Recently, a client asked us to create web pages for each service area city they cover. As a result, we had to explain to our client, how this practice raises the question of duplicate content in the context of SEO with respect to Google. But, bear in mind that duplicate content is not a negative search ranking factor in Google. Instead, Google must determine which web page, of all those that have duplicate content, is the most relevant to show in their SERPs. Thus, there is no “manual action” penalty for duplicate content from Google. Rather, if your web page is determined to have duplicate content, Google simply may not show it in the SERPs. Yes, I know, some might argue that is essentially, an indirect penalty. There is also the question of how web pages with duplicate content can be considered doorway pages. More on that later.
What is Duplicate Content?
Simply put, duplicate content refers to web page content of a particular website, that is identical or very closely similar to content found within the pages of other websites on the internet or within that same website.
Types of Duplicate Content
There are three types of duplicate content listed below.
Internal Duplicate Content
This occurs within a single website, for instance, when products are listed under multiple categories, or when content within the same section of the page, is carried over to all other pages (e.g. website navigation, contact information, social media links, meta descriptions, etc. in the header or footer).
External Duplicate Content
This involves web page content that is replicated across different websites. For example, a news article published by multiple news outlets can lead to external content duplication.
Near Duplicate Content
This can be found when there are variations of the same content, such as slightly altered articles or product descriptions that still bear a significant resemblance to the original content.
Does Google Consider All Duplicate Content Equal?
When it comes to duplicate content and how Google handles it, it all boils down to what Google perceives as the value and purpose of that duplicate content.
What do I mean? Google recognizes that certain types of duplicate content, such as website navigation links in the head, or contact information and social media links in the footer, are not an attempt to manipulate the SERPs. Rather, those types of duplicate content are there to improve the user experience. So, whether a visitor is on the home page, the about page or any other page, placing the navigation links and contact information (phone, address) on every page, can make it easier for the visitor to intuitively and easily access that important information. This in turn, enhances the user experience.
On the other hand, if Google finds that Website A has content which is exactly the same as content on Website B, but it has determined that Website B had the content in question, on their website first (say, 3 years earlier), then Website A’s duplicated content may not appear in Google’s SERPs.
Another controversial scenario would be service area “city” pages. This occurs when websites have pages created for each of the surrounding cities in their local service area. For example, an HVAC contractor in Phoenix, Arizona, could have 50 city service pages, that include Mesa, Chandler, Tempe, Scottsdale, AZ. The question is, do these city pages provide unique content that benefits the Google user? Or, is the content for all of those city pages identical, except for the different “city” keywords?
If the latter is true, then Google could interpret this as an effort to manipulate their SERPs using doorway pages. Doorway pages are those whose primary purpose is to appear in the SERPs for specific search queries, without providing original content of value to the user. That said, if those city pages are not determined to be doorway pages, while still having duplicate content, Google may simply filter those city (duplicate content) pages out of the SERPs.
Why is Duplicate Content Bad for SEO?
Here are five reasons why duplicate content can indeed be bad for search engine optimization.
Dilution of Ranking
At its core, Google tries to return the most relevant results for search queries. When duplicate content is discovered, they must determine which version to rank. This may result in weakened ranking signals, and a reduction in the search visibility for the original content. When numerous pages of duplicate content compete for the same keyword, it then becomes even less probable that any of them will rank well.
Lowered Search Engine Trust
For Google, the quality and originality of content, is a key ranking factor. This is reflected in Google’s algorithms which are designed to elevate the visibility of unique content. So, when a website has a lot of duplicate content, not only could it rank poorly, it should also be viewed as less authoritative or trustworthy.
User Experience Issues
When Google users looking for unique, high-quality and keyword relevant information, instead come across duplicate content, they can get very annoyed and frustrated. This can result in a poor user experience, leading to higher bounce rates and lower engagement.
Indexing Problems
When Googlebot crawls a website, they index pages to determine how to rank them. However, if content is duplicated across multiple URLs, Google may struggle to index the appropriate version of a page. This may lead to an unintended page being indexed or the exclusion of pages from Google’s index altogether.
Wasted Crawl Budget
Google allocates a certain budget to crawl a given website. Crawl budget essentially refers to the number of pages they will analyze during each visit. If a large portion of the website contains duplicate content, it can waste this crawl budget, depriving valuable, unique pages of the visibility they deserve.
How to Avoid Duplicate Content Issues
The best way to avoid duplicate content issues is simply to write unique, high-quality content that creates value for Google’s users. This in turn, improves the user experience and enhances SEO implementations to improve your SERPs.
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