content syndication - Express Writers

How to Syndicate Without Being Duplicate: The 101 On Content Syndication

December 31, 2020September 14, 2015 by Adam Oakley

For those who don’t know, “content syndication” is the act of publishing a piece of writing multiple times in multiple locations. Keep in mind, however, that good content syndication does not mean copying and pasting the same article for use over and over again without any attribution or precautions. Google recognizes the latter as duplicate content and will happily ding your site for this. Instead, syndicating your own work is essentially the same as creating re-runs of your greatest hits and, for writers who publish a lot of blog posts or articles, it can be a great way to get the most bang for your metaphorical buck. Additionally, good syndication practices have the potential to earn you more shares and afford your content a much wider reach. When syndication is done well, it allows a variety of online sources to find and feature your original work, which is a win-win for everyone involved. “But how,” you might ask, “do I syndicate correctly?” While there are many myths about syndicated content flying around, making sure that you are syndicating correctly is an important piece of the syndication process because, as we mentioned earlier, duplicate content is a big no-no in the world of SEO. Let’s find out more about this. What is Content Syndication? As we’ve established, content syndication is when a publisher or writer re-purposes an already-published piece of writing for use on a different platform. It’s a tricky business though, because Google hates duplicate content (as it has made explicitly clear with its recent updates) and will happily ding sites that copy a blog from one platform to another. The reason Google is so tough on duplicate content is easy to understand: the Internet is an information-delivering machine and nobody wants to encounter the same post on every site they visit. Duplicate content doesn’t benefit readers nearly as much as high-quality, original content and, when Google users enter search queries, they expect to see a few million similar but different results pop up, which is impossible in a world of copy-and-paste content. Syndicating content without ticking off Google is a difficult ball game and it is important that writers and publishers take it very seriously. 5 Ways to Syndicate Content Safely Although it’s not fair to say that content syndication is so risky and ill-advised that it shouldn’t be attempted at all, it is fair to say that it should be undertaken cautiously and with a broad knowledge of how to syndicate safely. These tactics will keep you in Google’s good graces while also allowing you to reap the benefits of re-purposed content: 1. Write a Recap One of the easiest ways to syndicate content correctly is to write a recap. Start a blog post by introducing the post you’ve already written as well as the platform on which it was published. Add a few more words, a nice image, a compelling call-to action, a link to the piece and you’re done. This form of syndication is great because it’s simple, amazingly time-efficient, and easy to do. Additionally, linking to the site that features your blog has the potential to boost your SEO ranking and also provides your readers with the opportunity to visit a blog they’re unfamiliar with, thus expanding their horizons as well. 2. Add A rel-canonical Tag If you’re syndicating your own content to a different portal, consider adding a useful little rel-canonical tag to the page that will feature your new article. Keep in mind that the tag in question should always point back to your site’s original article. By doing this, you give Google a way to interpret your syndicated content correctly and help search engines realize that the article is a copy and that you are its original publisher. This prevents you from slipping into the dark world of duplicate content and saves your site from costly SEO dings by the Google Gods. Additionally, all of the subsequent links to your syndicated copy will point back to your original copy, which is good for your site and your visibility. 3. Opt for NoIndex If the rel-canonical tag isn’t up your alley, try the No-Index option. When you syndicate your own content, simply insert a No-Index tag in the article copy. Doing this tells Google that it needs to exclude the syndicated copy from its index but allows linking between the two articles. Keep in mind that this is not the same process as No-Follow, which is an entirely different practice among bloggers. 4. Ensure Balance Once your content marketing strategy begins to tip heavily toward all syndicated content, all the time, you’re in trouble. When Google’s Panda 4.0 was introduced, many sites that favor syndicated content saw a 60% decrease in their organic traffic. That said, it’s wise to ensure that if you are using syndicated content, you’re balancing it well with high-quality, original content. Opt for a 60/40 split, with 60% of your content being original pieces that are updated often. Ensure you’re utilizing proper linking techniques and that your content is garnering good shares. This, combined with other preventative syndication measures, should be enough to keep you in Google’s good graces. 5. Beef Up Syndicated Pieces One of the worst things you can do in pursuit of syndication is copy and paste third-party pieces without adding value to the content. Generally, good writers know that constructing a blog built entirely around third-party pieces that are taken from other sources is a dangerous game. There is, however, a way to do it correctly. By utilizing third party pieces to quote from or to draw fragments from, writers can build authority and synthesize new content. To do this, ensure that the pieces you choose to syndicate were published by a high-quality site and that they are written with flow and comprehension in mind. Additionally, be sure that you are adding some quality to syndicated third-party pieces. Insert your own commentary or pull pieces of the third-party article to beef up your … Read more

