{"id":8364,"date":"2023-02-27T14:49:01","date_gmt":"2023-02-27T14:49:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/"},"modified":"2023-02-27T14:49:01","modified_gmt":"2023-02-27T14:49:01","slug":"a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/","title":{"rendered":"A guide to keyword cannibalization in SEO and how to fix it"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Keyword cannibalization happens when you have two or more pages ranking for the same keyword. It is generally considered undesirable.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>This article will help you decide whether you have a keyword cannibalization problem and, if so, how to solve it.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_81 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#Is_keyword_cannibalization_always_problematic\" >Is keyword cannibalization always problematic?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#Identifying_keyword_cannibalization_that_needs_fixing\" >Identifying keyword cannibalization that needs fixing<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#A_sudden_drop_in_clicks_or_impressions\" >A sudden drop in clicks or impressions<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#Struggling_to_rank_despite_your_best_efforts\" >Struggling to rank despite your best efforts<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#Pages_ranking_for_a_keyword_that_isnt_supposed_to\" >Pages ranking for a keyword that isn\u2019t supposed to<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#Fixing_keyword_cannibalization\" >Fixing keyword cannibalization\u00a0<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#Internal_linking\" >Internal linking<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#Refining_keyword_clusters_and_establishing_clear_search_intent\" >Refining keyword clusters and establishing clear search intent<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#Content_consolidation_and_301_redirects\" >Content consolidation and 301 redirects<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#Add_a_canonical\" >Add a canonical<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/27\/a-guide-to-keyword-cannibalization-in-seo-and-how-to-fix-it\/#How_to_avoid_cannibalization_in_the_future\" >How to avoid cannibalization in the future<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Is_keyword_cannibalization_always_problematic\"><\/span>Is keyword cannibalization always problematic?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Before fixing keyword cannibalization, check whether it is a real problem for your site. <\/p>\n<p>Sometimes, two pieces of content ranking can be favorable, especially with an indented SERPs.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<\/div>\n<p>For Delish, these two pages ranking on page 1 are beneficial. In one search, they\u2019ve got two pieces of content ranking. The indented SERP gives Delish more space in the page and increases their chances of a click.<\/p>\n<p>A quick browse of these two pages will show similarities in ranking keywords. For example, according to Semrush, both pages rank for:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cquick easy healthy lunch\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201ceasy healthy lunch ideas\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201ceasy healthy lunch\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201ceasy and healthy lunch ideas\u201d<\/p>\n<p>You don\u2019t have to take action on two pages ranking when there are indented SERPs. Leave them especially if you\u2019re getting clicks and conversions.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Identifying_keyword_cannibalization_that_needs_fixing\"><\/span>Identifying keyword cannibalization that needs fixing<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>If you don\u2019t have access to software to help spot cannibalization, you can find potential issues with <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/advanced-google-search-operators-388355\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Google site search<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Use the following when searching:<\/p>\n<p><em>site:example.com \u201ckeyword\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<\/div>\n<p>The screenshot above shows how Google has listed content on and around \u201chealthy\u201d and\/or \u201clunch\u201d published on the Delish website.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If you have similar results, look at the pages and investigate if they are problematic.<\/p>\n<p>To identify problematic cannibalization problems, look for the following:<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"A_sudden_drop_in_clicks_or_impressions\"><\/span>A sudden drop in clicks or impressions<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>This can happen when you publish a new piece of content and Google prioritizes the new piece over what was already ranking.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>This can return to normal after a while, but if it doesn\u2019t, look at the next section on fixing keyword cannibalization.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Struggling_to_rank_despite_your_best_efforts\"><\/span>Struggling to rank despite your best efforts<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Two pieces of content targeting the same SERP intent can be \u201cconfusing\u201d to Google.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>It indicates that your content strategy isn\u2019t as robust as it should be.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Pages_ranking_for_a_keyword_that_isnt_supposed_to\"><\/span>Pages ranking for a keyword that isn\u2019t supposed to<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>If you\u2019ve worked on your content strategy, but the wrong page still ranks, then you\u2019re almost definitely cannibalizing yourself. <\/p>\n<p>In this situation, follow our tips on what to do when the wrong page ranks.