Rel: Canonical - checking advice provided by SEO agency

[Redooo]

Hey all,

We have two brands one bigger and one smaller that are on 2 different domains. We are wanting to repost some of the articles from the smaller brand to the bigger brand and what was a bit of curve ball, our SEO agency advised us NOT to put a rel: canonical on the reposted articles on the bigger brands site.

This is counter to what i'm used to and just wanted to confirm with the gurus out there if this is good advice or bad advice.

Thanks

[usmano64]

Hello,

When checking canonical advice from an SEO agency, ensure it aligns with best practices. Verify proper implementation, consistent URLs, and adherence to Google's guidelines to avoid potential SEO issues.

Thanks

[educationedge012]

"Rel: Canonical" is a meta tag used in SEO to specify the preferred version of a web page when there are multiple pages with similar or duplicate content. It helps search engines understand which page to prioritize in their rankings. When an SEO agency advises you to check "Rel: Canonical," they are suggesting that you ensure this tag is correctly implemented on your website to improve SEO and avoid content duplication issues.

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[talentwide]

The advice from your SEO agency not to use rel="canonical" on reposted articles from the smaller brand to the bigger brand is unusual but not necessarily bad. Rel="canonical" is typically used to signal the preferred version of duplicate content. In this case, they might be suggesting that the content should exist separately on both sites without indicating a preference for one over the other. It's essential to discuss this strategy with your SEO agency in more detail to understand their reasoning and how it aligns with your overall SEO and content strategy.

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[Zehlm]

@Zehlm said in Rel: Canonical - checking advice provided by SEO agency:

@Redooo
Use rel canonical tag for indexing
Always use a rel canonical tag for indexing. For example if there is a rel canonical tag for: https://www.zehlm.com and I also want other pages showing up in search, then a rel canonical tag for: https://www.zehlm.com/seo.html would also be appropriate. The rel canonical tag should match the url of the page. If the rel canonical tag is omitted then it's visibility will be affected.
Omitting the canonical tag usually will diminish visibility on the page it is missing on because it takes away from the SEO score. Sacrificing the SEO score may not be the best decision if you still need the page visible in SERP.

[Suvidit-Academy]

The advice you received from your SEO agency regarding the use of rel=canonical tags for reposted articles has generated a legitimate point of consideration. Let's break down the situation:

• Rel=Canonical Purpose: The rel=canonical tag is primarily used to indicate the preferred version of a webpage when there are duplicate or very similar content across multiple URLs. It helps search engines understand which version to prioritize in their index to prevent duplicate content issues.

• Reposting Content: When you repost articles from the smaller brand to the bigger brand, there's a potential for duplicate content if both versions exist on different domains. Using rel=canonical tags can help mitigate this issue by indicating the original source of the content.

However, there could be scenarios where using rel=canonical might not be the best approach:

• Different Branding or Context: If the content is being reposted to the bigger brand but needs to maintain its own identity or context, using a rel=canonical might not be appropriate. Canonical tags suggest that one version is the same as another, which might not be true in this case.

• Valuable Independent Content: If the reposted content is intended to stand alone and provide unique value to the bigger brand's audience, it might be more suitable to keep it as a separate piece without canonical tags.

• Cross-Promotion Benefits: Reposting content from the smaller brand to the bigger brand could potentially be seen as cross-promotion or strategic content sharing. In such cases, you might not want to canonicalize the content, as each brand's website could benefit from its presence.

Given these considerations, the advice from your SEO agency might make sense if the reposted content is intended to serve a distinct purpose on the bigger brand's website. However, it's always a good idea to discuss the specifics with your SEO agency and get a clear understanding of their rationale behind this recommendation. They should be able to provide insights tailored to your brands' unique goals and the nature of the content being reposted.

Remember, SEO is often contextual, and what works for one situation might not be ideal for another. Always prioritize the user experience and providing valuable, unique content to your audience while making informed decisions about canonicalization based on your specific scenario.

[Zehlm]

@Redooo
Use rel canonical tag for indexing
Always use a rel canonical tag for indexing. For example if there is a rel canonical tag for: https://www.zehlm.com and I also want other pages showing up in search, then a rel canonical tag for: https://www.zehlm.com/seo.html would also be appropriate. The rel canonical tag should match the url of the page. If the rel canonical tag is omitted then it's visibility will be affected.

[varobath]

Para que quieres poner un rel canonical de un sitio totalmente diferente a otro. No tiene sentido. Deberías de spinear el texto para que no genere contenido duplicado y copiado.
Un saludo.