How to handle wordpress tags
-
Hi fellow SEO mozzers,
I am getting 'duplicate content' errors when our site is crawled, mainly down to our WordPress blog and how we have handled tags. Currently, they are being crawled and as such are regarded as duplicate pages.
I have read several different articles on how to handle tags. Some suggest noindex the tag URL's.
Others suggest to optimize them and allow them to be indexed since Google has confirmed they won't penalize a WordPress site for having archive pages that publish and point to the same content. It will select the best link to represent the cluster of links.
Over the past few months, nearly 4% of our WordPress traffic have been referred by tag pages listed in search engines.
Initially I was going to noindex the tag pages, but going on the above info I wonder should I leave them as they are?
Or is the issue that having duplicate content will lead to inefficient crawling?
Any views/opinions on how best to handle this?
-
That's true, you can show excerpt which is better - but I believe ultimately the best bet is to noindex tags. Most people end up with hundreds or thousands of tag archives, all with just a few posts in them. If you're really good about using tag perfectly, it might work - but I think most sites benefit from noindexing them.
-
You can do this if you want to be really certain you won't hurt anything.
-
Hi Sarah,
SEOmoz had a mozinar on Advanced Wordpress and they mentioned on how to handle tag pages, category pages and duplicate content. I've added the attachment to the answer.
Basically can you simply go to the tag.php, archive.php, category.php files and change the the_content to the_excerpt then it should help with duplicate content. Whenever peopel visit the tag pages, instead of viewing the whole duplicate content there, they will only see an except and to read more, they will have to click on the post.
Hope this answers your question.
-
No, just noindex, follow them. Install the Yoast SEO plugin that will do the work for you with their presets.
-
The bounce rate isn't significantly higher than the site average and the time on site is similar to site average too...majority of the keywords are (not provided) so I can't see actual queries.
If I do decide to noindex tags, do I need to consider anything in the transition? like redirecting the tag pages that have been indexed to the equivalent post etc.?
-
Personally I noindex all my category and tags in WordPress as I don't think they offer the best way for people searching for information to enter my blog. That being said I always believe that i****f a page is of use to a searcher, then you should include it within the index.
I know you have said that you are getting 4% of your organic traffic via tag pages but what's the quality of these visitors, do they have a low bounce rate or better than average time on site?
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Rich Snippets in wordpress websites
Hi all, What is the best and easiest plugin to configure and implement on WordPress blog websites? And what is the specific markup recommended for blog/article sites? Thanks!
On-Page Optimization | | emojo0 -
Break in H1 tag - big, small or no problem?
Hi, I've just taken on a new ski client who offers ski instructor courses. The landing page for the keyword [ski instructor courses] was created by the web agency but with no heading tags... http://www.snowrehab.com/ski-instructor-courses Subsequently they've put them in but I've noticed the H1 tag has a break in it where 'ski' is on a separate line to 'instructor courses' Is this an issue that need to be addressed? Also I can't look up the page in the Moz on-page grader - any ideas why? Many thanks! Richard
On-Page Optimization | | richardpatey0 -
Title tag and URL Optimization
Hello guys, Should the URL reflect the structure of the title of a webpage? This is the old title with the Url: 20mm O/D Black Polypropylene LSZH Flexible Conduit 100m Coil /Product/20mm-o-d-black-polypropylene-lszh-conduit-100m-coil/1352 I changed the keyword position and it looks like this: 20mm Flexible Conduit | O/D Black Polypropylene LSZH | 100m I kept the same Url for now, should I change that too? Thanks
On-Page Optimization | | PremioOscar0 -
SEOmoz and Wordpress SEO plugin
I made a lot of changes with Wordpress SEO by Yoast before I signed up with SEOmoz. But SEOmoz doesn't seem to see those changes. I am still being told I have multiple meta descriptions. I don't know why but SEOmoz is seeing the default meta description and not the one I wrote using the Yoast plugin. How can I get SEOmoz to see those changes? Edit: Google has not updated all the changes I made with Wordpress SEO.
On-Page Optimization | | dealblogger0 -
Should I add canonical tag on these pages?
Hi folks I have some pages that used to rank pretty well..but I believe it is affected due to the content similarities. Here is one the sub category pages http://www.ilovebodykits.com/category/98/2/Full-Body-Kits_Duraflex.html the main category page http://www.ilovebodykits.com/category/98/Exterior_Body-Styling_Full-Body-Kits.html These 2 links have very similar contents. The content are dynamic generated by template and I don't think I am able to change content for each individual pages since there are over 2000-3000 of them or more. Should I use canonical tag on the Duraflex.html page to give the main category page all the link juices and credits? There are about 20 other pages like this under this main category. Is it right to canonical all of them? Please let me know if anyone has any suggestion.. thanks
On-Page Optimization | | ilovebodykits0 -
Hey guys! I was looking at adding the H1 tag lower on the page than the H2 tag because I want the top bit to be a call to action. Is this proper practice?
Hey guys! I was looking at adding the H1 tag lower on the page than the H2 tag because I want the top bit to be a call to action. Is this proper practice?
On-Page Optimization | | Web3Marketing870 -
Am I cannabalizing my title tags or is there a better way?
I've read some info about title tags and meta, and I'm getting a little confused. If there is a previous discussion that I've missed, please redirect me. thank you. So I have a locksmith and one of his pages is on Auto Locksmith. For every car, I have a page. i.e Acura, Audi, BMW etc. Here is my title tag: Acura Car Keys| Ignition Switch Repair| Key Duplication BMW Car Keys| Ignition Switch Repair| Key Duplication Same for the rest of the different car models on the site. I previously asked a question on here about "What is Cannibalization", and after reading the answer, as well as a full article about it, I think I may be potentially cannibalizing my site with these title tags, though my SEO Moz has not indicated that I am. Should my title tags be instead... Acura car keys| Acura Ignition Switch Repair| Acura Key Duplication for each vehicle page? Additionally, all the Meta Descriptions on each vehicle page read the same as well. Is this correct? We duplicate Acura car keys, repair ignition switches, extract broken keys, replace remotes, reprogram transponder keys and provide emergency locksmith srvc. Lastly, this is for a city, yet I have not placed the city modifier in my tags nor content. Somehow it knows what city I'm in because some of my pages are ranking on Page 1, however other pages are ranking like #188, #257...So I'm just confused. Thanks for any help you can provide. Jaye
On-Page Optimization | | jayestovall0 -
Using commas in the title tag?
Is there a disadvantage/advantage to using commas to separate words in the title tag. Which will be more effective as a title tag: "keyword1 keyword2 - Brand" OR "keyword1, keyword2 - Brand"?
On-Page Optimization | | Audiohype0