Wouldn't this be an issue of duplicate content?
-
I'm currently in the beginning stages of doing SEO analysis for a new client. They're an IT support company here in Phoenix, AZ.
In doing some keyword research and competitive research, I've noticed that one of their competitors (who ranks in the top 3 for many of the targeted keywords), is doing something that I thought would surely be a duplicate content issue.
On their home page, they have dozens of links of zip codes in the Phoenix area. Each link leads to a page devoted to that zip code. Each page is identical, except that the zip code is changed in the header tag. Most of these zip code pages are indexed in Google.
Isn't this an example of duplicate content, or better yet, content spamming? I've seen this thing quite a bit with high ranking sites, and I thought these were the kinds of things that were getting taken care of in the post "Panda" era.
I might just be misunderstanding this whole thing, but any guidance or intel would be greatly appreciated.
-
I've got the same issue with a client of mine. Their competition is beating them on a lot of searches for their area. The competition site has a link to a 95% duplicate content page for every zip code in the state. Their page are similar to this:
Wet Basements in Minneapolis MN 55101
Wet Basements in Minneapolis MN 55102etc
The same content except for city name and zip code are changed out.
-
Agreed. I can't stand seeing this. Hopefully, nowadays I'd think this'll be harder to do simply because so many domain names will be taken.
-
I just saw this working well for a small web design firm in Victoria Australia. They created a separate page for all the towns in the area, linked to it from their homepage and were dominating SERPs for no reason apart from tricking google into thinking it was a larger firm than it was. That stuff annoys the heck out of me
-
That's what I'm thinking based on what I'm seeing - most of the high ranking sites are pretty bad overall. Lot of old, early 2000 looking sites and all that goes with that.
-
Hello,
I would agree with what was said, this is DEFINITELY duplicate content, and is also exteremely Spammy. I unfortunately see this as well on a lot of sites, especially for local SEO, without getting in to detail of these strategies. My view of this is that these concepts are adding absolutely no value to the web, and really should not be done by any legitimate online marker as a means of increasing rankings.
Here is a recommendation, since I don't belive that the "if you can't beat them, join them" approach would be helpful, why don't you create specific pages for each zip code/locality, and create unique content for every page. As a rule of thumb, I try to have 55% of content on any given page unique. Some strategies that work for me is to use local landmarks and events.
I think as google's algorithm progresses strategies like this will be beaten down, but who knows how long it'll take for that to happen.
Hope this helps
Zach
-
I see a lot of this for phone numbers too.
In reading your question though, I had to ask myself this question, "Are these sites ranking because there are no better alternatives?" If everyone in the space is using duplicate content/content spamming, they will all be in the results because no one is creating a site with better information.
I would view your research as opportunity. If you feel you need to connect with customers based on zip code, build better pages and become the best result for your users.
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
-
What's the best Keyword Tool in everyone's opinion?
I'm trying to find the most accurate tool to identify monthly search volumes. All the tools offer wildly varying results. Help 🙂
Keyword Research | | StevenWalley0 -
I'm monitoring the organic keywords for a website, what do their organic keywords tell me?
Should the keywords they already rank well for make good topics for them to exploring in the future?
Keyword Research | | RonkeIR0 -
G's Keyword Planner - 800 kw limit on search volume results?
I'm trying to use Google's Keyword Planner to pull the search volume for a large list of keywords (2000+). While you're able to upload a CSV of up to 3000 keywords, the search volume search only returns a maximum of 800 keywords per query, which is an issue as I have no idea which keywords it's cutting out. Is there any way around this? I have looked around online, but haven't been able to find a solid solution. Thanks in advance!
Keyword Research | | RCDesign740 -
Keyword Ranking Issue
For one of my campaigns I have running all the keywords are appearing as having a position > 50, when in fact I know these keywords are appearing on the top 5 pages of Google after a manual search. Can anyone have a solution for this? Thanks
Keyword Research | | dancody20 -
What's the best way to find ranking keywords and phrases?
What's the best way to find ranking keywords and phrases? I have tried Google Keyword Tool but it just doesn't do the job for me (or I'm using it wrong). My main focus is people who are looking for energy saving tricks, but I'm not sure if this is the right keyword / keyphrase. The goal of this question is not to get other people to do the research for me, but rather to find the right tools and usage of those tools for the job.
Keyword Research | | nickhoe0 -
Why does google's autocomplete not align with google's keyword tool?
Is google autocomplete based solely off keyword search volume? Or is there some other factors i am missing here? Here's an example: Auto complete suggestions for 'storage toronto': [storage toronto cost] [storage toronto downtown] [storage toronto rates] [storage toronto leaside] [storage toronto prices] [storage toronto dupont] [storage toronto laird] [storage toronto eastern ave] [storage toronto ontario] Google adwords keyword tool results for these: <colgroup><col width="151"> <col width="129"> <col width="169"></colgroup>
Keyword Research | | adriandg
| Keyword | Global Monthly Searches | Local Monthly Searches |
| [storage toronto cost] | 0 | 0 |
| [storage toronto downtown] | 36 | 28 |
| [storage toronto rates] | 0 | 0 |
| [storage toronto leaside] | 0 | 0 |
| [storage toronto prices] | 73 | 73 |
| [storage toronto dupont] | 0 | 0 |
| [storage toronto laird] | 0 | 0 |
| [storage toronto eastern ave] | 0 | 0 |
| [storage toronto ontario] | 0 | 0 | So here is what i find confusing: If [storage toronto cost] is the top suggestion for [storage toronto...] then why does google say it has 0 monthly searches? Why isn't [storage toronto downtown] the first suggestion? or better yet, why isn't [storage toronto prices] the top suggestion? So either: 1) google adwords keyword tool is wrong. or 2) google suggest isn't based on just volume?? I've run these same keywords through Bing's Excel keyword information spreadsheet query and it came back saying all keywords had 0 searches ever, except for...drumroll: [storage toronto prices] with 7 monthly searches, once, in august, and 0 all other months. Now i assume that bing/yahoo numbers are significantly smaller, but this does show that that the same keyword is the most popular, so in some way suggests that google's keyword is accurate. So i guess this brings be back to my confusion, what other factors is google's suggest based on, because it obviously isn't primarily search volume. And yes, i have made sure to clear caches, and disable personalized search and search history, and tried the query in several browsers, just to double check i wasn't getting a personalized list, so we can rule that out. Thanks, Storwell.0 -
Google Keyword Tool Doesn't Include Related Searches
For the same keyword phrase,the Google Adwords Keyword Tool complete list of keyword ideas does not contain all the keyword phrases that appear in "searches related to..." at the bottom of the page when you plug the same keyword phrase into Google. Can anyone tell me why not?
Keyword Research | | waynekolenchuk0 -
What Tools Can Be Used To Determine Kw's I Should Be Optimizing For ?
What Tools Can Be Used To Determine Kw's I Should Be Optimizing For ? My concern is that I may be optimizing certain pages with wrong kw phrases and building backlinks to wrong kw phrases that are not a good conversion keyword for the services that I am selling. What are the various ways and tools that can be used to determine if I am optimizing for the right kw's phrases and not the wrong ones that will not convert into a lead from the optin form. I am wondering if ppc spy tools such as spyfu, semrush help me identify if I in fact am opitimizing for the right kw's ?
Keyword Research | | helpwanted0