Is Syndication Scary? 3 Rules to Successful Content Syndication

December 31, 2020March 1, 2015 by Adam Oakley

Crafting original, relevant, engaging content on a regular basis is only half of the job that any small business owner has to complete on time and on a budget. The other half is represented by the implementation of content marketing strategies set in place to make sure that your writing is visible amongst all the other options that search engine result pages (SERPs) normally deliver. Content syndication makes your job a whole lot easier by allowing you to gain visibility on various other platforms without actually being forced to redirect one dime towards the creation of new content pieces. Sounds almost too good to be true, doesn’t it? You may ask: what’s the catch? Should you see syndication as a somewhat scary practice that may jeopardize your relationship with Google, potentially exposing you to penalties or should you actually give this tactic a try to keep your business into the spotlight? Let’s look. Can Content Syndication Become the Most Convenient Method to Promote Your Business? In most cases, the scariest things are the ones that you are not familiar with. Simple, but true. Those who already explore the full potential of a correct content syndication strategy have nothing to fear. By mastering the rules of syndication you could profit from the widest range of benefits ensured by this strategy, including an increased exposure for your products, services or brand, more traffic to your main website, a larger segment of potential buyers and ultimately more money in your bank account. According to Search Engine Journal, through content syndication, you are basically allowing multiple online sources to feature your original content. You can offer a link, a headline or the entire article. RSS is perhaps the most popular form of (automated) content syndication; moreover, some of the most reputable sources that you visit regularly, like Business2Community for example, are huge content syndication websites. B2C and many other websites of this kind provide links and proper attribution to the source where the content piece that they feature was initially published. In this particular set of circumstances, how much can you actually depend on content syndication to boost the visibility of your content, increase brand awareness and establish meaningful partnerships that could keep you in the public eye for the longest period of time? As long as you play by the book, syndication represents a valuable tool that you can use to your best advantage to achieve your marketing goals without actually having to invest in new content pieces. 3 Guidelines to Risk-Free Content Syndication Should you turn content syndication into a major focal point in 2015? According to Business2Community, now would be the perfect time to start looking for syndication opportunities enabling you to place your web content on other people’s websites to increase brand exposure, reach a broader audience and make a name for yourself without having to put the extra time, cash and effort in content creation and distribution strategies. On the other hand, you should know that there are several appealing paid and free content syndication options, so you should feel free to choose the one that makes more sense to you from a practical and financial standpoint. No matter which path you choose to follow when it comes to syndicating content, make sure you follow these rules to stay in the safe zone. Apply a Few Preventive Measures. Undoubtedly, content syndication is seen by many novices as a practice that involves a certain degree of risk, because of its unfortunate association with duplicate content issues. This may make you wonder: how can I direct my content syndication efforts in the right direction to avoid penalties from search engines? According to Moz, there are three ways in which you could syndicate your content conveniently and absolutely risk-free. By using a rel=canonical tag. As Google points out, when it comes to handling syndicated content, your goal is to “consolidate page ranking to a preferred URL”. You can achieve this goal by indicating the preferred URL by using the rel=”canonical” tag. By adding the meta no index tag. The meta no index tag implemented by the authority website on their page tells search engines not to index this page, allowing you to prevent a potential problem revolving around duplicate content. By posting a link to the original content piece published on your blog/website. By implementing a clean link from the version of your content that they have rolled out on their website to your website, the content syndicator will let search engines know that you are the actual author of the content that is promoted across multiple platforms. Make Sure There Is a Solid Balance between Syndicated Content and Original Content on Your Website. All the simple measures of precaution listed above allow you to make the most of the benefits ensured by correct syndication while staying in Google’s good graces. On the other side of the coin, if your content marketing strategy is based solely on syndicated content, now would be the best time to rethink your strategy and focus on your own writing. Glenn Gabe from Search Engine Watch makes this recommendation, revealing that a number of companies that suffered tremendous Panda hits losing more than 60% of their overall organic traffic in the blink of an eye had a major syndication problem left unattended. The syndicated content promoted by these websites had an incorrect technical setup; in other words, the websites that got hit by Panda 4.0 did not rely on the three preventive methods listed above, which do a great job at keeping duplicate content penalties at a distance. Is syndicated content a great friend or a foe in disguise? Should you nuke all forms of syndicated content to play it safe? According to Glenn Gabe, instead of putting your syndication efforts on hold for an indefinite amount of time, you should analyze how this strategy is currently being handled, attribution-wise.While building your entire communication with your audience around content “borrowed” from other sources is definitely not … Read more

