Keyword Cannibalization; What Is It, And Why Is It Killing Your SEO?
Keyword Cannibalization
Keyword cannibalization is a practice that many resort to without knowing its effects. Are you one of them? How to detect and avoid keyword cannibalization? With this step-by-step guide, you will do it yourself quickly and easily.
Many problems can affect your web page; however, most of them have to do with some of Google’s main factors when ranking a web page, including the prudent choice of keywords.
Oh no, but you sure have it under control, right? Well, it’s not only about finding the perfect keywords but also about the way they are used and forced into SEO optimization. This is getting a bit complicated! And is not for less; Ever since ranking for keywords became an SEO obsession, keyword cannibalization has become such a widespread and dangerous practice that Hannibal Lecter himself has fallen short.
Ever since ranking keywords became an obsession for SEOs, keyword cannibalization has become a practice as popular as it is dangerous.
Are you a Hannibal Lecter of SEO? With this step by step, you will know it because here I will tell you what keyword cannibalism is on a web page, how to identify keyword cannibalization and how to solve it to prevent this from weakening your SEO strategy.
What is an SEO consultant and web positioning? I am aware that keyword cannibalization can prevent you from gaining the traffic you want through web search engines, and, among many other things, it reduces your authority as a brand or company. You need to design a plan to analyze and improve the SEO web positioning of your website and avoid these headaches!
But if you dare, you will see that it is a simple process, so I will show you what it is about.
What Is Keyword Cannibalization?
Keyword cannibalization is attempting to optimize your website by creating two or more site pages targeting the same keyword or phrase you are seeking to rank for.
It is called cannibalization because there is ferocious devouring of some keywords with others since all compete to be on the results list of web search engines, compared to the exact user search.
Simply put, your keywords tear each other apart! There is rivalry and competition between the pages you created instead of harmony and teamwork.
What Adverse Effects Does Keyword Cannibalization Have?
By creating several pages to optimize the content of your web page, you are reducing your chances that the search engine will correctly locate you. It will feel confused by not knowing which of these pages it will send the user to, which, simply put, will result in loss of authority, traffic and trust on the part of the search engine.
If you send the right signals for the right content, you’ll get the right results! I will explain more clearly what those adverse effects of keyword cannibalization are.
Compromise The Authority Of Your Page
By offering multiple pages targeting the exact keywords, Google cannot define how trustworthy you are in your area, and that will lead to decreased visits to your website, lower SERP ranks, and compromised authority.
Dilute Links And Anchor Texts
The links and anchor texts will no longer be helpful for your web positioning since there is no equality and a correct integration between them. They will divide users towards multiple destinations or pages within your web page.
Devalue Your Most Relevant Page
Keywords are like the breadcrumbs that Hansel and Gretel left, so they don’t forget how to get back home. You trace a route that tells Google how to find you and where to take the user to your website with the keywords.
So by creating several pages with the exact keywords (or with similar words for the same content), the search engine will not be able to decide which route to choose, which page is better, and will be able to leave the most relevant page you have last. Will you leave it to chance?
It Makes You Waste Your Crawl Budget.
Search engines must find you to appear in the SERP (list of results).
It is vital to optimize your website for the crawl budget so that bots (web browser tracking mechanisms) can direct users to you and index and position the web page’s content as valuable content. But which page will they index? Which is more valuable? By having multiple pages for the exact keywords or key phrases, you are wasting your crawl budget.
It Detracts Quality From Your Page.
Using the same keyword to attract traffic from different pages that show the same content makes your website considered of low quality because you do not comply with those essential aspects of SEO optimized content: quality, originality, depth, and volume.
You Hinder The Conversion Rate.
What are you looking for with the keywords? Be found and increase your conversion rate! Or is it not?
Then you run the risk of losing potential customers by having several pages for the same product or service. This hinders traffic and decreases your conversion rate because customers land on pages that are not relevant instead of reaching a single page that is truly helpful and trustworthy.
How Can You Identify Keyword Cannibalization On Your Website?
The easiest way to assess if a web page is suffering from keyword cannibalization is to create a two-column matrix with as many rows as you need, based on how many keywords you have.
In the first column, you will copy the web address (URL) that carries a specific keyword; and in the second column, as you might imagine, its associated keyword.
This is intended to check that you do not have the same keyword that leads to different pages; if you discover this, then cannibalism has entered your website! But it is not to die for, and I will explain how to avoid the cannibalization of keywords.
You should also know that some tools can help you detect keyword cannibalization, such as Google Search Console or Optimizely. Review your website like an expert, make an SEO website analysis!
Also Read: SEO Trends For 2022 That Will Optimize Your Web Positioning
How Can You Fix Keyword Cannibalization?
Fortunately, you can abandon this practice of Dr. Lecter as soon as possible! It will be enough for you to pay attention to the analysis of your URL and its associated keywords and improve how you have your content organized. What is the first thing you are going to consider? Indeed you must already have some idea, but I will summarize it even more.
Restructure Your Website!
Restructuring is the first thing you should consider when something works halfway, and your website is no exception. It is not about changing everything or abandoning your original idea and approach, but about taking it on a better route.
Select a landing page and strive to make it unique, relevant, and naturally linkable to similar and truly matching keywords or phrases. You show Google which page you want to rank for, but show it why!
Opt For New Landing Pages
Create New Landing Pages: It will help you concentrate the products and services you offer in one place; These can serve as a landing page that customers can reach and have an enjoyable experience.
In addition, you can have a page for the different variations of keywords that you consider.
Strengthen Your Content
What is the use of having several pages with scarce content and little value? To subtract authority from your website!
The most sensible thing is that you gather the information in a single one and develop it more in-depth, always taking care that it is helpful for the user and communicates the correct message to Google, applying what we call SEO Copywriting.
By dedicating more attention to your content and reinforcing it so that it is abundant and understandable, you will be protecting yourself in addition to the toxic thin content.
Get New Keywords
Do you think it’s time to search the keywords new? Well, let nothing stop you! It may not be straightforward to find those new keywords that are considered perfect, but they could be the most feasible for you.
If you take the time, you will surely get suitable keywords for your website that your competition has not yet discovered. Take advantage!
Use The 301 Redirect And Canonical URLs
Redirecting a page through 301 and canonical URLs is medicine to treat cannibalization.
Doing this can bring the various pages you have for similar keywords or analogous content into one place, more relevant and better presented.
Conclusion: The Keyword Cannibalization Can Be Avoided
Keyword cannibalization can be avoided by considering the tips I have shown you here.
However, many do not understand how to get rid of it because they ignore their content and how Google obtains and indexes this information. In addition, in their eagerness to position a web page, they do not realize the number of pages they create because they have not yet adapted to how the search engine processes and classifies each page.
The cannibalization of keywords will be your worst enemy to achieve the web positioning you expect, so the traffic and conversion rate you want will be seriously compromised, so evaluate and fix your website in what you see necessary! Make your keywords fight with your competition and not with each other.
If you found this post helpful, you can share it with your friends because they surely want to avoid keyword cannibalization. So please give them a hand!
Also Read: Semantic Searches: What They Are And Their Importance In SEO
