What Is Keyword Cannibalization?

Keywords are terms and phrases people use when seeking goods and services online. Search engines look for relevant keywords within online content to determine whether they match what the user has inputted. When search engines find a good match, they populate the search results with relevant web pages. Accordingly, your website must include relevant keywords to ensure your business appears in the right searches.

However, you must also avoid harmful practices like keyword cannibalization, which occurs when too many similar terms and phrases are used throughout a website. This can cause your site to rank lower in searches, which then prevents customers from finding you. Taking the right steps can hone your keyword strategy and ensure you’re not inadvertently making it harder to find your business online. Here are a few methods to try.

 Combine Similar Content

A good web page will offer lots of useful content to visitors. If you notice that some of the pages on your site use similar keywords but lack valuable content overall, now is the best time to consolidate them. Combining similar pages helps you avoid harmful keyword practices, but it can also provide more value to your users thanks to the boost in content. Keep in mind that search engines are primarily concerned with user experience when it comes to ranking, so pages with a lot to offer tend to take priority.

Develop New Landing Pages

Landing pages are designed to compel visitors to take a specific action, such as buying a product or scheduling a service. Developing a new landing page allows you to link it to pages with similar content, which can help with your search rank. The search engine will now have an authoritative page containing relevant information, which means it will be better equipped to rank the page correctly when it comes to keyword usage.

Perform New Keyword Research

Keep in mind that it’s often necessary to update your keyword approach over time. In this case, you can remove the duplicate keywords and replace them with new ones to improve your reach within your target audience. For instance, long-tail keywords are more conversational, which means they’re often linked to voice-based searches conducted on mobile devices. By adding long-tail keywords to your online content, you eliminate the negative impact of keyword cannibalization while also expanding your site’s reach.

Thanks to our decades of experience, SonicSEO.com can help our clients avoid harmful practices like keyword cannibalization. Our team uses research-backed processes when it comes to keyword selection, which is a crucial principle of search engine optimization. Contact us today so that we can discuss your current keyword strategy.