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<div class=\"nl-inline-form border py-2 px-1 my-2\">\n<div class=\"row align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-3 col-xl-4 pe-md-0 pb-2 pb-lg-0\">\n<p class=\"inline-form-text text-center mb-0\">Get the daily newsletter search marketers rely on.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-7 col-xl-6  pe-lg-0\">\n<div class=\"form-nl-inline\">\n<div class=\"row g-0\">\n<div class=\"form-group col-12 col-lg-8 mb-0\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-4 col-xl-4 mb-0\">\n<div class=\"d-none\">\n<p>Processing\u2026Please wait.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button class=\"btn btn-dark inlineButton w-100 rounded-0 font-weight-bold\">SUBSCRIBE<\/button>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-2 col-xl-2 ps-1\">\n<p class=\"text-center mb-0\"><a class=\"nl-terms\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/termsofuse\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">See terms.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- END INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Fixing_keyword_cannibalization\"><\/span>Fixing keyword cannibalization\u00a0<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>How you fix keyword cannibalization will depend on the problem it&#8217;s causing and the solution most useful for your readers.<\/p>\n<p>Here are some keyword cannibalization solutions to consider.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Internal_linking\"><\/span>Internal linking<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>An <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/3-easy-internal-linking-strategies-for-keywords-with-different-search-volumes-311890\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">internal linking strategy<\/a> is a good first effort to resolve keyword cannibalization.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Here, you won&#8217;t be taking pages down or redirecting content \u2013 a fairly safe option if you feel nervous about the consequences.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How to fix keyword cannibalization with internal linking<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Internal linking is a powerful tool for SEO. It&#8217;s useful for readers to find relevant sources and related content. It also gives Google a directive on what a page should rank for.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re doing content the right way, you know what the two pieces of content should rank for.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>So you can use an internal link from one piece to the other to reinforce where they sit in website architecture and what people might search to find the piece.<\/p>\n<p>In this instance, opt for an exact match keyword or something close to it.<\/p>\n<p>Review your internal links and identify links pointing to the two ranking pieces. You might be pointing to the pages with the same anchor text.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>You can get a good idea of what anchor text you&#8217;re using to link to pages with Screaming Frog.<\/p>\n<p>Open Screaming Frog, then click crawl your site. Filter by HTML, click the page you want to view, then hit inlinks.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<\/div>\n<p>You&#8217;ll see which pages link to your page and with what anchor text. With a quick edit you can straighten out your internal linking strategy.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Pro tip:<\/strong> When building a content plan, prepare a content database (like a Google Sheet) where you can pick a keyword from the cluster to use in your anchor links. This process prevents writers from adding random internal links in their articles.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Refining_keyword_clusters_and_establishing_clear_search_intent\"><\/span>Refining keyword clusters and establishing clear search intent<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Perhaps you&#8217;ve identified keyword cannibalization but want to keep the two pages. In this case, you might need to give each piece a defined purpose.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>To do this, develop a keyword cluster and establish clear search intent. Each piece of content must do something unique. <\/p>\n<p>Using the Delish example from above, we can see that although similar, the two articles have clear search intent.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>One article recommends lunch ideas for work.<\/p>\n<p>The other recommends packed lunches.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Taking a packed lunch to work is synonymous with a work lunch, but it isn&#8217;t just<em> <\/em>for work purposes.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Content_consolidation_and_301_redirects\"><\/span>Content consolidation and 301 redirects<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>It&#8217;s fairly intuitive when you need to do a content consolidation and a 301 redirect. Mostly, you can tell immediately if a page is targeting the exact same keyword.<\/p>\n<p>Going back to the Delish example, although similar, the two pages on healthy lunches have two different intents. As mentioned, one article focuses more on lunches for work, and the other is about packed lunches. <\/p>\n<p>Although nuanced, the two content pieces can co-exist assuming they&#8217;re not causing issues behind the scenes.<\/p>\n<p>However, if the two articles were &#8220;55 Healthy Lunches&#8221; and &#8220;The Best Healthy Lunches,&#8221; there is an issue. <\/p>\n<p>The target keyword is clearly similar \u2013 &#8220;healthy lunches&#8221; and &#8220;best healthy lunches.