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What is keyword cannibalization?
As you release more blog posts, you may start to create overlapping articles that are similar in topic and thus compete for the same keywords.
An example would be these two articles I’ve written called:
I have accidentally written two articles with the purpose of teaching people how to calm themselves down when stressed or feeling under pressure. No doubt that’s not good and I should’ve checked before starting to write another blog post.
When you write similar articles on similar topics, the titles would be similar, the keywords used in the title would be similar, the keywords used in the content of the blog post would be similar and in that sense, the blog posts would be competing for the same key terms on Google.
Say you have one article out that is doing relatively well on Google. It’s on the first page of Google, but if you write another article on a similar topic, Google may try to rank that second article and thus push your existing article out of place. Your newer blog post may not go to the first page yet it may pull the first article down a few ranking.
If that sounds confusing to you, just know that it’s not good to write articles that are too similar. It’s better to target different keywords by writing blog posts that are different enough from each other.
The reason many people see their blogging income plateau a bit after hitting 200–500 articles is that they start writing content that they’ve already done before albeit under a different title.
The truth is, there are so many things you can write about in most niches. There’s no need to write topics that are so similar that you start to have your articles compete with each other.
Many bloggers don’t get to the point in their blogging journey where they run out of ideas to write and start to write articles that are too similar because they give up too soon. This is why we don’t see too many people talking about it but it’s so vital that you avoid keyword cannibalization as a blogger as this can influence how much you can make from your blog.
How to prevent keyword cannibalization
Below are some of the things you can do to prevent keyword cannibalization as a blogger.
1. Avoid writing blog posts on similar topics
This is a given. Of course, you should avoid writing blog posts on similar topics. What is a similar topic?
Let’s take a look at the following example:
- How to start a blog and make money in 2022
- How to make money on Redbubble
The above two articles are both about making money but the method to do so is very different therefore, they are different enough for you to write without the risk of content cannibalization.
However, take a look at the following articles:
- How to start a blog and make money in 2022
- The ultimate guide on how to start a blog
Both articles are about how to start a blog and make money but it’s worded differently. They are too similar for you to write and risk the content cannibalizing each other.
Let’s take a look at another example:
- How to save money as a teenager
- 12 Things to never buy as a teenager
- 10 Things to never buy as a young person
Article 1 and 2 are too similar and are on the same thing basically. Article 3 is quite similar to articles 1 and 2. Some may argue that it’s too similar and some may argue that if you incorporated different elements into your subsequent blog post, you can make it different enough.
However, it’s still best to choose 1 of the above 3 blog posts to produce rather than doing all three.
2. Don’t pigeonhole yourself when signing up for a domain name
If you want to find out how to select the best domain name for your blog, click here.
Find out how to select the best name for your brand by clicking here.
What is a pigeonhole? Well, think about it like this, if you start a blog with the domain name “Deliciouspies.com” you may only be able to write blog posts about “pies”.
Don’t select a domain so specific that you can’t write about much else. Allow yourself room to expand to other sub-niches if you need to.
3. Explore different sub-niches
You should explore other sub-niches to write about. Don’t just stick to one. Of course, if the speed of you producing blog posts is slow, you may want to stick to one before you have enough articles to expand to other sub-niches.
This will prevent you from writing content that is too similar to each other.
4. Check out what your competitors are writing
You can always check out what your competitors are writing about to know what you should also write about. Don’t copy them exactly but you can use their blog posts to inspire your next post.
5. Do keyword analysis using Google keyword planner
Want to find out how to use Google keyword planner to select the best articles to write about? Click here.
Using the Google Keyword Planner tool can help you decide which articles have the best potential for success by analyzing monthly search volume and competition.
It’ll also give you ideas on new topics to write about so you don’t have to come up with new blog posts ideas on your own.
6. Use AskSacrates.com
Go to asksacrates.com and type in a key term for your niche. It’ll help you come up with so many potential topics to write about based on what others are searching for.
7. Improve your current blog post instead of starting another
You don’t always have to start another blog post. Instead, you can improve on your existing articles and make them better.
Writing better blog posts is good but it takes time for your blog posts to rank on Google so it’s better for you to improve on existing blog posts first rather than writing another one on the same topic.
8. Have a list of articles to write
It’s good to have a list of articles to refer to so whenever you want to find a new article to write, you can start from the list instead of thinking of one on the spot. This can prevent you from writing articles that are too similar.
In your free time, you can explore the Google Keyword Planner to see what articles are good to write and write them down. That way, you always have ideas to draw from.
Final thought
There are an endless amount of articles to write. I don’t think I’ll ever stop finding new blog posts to put on my to-write list.
I hope you learned something new today.
Good luck with writing!
