How to Detect and Remove Duplicate Content From Your Website

by | May 21, 2024 | Articles, BLOG, Content, Search Engine Optimization

“Detecting and removing duplicate content from your website is important for improving your site’s search engine ranking and overall user experience. “

Duplicate content can confuse users and create a poor user experience. When users encounter identical or similar content across multiple pages, they may perceive your website as low-quality or untrustworthy, leading to increased bounce rates and decreased engagement metrics.

When search engines encounter multiple versions of the same content across different URLs, they may struggle to determine which version is the most relevant and authoritative. As a result, search engines may choose to only index one version of the content, leading to the dilution of ranking potential across multiple pages.

Recently a client of mine received a notice from Google about having duplicate content on her website. Duplicate content can be anything from having HTTP vs HTTPS and www vs the url without the www

That means when you add SSL certificates to your site, you secure your website, which gives you the ability to use HTTPS instead of HTTP. However, this causes duplicate pages of your website to exist on each. Similarly, your website content is accessible from both www and non-www URLs.

When you use descriptions for products from the manufacturers you purchase from that too is considered duplicate content mainly because it is used on the manufacturer’s site and other vendors who carry that same product or service.

In addition, if you have a page or post that uses two different urls to access the same content google considers that duplicate content.

Here are Twelve Tips to detect and Remove Duplicate Content From Your Website

Perform a Site Audit:

    • Use website auditing tools like Screaming Frog, SEMrush, or Ahrefs to crawl your website and identify duplicate content.

    Check Internal Pages:

      • Look for duplicate content within your own website. This can occur due to multiple URLs pointing to the same content, such as HTTP vs HTTPS, www vs non-www URLs, or URL parameters.

      Use Google Search Console:

        • Google Search Console has a feature called “HTML Improvements” which can highlight duplicate meta descriptions, title tags, and other issues.

        Check for Scraped Content:

          • Use tools like Copyscape or Siteliner to check if your content has been copied by other websites. If you find scraped content, take steps to have it removed or file a DMCA takedown request.

          Canonical Tags:

            • Implement canonical tags on your web pages to indicate the preferred version of a page if you have multiple versions with similar content.

            301 Redirects:

              • If you have multiple URLs pointing to the same content, use 301 redirects to consolidate them to a single URL.

              Content Syndication:

                • If you syndicate your content on other websites, ensure that they use canonical tags or link back to the original source to avoid duplicate content penalties.

                Avoid Boilerplate Content:

                  • Boilerplate content like headers, footers, and sidebars can sometimes be duplicated across multiple pages. Ensure that these sections are unique or use server-side includes to prevent duplication.

                  Dynamic Content:

                    • If your website generates dynamic content (e.g., through parameters in the URL), ensure that search engines aren’t indexing multiple versions of the same page by using noindex meta tags or setting up URL parameters in Google Search Console.

                    Regular Monitoring:

                    • Duplicate content issues can arise over time, so regularly monitor your website for any new instances of duplication.

                    Content Creation Strategy:

                    • Focus on creating unique and valuable content for your audience. High-quality, original content is less likely to be duplicated by others and can help improve your website’s search engine rankings.

                    Consult with SEO Experts:

                    • If you’re unsure about how to identify or handle duplicate content issues, consider consulting with SEO experts who can provide personalized advice based on your website’s specific needs.

                      By following these steps, you can efficiently detect and manage duplicate content on your website, improving its overall performance and user experience while maintaining compliance with search engine guidelines thus improving its overall quality and search engine performance.

                      To check if you have duplicate content on your website visit https://www.seoreviewtools.com/duplicate-content-checker/ (its a free duplicate content checker) and it works!