&#8221; Sounds like the same thing, right?<\/p>\n<p>To confirm, a quick search of\u00a0 &#8220;healthy lunches&#8221; and &#8220;best healthy lunches&#8221; returns almost the exact same SERPs.<\/p>\n<p>So, these articles would be consolidated, and one would be redirected to the other.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How to fix keyword cannibalization with content consolidation and a 301 redirect<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Before consolidating two (or more) articles, do your due diligence. Use data to help you decide which URL you&#8217;re keeping and which one you&#8217;re redirecting.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Consolidate the content in the two articles. <\/strong>When you do this, make sure you give it a thorough<em> <\/em>edit. You&#8217;ll do more bad than good if you end up with Frankenstein-esque content. To succeed with this tactic, your content must be high-quality and well-written.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>Find the most successful URL<\/strong> by looking at Google Search Console data. Filter by page to see which URL receives the most clicks, impressions and average position. Generally, one will supersede the other a lot, so the choice will be obvious.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<\/div>\n<p>If the winning URL doesn&#8217;t jump out at you by this point, <strong>check the backlink profile<\/strong>. Although you will redirect one link to the other and carry over those backlinks, keeping the content on the URL with the strongest backlink profile would be better.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Add_a_canonical\"><\/span>Add a canonical<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>If the two pages need to exist but you don&#8217;t want Google indexing both, you could add a canonical.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>This method is useful on ecommerce websites, particularly Shopify sites, where the same product exists on multiple URLs.<\/p>\n<p>We can see the canonical in action on Helm&#8217;s Shopify website.<\/p>\n<p>Their Xander Olive shoe exists on two URLs:<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/helmboots.com\/products\/the-xander-olive\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/helmboots.com\/collections\/the-xander\/products\/the-xander-olive<\/p>\n<p>A search within the code of the \/collections\/ URL shows the canonical pointing to the product.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_avoid_cannibalization_in_the_future\"><\/span>How to avoid cannibalization in the future<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Cannibalization issues occur when there&#8217;s no clear plan for content production. Without a plan, well-intentioned writers can deliver similar pieces of content.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>To avoid cannibalization, keep a content log and monitor the following:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Focus keyword<\/strong>:<strong> <\/strong>Assign one to each piece of content.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Keyword cluster<\/strong>: Detail all other keywords the piece should rank for.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Content pillar\/topic<\/strong>: This helps visualize all content under a certain topic.<\/p>\n<p>The closer you are to your content and its purpose, the less likely you are to create cannibalizing content. It helps to have a strategic SEO professional to guide the process so they can correctly assign keywords.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If each piece of content fits within a specific pillar or topic, you can filter content by that topic and double check you&#8217;ve not already created content before you write it. <\/p>\n<p>Or, you can use your content research process to identify content that could be edited instead of recreated. Sometimes, <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/create-new-content-optimize-old-webpages-seo-386302\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a good edit on an existing article<\/a> can do wonders for your SEO.<\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/keyword-cannibalization-seo-guide-393596\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">A guide to keyword cannibalization in SEO and how to fix it<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Search Engine Land<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Keyword cannibalization happens when you have two or more pages ranking for the same keyword. It is generally considered undesirable.\u00a0 This article will help you decide whether you have a keyword cannibalization problem and, if so, how to solve it. Is keyword cannibalization always problematic? Before fixing keyword cannibalization, check whether it is a real problem for your site. Sometimes, two pieces of content ranking can be favorable, especially with an indented SERPs. For Delish, these two pages ranking on page 1 are beneficial. In one [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"h5ap_radio_sources":[],"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-best-seo-blogs"],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":false,"author_link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/author\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8364","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8364"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8364\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8364"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8364"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8364"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}