Removing duplicates from content: 6 effective tools in 2022

Duplicate content stands for the same content placed on different pages of your website. That looks quite simple. Yet, when one dives into the topic, one finds that other things matter here, beginning from the type of website you have to the latest slash on URLs. That is tricky because it goes far from creating individual copies only. It is not enough not to plagiarize. Everyone knows you can not just republish the writings of others. The solution requires both on-page and off-page optimization. This article will compile ideas on how to act when you see duplicates on your content. What magic may SEO tools help?

General SEO and E-commerce SEO

One issue is when you have a blog where you share your stories about a trip. That is pure creative writing that never repeats itself. Things change when you possess an online store. You may have the same T-shirt in different colors. That usually means other pages with the same specs, URLs, SKUs, etc. Thus, a wise approach and experienced specialists are gold. We will reveal more about that soon.

Read: Emerging Technologies to Accelerate E-Commerce

Why does one need to remove it?

There are five reasons why duplicate pages are harmful to your site.

1. Search engine spends the crawl budget on unnecessary pages.
2. Crawling problems lead to indexing problems. If a critical page to your business is not crawled, it will not be indexed. And if your site is small and young, there is a chance that you will have to wait quite a long time for a re-crawl.
3. Keyword cannibalization. The structure of your website is not clear, and different pages start competing for the same search terms.
4. Existing backlinks. External links lead potential clients to duplicate pages instead of the main pages.
5. Google Panda algorithm pessimizes the site’s duplicate content.

Duplicate content types

Let’s shorten such a broad term into a twofold structure:

Full takes

That refers to the issues when the pages are entirely identical. For example, the same article is written twice on your website with two different URLs. Note, even if URLs seem the same, one of them has an extra slash – they are entirely different from the Googlebot’s point of view.

Read: 6 Must-haves For Successful B2B Website in 2022

Partial takes

Another issue is when two pages aim to assist users with the same task. For example, two pages may be for About us information. It may confuse people, but not a big issue for them. Instead, that matters for crawlers. They will be stuck in indexing, not knowing which page to prefer. Moreover, that may lead to keyword cannibalization. The latter stands for the occasion when one search query decreases the rate because there is another plagiarised page. Yet, that problem can occur due to duplicate title or H1, using the exact keywords in the content, or external links with an anchor keyword leading to a non-landing page. Be attentive!

The 6 Tools to remove duplicates from content

SeRanking Website audit

That tool is necessary if you possess an online store. Yet, it matches any website. With the Site Audit tool, you find duplicate pages. Go to the “Duplicate content” section and see a list of pages that use the same content and a list of technical duplicates. They may be numerous with www or without and with slash or not. Use an operator site:your-URL key term. If in the first place, you see not one of the duplicate pages, but a completely different one, then the landing page is poorly optimized. Alternatively, you used the wrong key for the search, under which the duplicate pages are sharpened. If you do not have a semantic core for a particular page, you can look for the correct key in the title of the duplicate page.

Read: How to delete duplicate photos in Windows 10

Siteliner

Check your entire site once a month for duplicate content, showing how many pages on your website have similar content on another internal URL. It can also check for broken links and identify pages most prominent to search engines. The goal of that app is to ensure you possess unique content on every page. Moreover, you can check website speed and page size. That feature helps you realize how huge your elements on pages are, compared with the average for a typical website. Thus, you will find ways to overcome that issue and boost your website!

Read: SEO predictions for 2022 and how you should prepare for them

Google Search Console

You can also find out which pages are shown in the search results by the exact keyword. Then compare the obtained results with the model of how it should be. Before removing, do research to determine the number of external links and traffic to each duplicate page. Better leave a page that has more backlinks. If you want to mark some pages as passive, go to Google’s Search Console, click on URL Parameters, and set passive parameters there.

Plagiarisms checkers

There are tons of checkers ready to assist in writing unique content. They operate great, showing how to make posts, descriptions, and any copies to not repeat.

Whether you create content yourself or outsource that task to Writing Judge, you can check the metrics and improve them. You can order Best Writers Online to review your existing and indexed pages. What are the popular checkers? Grammarly, CopyScape, Plagium, and others. We better show them as one group here because they perform the same function. However, some of them may suggest rewriting, rephrasing, and assistance of experts to help you out. Some tools are free for basic needs, while the rest offer you a specific bunch for an extra fee.

Screaming Frog SEO Spider

You can perform website parsing in a specialized program. Screaming Frog SEO Spider is suitable for finding duplicates. First, run scanning of your website. Then, check the results in the URL → Duplicate directory. That will take a few minutes. In addition, in the Protocol → HTTP directory, we contain pages with the HTTP protocol – are there any of them with a Status Code of 200. Service suggests you install the program and crawl up to 500 URLs free of charge. Alternatively, buy a license to get the limitless advanced features.

Read: Small Business SEO Tips: A Checklist for Boosting Rankings

Netpeak Spider

That platform provides access to a comprehensive audit of your sites. The service has been successfully operating since 2015 and currently offers the broadest range of tools for SEOs and marketers. You can run a full-ranged audit for your website. It includes checks of your website architecture and duplicate content. Monitor your site for errors after making the slightest changes. Keep track of how effective the measures are in changing the promotion strategy. You can find info on your rivals’ activity. Catch highlights and improve!

What to do after removal?

After removing the duplicate page, you need to set up a 301 redirect from it to the main page. After that, it is recommended to crawl the site again to find internal links to the deleted page – they need to be redirected to the new URL. But, again, do not make your readers confused!

Conclusion

Page duplication is a threat to your site that should take that seriously. But on the other hand, when you optimize your website correctly, you create opportunities to increase traffic and income. So use the tools to get the best results. Good luck!