You may have noticed that the past half dozen posts here, have a slightly different format to the previous posts.
Google+ posts on WordPress
This is because I am running an experiment, using a plugin, which pulls in selected updates I share on Google+. I simply add a hashtag to any of my updates I would like shared, then they arrive in my WordPress pending folder, ready for publishing. I then tailor them slightly and post them here. It takes a minute or so.
Google Plus and duplicate content
I am not currently recommending anyone else tries this, as I have concerns regarding duplicate content. If Google sees a site, which it believes is using content from other sites, en mass, it penalizes them (quite rightly too.) This is in an effort to stop content scrapers from building valuable sites, from content “stolen”, usually without attribution, and makes for a better search experience. Google cover duplicate content, in this post.
So, I will be monitoring the results here over the coming 4 weeks and will let you know what happens. Currently, traffic into the blog has increased, but purely because it’s publishing regular content again, thanks to the plugin. It’s currently too early to see any measurable climb or drop in search traffic.
Sounds great Jim!
Please let us know how it goes
I certainly will, Yael.
Hey Jim, thanks for running this test, it’s an interesting plugin and will be curious to hear your feedback on its results. I am also reluctant to use something like this personally, but who knows, you may change my mind!
Unless there is a penalty applied for duplicate content, there’s little downside.
If it does work, the upside could be enormous.
Thanks for the feedback, Bob.