a variety of keywords and phrases when writing content for your website. This will help you avoid keyword cannibalization and ensure that your site is properly optimized for both search engines and users.
Besides, when conducting SEO, as discussed earlier one of the most important things to keep in mind is keyword cannibalization. This is when multiple pages on your website are competing for the same keywords. This can lead to lower rankings for all of your pages, as well as decreased traffic and conversions.
Tips to avoid:
If you're experiencing cannibalization on your website, there are a few things that you can do to fix it:
1. Identify the pages that are causing the cannibalization.
2. Make sure that each page is targeting a different keyword or keyword phrase.
3. Use the Google Search Console to determine which pages are competing with each other.
4. Optimize the pages so that they are not competing with each other
5. Use redirects to send traffic from the competing pages to the page that you want them to visit.
6. Monitor your website's traffic to make sure that the changes are effective.
Cannibalization can be a big problem for websites, but it can be fixed if you know what to do.
First, you will need to take a close look at your website’s architecture and the distribution of your content. Have a clear understanding of which keywords each page on your site is targeting. You may also want to consider consolidating the content on these pages so that they are all focused on a single topic.
If you have multiple pages targeting the same keyword, but those pages have different levels of authority, you will want to target the page with the highest authority. You can do this by improving the content on the lower-authority pages, or by linking to them from your higher-authority pages.
Once you know this, you can make sure that each page is optimized for its unique keywords. Additionally, you need to use different variations of your keywords on each page to avoid competition. Finally, if you do have multiple pages that are competing for the same keywords, you can use 301 redirects to funnel traffic from one page to another.
By following these tips, you can avoid keyword cannibalization and keep your website ranking high in the search engines.
Tools that can help..
There are several ways to identify and fix cannibalization issues on your site. The simplest way is to use a tool like Google Webmaster Tools or Screaming Frog SEO Spider to crawl your site and look for instances of duplicate content. If you find any, you'll need to decide which page is the most relevant for each keyword and make sure that only that page is being targeted. You can do this by using canonical tags or redirects.
Cannibalization can also be caused by having too many pages on your site that are targeting the same keyword. In this case, you'll need to thin out your pages and focus on quality over quantity. This can be done by combining similar pages into one, or by eliminating low-quality pages altogether.
If you're not sure whether or not you have a cannibalization issue on your hands, it's always best to consult with an SEO professional. We at Vridhii Digital, offer professional assistance on conducting SEO activities for growing and established businesses. Our team can help your business in identifying the Keyword Cannibalization activity, help your business in rectifying the issue and increasing the website overall ranking online.