Should I Syndicate My Web Content? How & Why Syndicated Content Can Work For You

December 31, 2020March 31, 2014 by Adam Oakley

If you “speak SEO” (for example, you already know what SERP means), then you’re familiar with on-page and off-page optimization strategies designed to bring you on page 1 in Google, Yahoo and Bing. Google-friendly link building tactics are always a safe bet, enabling engines to catalog you as a trustworthy, popular and relevant source of information that deserves to occupy a privileged position in SERPs. But if you’re really craving for a bigger piece of the pie, you may need to broaden your horizons and rely on different other useful tactics, like content syndication, for instance. Syndicated Content: An Effective Strategy One of the most effective strategies to build credibility and trust while boosting your SEO efforts is to let a third-party webpage publish your content. Yes, that’s right! Called content syndication, this can become your powerful ally in the long run. You have to count on site publishers who are constantly craving for flawless content to be able to pursue your boldest optimization goals. Make no mistake: this is not a classic “sharing is caring” situation. You don’t syndicate your content because you are an altruistic person, but because you know that this is the key to an enhanced online visibility and a better ranking. When Sharing Is Caring (About Yourself & Others) Let’s start with the very beginning: what is content syndication (or syndicated content), and why should you factor in this option? Syndicating content means that you are publishing it on a different website. Your content can be posted on a third-party website in different forms, including snippet, full article, thumbnail or link. Syndication can help you attain your most ambitious promotion goals, by allowing you to increase exposure for your line of products or brand. Web content syndication creates a win-win situation for the original author and for the publisher. What’s in it for the third-party website, you may ask? The source that decides to host your articles satisfies its hunger for premium content, attracts a larger segment of visitors, increases website traffic and manages to stay in the public eye, thanks to your quality web writing. In short, everybody gets what they want and they all live happily ever after in a universe in which they can make the most of search engine-friendly optimization techniques that do not upset Google. Does this mean that content syndication is always a safe bet? Unfortunately, this is not the case. However, as long as you get familiar with the not-so-secret dos and don’ts of syndication, you have absolutely nothing to worry about. Discovering and Avoiding the Pitfalls of Content Syndication Let’s start by making one thing crystal clear: syndicated web content is only useful in guest blogs RSS feeds, and press releases. Other than that, syndication like article directories (1 article in 50 directories) is bad news with Google. Duplicate content is another major issue that could stop you from harvesting the fruits of your labor. If you post an article and you let a publisher publish the same exact content piece, you will most likely be forced to deal with a duplicate content problem. According to Search Engine Journal, there are 2 main SEO concerns associated with content syndication: duplicate content penalties and a negative impact on your ranking. a) Duplicate Content. By now, you should be fully aware of the fact that Google has a zero tolerance for duplicate content. Your refusal to craft stellar, 100% original content can get you out of the game in no time. But when you syndicate your materials, you don’t do it to manipulate search engines. Content syndication lets you promote your content and ultimately your entire business at a higher level, in a cost and time-effective manner. So how do you syndicate your content without making Google’s entire zoo angry? When it comes to content syndication, less is more. Rely on fewer partner sites to distribute your content and choose only the ones that can actually bring your web writing in the attention of a large audience interested in finding products or services just like the ones that you are providing. Moreover, you should include internal links and canonical tags, to let Google know that your website is the original source of the syndicated content. These simple measures should stop you from getting into trouble. b) An Inferior Ranking. Even if you manage to improve your visibility via content syndication, there is one more threat that you should take into consideration: your content syndication partner could outrank you in search engine results, and this is definitely a risk that you can’t afford to take. It may be a good idea to syndicate your web content and eliminate your RSS feed later on, after you manage to improve your visibility. How can you do it right? According to Search Engine Land, there are 4 main pain and risk-free tactics that could guarantee the success of syndicated content: 1) Syndicate an Article Synopsis. This is a huge SEO opportunity explored by many respectable news sources, including Business Week, which can teach us how to syndicate content like a pro. A certain story that appeals to a broader audience can be picked up by various high-quality sources. Some of them will not replicate the entire content piece. Instead of copy pasting the original article, they will display only one snippet and also link back to the original source. Obviously, this is great advantage for content creators, because syndication gives them the chance to collect quality links by simply letting reputable websites publish synopses. 2) Ask Your Publisher to Use the NoIndex Meta Tag. If your publisher agrees to place this meta tag on every single page that he “borrows” from you, this means that you no longer have to worry about duplicate content situations that could attract major penalties. NoIndex meta tag placed on a page is a valuable indicator that lets search engine know that they should not return that particular page in their results. 3) Create Two Categories of … Read more