Google crawls websites and gathers information that it uses to index sites and rank them in search results when a user types a query. If the information that Google gathers isn’t clear, that can have a negative impact on a website’s SEO.
Sometimes, a website has multiple pages with content that is identical or very similar. Those pages may exist for tracking purposes or because of the way the navigation categories are set up.
Having duplicate or near-duplicate content can confuse Google. The search engine won’t know which page it should rank in the search engine results pages (SERPs). That can hurt the website’s rankings.
How Can Canonical Tags Help?
A piece of HTML code called a canonical tag can tell Google which page it should pay attention to and rank in the SERPs. Canonical tags can be used on all duplicate pages. That can ensure that the page that should rank is the one that Google focuses on and that the benefits of other search engine optimization efforts don’t get minimized because they are divided among multiple web pages.
What Are Self-Referential Canonicals?
Self-referential canonical tags can be used regardless of whether or not there are duplicate or similar web pages. Google recommends using self-referential canonicals on all pages to avoid confusion and to help the search engine index and rank the appropriate pages. Using self-referential canonicals on all pages on a website is considered an SEO best practice.
Get Professional Help to Boost Your Website’s Search Rankings
Search engine optimization is complex, and the rules and best practices can and do change from time to time. At Keyword Performance, we stay on top of updates and statements from Google so that we can take steps to optimize our clients’ websites and boost their search rankings.
Our team can review all aspects of your current website, including the use of canonical and self-referential canonical tags, and note any issues that may be hurting your search engine rankings. We can make changes to your tagging structure and implement other strategies to boost your website’s search results.
We have a team of copywriters who can produce blogs on topics that are relevant to your audience. Sharing interesting, engaging, and informative content on a regular basis can draw users to your website and help increase your numbers of leads and sales. Contact Keyword Performance today to learn more about our SEO services and how our team can help your business.
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