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    4. Special characters in URL

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    • Richline_Digital
      Richline_Digital Subscriber last edited by

      Hi There,

      We're in the process of changing our URL structure to be more SEO friendly. Right now I'm struggling to find a good way to handle slashes that are part of a targeted keyword.

      For example, if I have a product page and my product title is "1/2 ct Diamond Earrings in 14K Gold" which of the following URLs is the right way to go if I'm targeting the product title as the search keyword?

      1. example.com/jewelry/1-2-ct-diamond-earrings-in-14k-gold
      2. example.com/jewelry/12-ct-diamond-earrings-in-14k-gold
      3. example.com/jewelry/1_2-ct-diamond-earrings-in-14k-gold
      4. example.com/jewelry/1%2F2-ct-diamond-earrings-in-14k-gold

      Thanks!

      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • donford
        donford last edited by

        Jonaz just to add to what others said..

        #1 would be the most logical answer.

        / (forward slash) indicates a new directory so you can't use that.

        % is reserved for character encoding so you shouldn't use that.

        _ (underscore) joins as one word

        and 12ct would be wrong

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • matbennett
          matbennett @Richline_Digital last edited by

          doesn't seem to, no

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
          • Richline_Digital
            Richline_Digital Subscriber @matbennett last edited by

            Quick follow-up question: Does google treat the phrases "half" and "1/2" as the same?

            matbennett 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • matbennett
              matbennett last edited by

              You could totally replace common occurrences:

              • 1/2 = half
              • 1/4 = quarter
              • 1/3 - third
              • etc

              Then just remove the less common ones entirely.

              Richline_Digital 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • kadesmith
                kadesmith last edited by

                I personally would go with #1.  Definitely not #4, you never want special characters in the URL.  The reason I say number 1 is because it separates the 1 from the 2 in your 1/2.  #2 could be confused for a 12ct diamond earring, WOW.  #3 I typically avoid underscores in all URLs.

                To sum up my choice is #1.  Looks cleanest and when you optimize your page with the 1/2 ct wording, Google is smart enough to see that.  Overall, it won't probably make a huge difference in the end.

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
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