Keyword Cannibalization Explained: What It Is and How to Resolve It

Many SEOs believe that having several pages which target the same topic will confuse search engines and the “wrong” page will end up ranking. In the words of Patrick Stox, this belief is simply “preposterous”.

While it’s true that having overlapping pages can sometimes produce unexpected or less-than-ideal rankings, it doesn’t necessarily signal a problem. In fact, it can occasionally highlight an opportunity to enhance rankings and improve overall organic performance through content consolidation.

In this guide, we’ll break down the concept of keyword cannibalization, why it can be problematic, and how to effectively identify and resolve these issues.

What is Keyword Cannibalization?

Keyword cannibalization is what happens when a website has multiple pages that are targeting the same or very similar keywords. In such a case, these various pages compete with each other in search engine rankings, diluting the overall authority and visibility of the site regarding those terms.

Let me explain it in another way: Suppose you have two content pieces about technical SEO. If combining these into one, longer and more wholesome page would drive more traffic to your website, you have keyword cannibalization. S cenically, these web pages are “cannibalizing” each other’s organic potential.

Is Keyword Cannibalization Always Bad?

Not necessarily, keyword cannibalization only becomes an issue when multiple pages targeting similar keywords actually negatively affect the organic performance of a website. Since most web pages rank for a lot of keywords, having some overlap isn’t inherently problematic.

Consider that you have two pages which target the same main keyword. One is ranking #1, while the other doesn’t rank at all for that exact keyword. To begin with, this would seem to be a typical example of cannibalization. But what if each page ranked for hundreds of other unrelated long-tail keywords? In that case, consolidating the pages might actually result in a net loss of traffic.

The key is understanding when keyword cannibalization genuinely hampers your organic performance versus when it’s just a natural overlap with no adverse effects.

Identifying Keyword Cannibalization Issues

The first step to addressing keyword cannibalization is pinpointing where it exists. Let’s explore several methods to uncover problematic overlaps:

1. Content Audit

A full content audit will reveal any pages that exist on your site targeting similar keywords or topics. For smaller websites, these overlaps are often easy to spot. Larger sites may require additional tools to streamline the process.

2. Look At Historic Rankings

If you suspect keyword cannibalization for a certain term, look into its historical ranking. Tools like Ahrefs’ Site Explorer offer features to track ranking fluctuations and identify pages that could be competing for the same keyword.

For example, if you notice several pages fighting for visibility for one term, none of which perform very well, that’s a great indication of cannibalization.

3. Site Search

Searching for a keyword using the site:yourwebsite.com “keyword” operator on Google can reveal all the pages on your site related to that keyword. While this method helps uncover potential issues, it may also surface irrelevant pages that aren’t true culprits. Be sure to evaluate the results carefully.

4. Disable Host Clustering

You could bypass host clustering by adding &filter=0 at the end of any Google search URL. By ignoring host clustering, you will be able to see multiple pages from your site show up in the search results. In this way, you can identify which pages rank better than others and make a decision as to which one should appear first.

5. Find multiple URLs ranking for a keyword

Identify instances, using tools like Ahrefs, where several pages from your website rank for the same keyword. Not all instances will be indicative of a problem, but they’re a good starting point.

Addressing Keyword Cannibalization

When you’re confident that keyword cannibalization is causing a dip in performance, there are several effective strategies to resolve the issue:

1. Consolidate Content

Combining multiple pages into one authoritative resource is often the best solution. This strategy consolidates backlinks, internal links, and ranking signals, improving the chances of achieving better rankings.

Steps to Consolidate Pages:

• Identify overlapping content and merge key points into a single, comprehensive article.
• Choose the strongest URL to host the consolidated content.
• Redirect the weaker pages to the new or updated URL.

For example, when Ahrefs merged two guides on broken link building into a single guide, the rankings and traffic increased noticeably.

2. Redirect Outdated or Duplicate Pages

If a page becomes outdated or redundant, redirect it to the most relevant, up-to-date version. This will help maintain link equity and ensure that users land on the most valuable content.

3. Revamp Internal Linking

After consolidating or redirecting pages, make sure to update the internal links to new authoritative pages to enhance the importance of that page for search engines and to make life easy for the end-user.

4. Create Content That Addresses Various Intents

If several pages target the same keyword but satisfy different user intent, there’s no need to consolidate. For instance, one could have a blog post that gives general tips, while another is a product page targeting the same keyword.

But if any of these pages adds little value, consider redirecting the page to prevent dilution of your site’s authority.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Not all ways of resolving keyword cannibalization work. Here are some common mistakes to avoid:

• Deleting Pages: Removing content can lead to a loss of traffic and ranking signals, especially if the page ranks for additional long-tail keywords.
• Using Noindex Tags: This removes the page from search results entirely and is often causing more harm than good.
• Pages Canonicalizing: While extremely helpful to handle duplicate content issues, canonical tags aren’t a solution for cannibalization problems across different pages that target various variations of the same topic.
• De-optimizing Pages: Trying to “dial down” optimization on one page often leads to negative impacts on the rankings for other keywords.

When Cannibalization Isn’t a Problem

Not all keyword overlaps necessitate action. If two pages rank for different sets of keywords and drive valuable traffic independently, there’s simply no reason to consolidate them. Likewise, in instances where a keyword exhibits mixed intent, having multiple articles can actually extend the reach of your site.

For example, two guides that target “submit your website to search engines” and “submit your website to Google” may coexist quite effectively if they serve slightly different purposes.