keyword cannibalization

Does creating SEO content to build your brand online and grow your inbound traffic sometimes feel like a vortex of same old, same old? If you find yourself wondering, “Did I just create too much content on the same topic…?,” you’ll want to stick around for today’s video. In today’s new YouTube video, I explain keyword cannibalization: what it is (the good, bad AND ugly), how to avoid it, and three measures you can take to prevent it completely. Finally, which tool to use to see if you actually do have keyword cannibalization happening. Let’s get into it! Keyword Cannibalization: What It Is & How to Avoid It Completely (Video) My Fall Update This fall, I’m head-down working on the developmental edit stages for my third book, a narrative nonfiction memoir. Every single day, I’m going in my content hermit hole and writing! I’m super excited about this book, and cannot wait to share more updates with you. It’s the story of how I left my dad’s cult in the middle of the night at 21 years old and built a life I love — including several businesses! Bonus: We’re full blast at Express Writers, keeping our writers and team busy with tons of great content creation projects for our clients. We have several work-from-home positions open — a part-time editor and a part-time support specialist. Get in touch with us by emailing hr@expresswriters.com if you want to hear more about our opportunities. Thirdly, even though I said I’d take on less, I couldn’t resist the opportunity of an amazing invitation I received to co-write Ryan Stewart’s new book on SEO, this fall. Ryan Stewart is a friggin’ amazing expert I’ve been a fan of for years. He’s built and sold multiple businesses from scratched and consulted for leading businesses. He and I share the same growth-focused marketing mindset. Look for our updates on that new book coming soon! This made wonder if you’re wondering how I get all my writing done. ? Maybe that should be another video! Okay, let’s get into today’s topic. What is Keyword Cannibalization? Keyword cannibalization is when a site has more than one page with the exact same focus keyword — typically unintentionally. When this happens, you’re diluting your page authority and potentially eating your own ranking potential (oops). Thus the name for this issue: “keyword cannibalization.” Instead of you telling Google, “Hey, this is my single awesome killer page for this focus keyword,” you’re throwing a bunch of pages at Google hoping one of them sticks. And that doesn’t work. [bctt tweet=”Keyword cannibalization is when a site has more than one page on the exact same keyword. Watch @JuliaEMcCoy explain keyword cannibalization and measures you can take to prevent this from happening to you. ? #SEO” username=”ExpWriters”] Why Keyword Cannibalization Is Not Good for SEO Eric Enge, one of the lead writers of “The Art of SEO”, says that keyword cannibalization is like writing a really good book, but each chapter is on the exact same thing. That wouldn’t be a page-turner, would it? He has this illustration to show how keyword cannibalization kills site SEO, and what should be done instead: The only thing I would clarify on this concept is that when you create a bunch of pages on the same keyword — subconsciously or by accident — you’re not confusing Google. Google is pretty smart with how they rank content, so Google will make their best choice from your content based on the searcher’s intent. But what happens… When you create too many content pieces on the same topic you can cause an ICKY page to rank above an AWESOME page (i.e., the one you really want to rank). Take a look at this example from Ahrefs, in this blog by Joshua Hardwick on the topic of keyword cannibalization. If you Google the phrase “competitor backlink analysis, you’ll see two different blogs of theirs ranking in positions #6 and #7: The result in position #6 was published 4+ years ago, contains a ton of screenshots showing a very old Ahrefs UI, and is a short post compared to the mega-guides they publish nowadays. The post they wanted to rank highly, #7, is a better blog. It’s more up-to-date and offers better advice. But, because they’ve already written on this topic, they’re cannibalizing their position. When Keyword Cannibalization Isn’t An Issue There are a few instances when you don’t have to worry about keyword cannibalization. For example: if you rank in positions #1 and #2 for a very valuable keyword pulling in ideal traffic, and the content in those rankings are valuable, long-term positions for you, then you don’t need to worry about keyword cannibalization. Example: Bodybuilding.com currently holds the #1 and #2 spot for “back and bicep workout.” Look at the two content pieces. Each features a different workout, by a different expert. So if you’re an ideal audience for this site, and let’s say you’re seeking a back and biceps workout and you’re interested in one of these experts (you already know them by name and are excited they’ve put together a workout online), you’re going to click on the one you like the most. So, bodybuilding.com is not cannibalizing their own rankings because both of these rankings serve a purpose. Different workouts by different experts. The other example of keyword cannibalization not being an issue is when you have many pages around a central two-word phrase, but your rankings and focus keywords are long-tail versions of that two-word phrase. As long as you create a unique content piece to compete for a different long-tail phrase each time, the long-tail phrase itself can have the same word or couple of words repeated. Example: blogging statistics, best blogging service, blogging packages for law firms Three different keywords, three different content pieces, three different search originations… all containing the same core term, blogging. Not keyword cannibalization. How to Fix Keyword Cannibalization So, let’s say keyword cannibalization is happening to you. What do you do? Here are three measures you can take. … Read more