Let’s talk about canonical tags.
I’ve been working with WordPress for a while and I’ve seen a lot of people make mistakes with these little guys.
They’re essential for avoiding duplicate content issues which can really hurt your SEO but you’ve got to use them right.
Yo, want to level up your SEO game? 🤯 Learn how to use canonical tags like a pro and avoid those rookie mistakes! Check out this awesome guide It’s like SEO magic, but less Harry Potter and more Google wizardry. 🧙♂️
The Canonical Tag: Your SEO Savior (If You Use It Correctly)
Yo, want to level up your SEO game? 🤯 Learn how to use canonical tags like a pro and avoid those rookie mistakes! Check out this awesome guide It’s like SEO magic, but less Harry Potter and more Google wizardry. 🧙♂️
Remember when Google first started getting serious about duplicate content? Well canonical tags were a big part of their solution.
Think of them as little whispers to the search engine bots saying “Hey if you see these pages with the same content just show the user this one.”
Why They’re So Important
Search engines are smart but they aren’t perfect.
Imagine a site with multiple versions of a product page each with slightly different URLs.
The search engine might see this as duplicate content and penalize your site even if it’s just a matter of URL structure.
That’s where canonical tags come in.
Canonical Tag 101
The tag itself is a simple line of code that looks something like this:
<link rel="canonical" href="https://www.yourwebsite.com/your-preferred-page" />This tag tells Google Bing and others “This page is the original so please use it for indexing.” The href attribute contains the URL of the preferred page.
7 Mistakes to Avoid When Using Canonical Tags
Now onto the mistakes.
I’ve seen these happen so many times:
1. Don’t Use Multiple Canonical Tags on a Single Page
Imagine you’re telling Google “This is the king” and then saying “No actually this other one is the king.” Confusing right? The same applies to canonical tags.
Only one can be used per page.
2. Don’t Mix Canonical Tags with Redirects
Remember the old days when we used 301 redirects to manage duplicate content? Now we have canonical tags.
They’re like a smoother more efficient way to handle the situation.
Combining both methods is unnecessary and frankly confusing for search engines.
Pick one and stick with it.
3. Don’t Use the HTTP Format for Canonical Tags When Your Website is HTTPS
This is a classic mistake.
You’re telling Google that the preferred page is on a less secure version of your site which can negatively impact your SEO.
Always use the HTTPS format.
4. Don’t Place Canonical Tags in the Body Section of a Page
It’s like putting the welcome sign at the back of the store.
Google won’t find it.
Always place the canonical tag within the <head> section of your HTML.
5. Don’t Disallow Search Engines From Crawling Pages With Canonical Tags
Just because a page has a canonical tag it doesn’t mean Google shouldn’t see it.
Google needs to be able to read the tag to know which page is the preferred version.
Blocking Google’s crawl can lead to some very confusing situations.
6. Don’t Use Canonical Tags on Pages with Original Content
The whole point of a canonical tag is to avoid duplicate content.
If your page has unique content don’t bother with it.
Just let Google do its thing.
7. Don’t Forget to Include Canonical URLs in Your Sitemap
Your sitemap is a roadmap for search engines.
Make sure it includes all the preferred pages mentioned in your canonical tags.
It’s an extra layer of reassurance for Google that you’re serious about SEO.
Beyond the Basics: A Deeper Dive into Canonical Tag Strategies
Dynamically Generated Content
Canonical tags are a lifeline for dynamic websites where you might have pages that look very similar but are technically distinct.
For example think of a shopping website where each product has a unique URL.
Avoiding Issues with Pagination
Pagination is the bread and crumbs navigation for your blog posts or product listings.
You want to tell Google which page is the main one or it might index every single page as a separate entity.
Managing Content from External Sources
If you’re embedding content from other sites on your own website using canonical tags can help you avoid penalties for duplicate content.
This can be especially relevant for articles product descriptions or other content you’re importing from external sources.
Working with WordPress Plugins
There are some great tools for WordPress to help you with this:
- Yoast SEO: This popular plugin makes it easy to set up canonical tags. Just go to the SEO settings for each page and you’ll find an option to set the canonical URL.
- Rank Math SEO: This plugin also has great canonical tag support. It allows you to set a global canonical setting which can be useful for larger websites or those with a lot of similar content.
- All in One SEO Pack: Another widely used SEO plugin with good support for canonical tags. It offers similar features to Yoast SEO and Rank Math SEO.
Final Thoughts: Be Proactive with Your SEO
Canonical tags are just one small part of a good SEO strategy.
But they’re an important part! By understanding the fundamentals of how to use them correctly you can give your WordPress site a significant boost in Google’s rankings.
Remember just like anything else in WordPress there’s a right way and a wrong way to use canonical tags.
Make sure you’re using them strategically and consistently.
Yo, want to level up your SEO game? 🤯 Learn how to use canonical tags like a pro and avoid those rookie mistakes! Check out this awesome guide It’s like SEO magic, but less Harry Potter and more Google wizardry. 🧙♂️