Changing url in connection with meta title inconsistency

[Dilbak]

We run a site, which is a directory type one, where visitors can look for local businesses per city as well (at some point similar to the 'Yelp concept').

Now, we use www.example.com as the homepage, and the www.example.com/city1, where city1 is the capital of our country, is 301 redirected to the homepage, so this is your default setting.

When you choose e.g city2, your url changes to www.example.com/city2, and the city value is stored in a cookie. Then, when you leave the session, and return to the site later on, you will see the homepage url, but with your previous choice of city (in case you let cookies be stored).

My concern is, that the meta title always contains the chosen city name, so when you return to the website, and you previously used city2, you will now see the homepage url (which normally belongs to city1), but with the meta title of city2 or with any other previously chosen city.

Does this mean a problem, and should I always use the correct url, which would be www.example.com/cityX, or this could not cause a problem for me? If it does, would you mind sharing me the exact problems as well?

Thanks,

[Dilbak]

Thank you again for your comments, Istvan.

Although, I can't take everything you suggested, I understand your point, and will initiate some changes based on that.

András

[Keszi]

It is considered white hat. But like i said, search engines will be confused.

If it was my decision, I would put a sign-in possibility with a Facebook account (this way you will get their current town and you know what to show them + demographics).

The main page then would have two possibilities:

1. Not signed in: the version that is constant
2. Signed in: the version that is personalized.

I hope this helps.

Gr.,

István

[Keszi]

Szia András,

I would personally work with possibilities of not cloaking the website. What basically you do, if I understood well, is that you cloak your homepage (you show content based on cookie).

Now lets think as a search engine for a second... What would you do with these kind of websites?

If I would be a "search engine" I would be confused... Where should I rank the website?

Gr.,

István