How do you feel when you see or hear the phrase “duplicate content?”
Do you feel a little anxious and wonder what will happen if your site is penalized for duplicate content? Maybe your site gets shut down or it gets deindexed by the search engines and no one can find you online anymore.
Since you’re reading this article, I’m willing to bet you don’t engage in any “black hat” SEO practices. I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to worry about being shut down by Google. This is particularly true about the content you repurpose and post on platforms other than your own site.
When I shared the results from my recent survey on repurposing content, I mentioned that after “lack of time,” the “fear of duplicate content” was cited by a high percentage of respondents.
The fear of duplicate content penalties stops many people from repurposing their content.During a guest spot on MaAnna Stephenson’s #WPBlab show, we discussed repurposing content and a viewer asked about issues with duplicate content when I mentioned republishing blog posts on LinkedIn. Here’s that clip:
(You can watch the entire show here.)
As you heard, there is no penalty for posting your content both on your blog and then on other platforms. This has been tested by many SEO experts.
The myth of duplicate content
The myth and fear of duplicate content penalties has been around for years. Yet, for years, Google has been telling us that it’s not a something you have to be worried about. The most egregious examples of duplicate content are usually related to people trying to game the system by creating many pages with the same or similar content to funnel people to their sales pages. But Google is smart and knows the games.
They’re not trying to shut you down. You, the expert in your niche. You, who want to leverage the content you’ve worked so hard to create and want to get in front of new audiences.
If you can handle the tech-speak, here’s Google’s own statement on how to handle duplicate content:
Pay specific attention to the part I highlighted. You can read the complete article here.
Click Here to Get Your Free Repurposing Checklist
I’ve been using a couple different terms and want to make sure you’re clear on the difference between syndication and repurposing, as I mentioned in my article Repurposing Your Content – 13 Ways to Reach More People:
For example, when you copy the content from a blog post and repurpose it word for word on LinkedIn Publishing or Medium, that is syndication. When you do that, make sure to include a link at the end of the article letting the reader (and Google) know, that the original was posted on your site. Link to the actual article, not your home page.
Reformating that blog post into a slide deck and posting it on SlideShare, is an example of content repurposing. You can link to the original post for more details or another call to action.
Now, how to you feel about repurposing your content? I sincerely hope your fears of duplicate content penalties have been dispelled. If you want your expertise to be seen more widely so you can attract more people to your message, then, I urge you to integrate some repurposing into your content marketing strategy.
Learn more about duplicate content
And, if you’re still concerned, here are some articles I found that explain the myths of duplicate content penalties:
Google’s Matt Cutts: Duplicate Content Won’t Hurt You, Unless It Is Spammy
Syndicated Content: Why, When & How
The Big Question: Does Duplicate Content Hurt You on Google?
What repurposing tactics are you going to experiment with now? Start with one. Make it a habit. Track your results. Then, try a new tactic. Easy!
Soumya Roy
I agree and disagree both. I agree because, if duplicate contents are not created intentionally and kept in low volume or have been tried to remove, it may not create big problems. But if it is created intentionally to spam (onpage and link building both) and if it is done in large volume, then it is bound to create problems.
You have to use canonical tags or hreflang tags or amphtml tags carefully to point out the actual page you want Google to index.
Sara
Hi Denise,
All the while I, too, was having a wrong perception on the concept of the duplicate content. Thank you for sharing. I’m glad that I came across your website.