When you are writing for marketing purposes, trying to build your brand, and attempting to get your name out there, one of the methods you may hear about is licensing or syndicating your content. This would mean that the same blog posts that you create for use on your website would then display on other (often bigger) websites too.
“That sounds awesome—sign me up!”
Wait a second. While the idea seems incredible, in theory, what about SEO? If your content shows up on several other pages, won’t that set off alarms at Google and make your page look like it is displaying duplicate content? That is certainly an important consideration and one that you must learn more about before you decide if licensing or syndication is right for you.
Duplicate Content Will NOT Cause the Google Police to Come
First, it is important to realize that there is no “duplicate content penalty.” According to Google itself:
“Duplicate content on a site is not grounds for action on that site unless it appears that the intent of the duplicate content is to be deceptive and manipulate search engine results.”
Syndication MAY Hurt Your SEO On That Page
However, when you syndicate a blog post, there is a chance that the site that you syndicate it to will rank higher in the search engines with it than your page will. This is just the way the Google (or Bing) game is played. It is not a penalty; it is just an algorithm. So—if you are not prepared for that to happen, syndication may not be right for you.
Syndication Can Bring In Readers
Much like writing a guest post would, you will have a link back to your page when you syndicate or license your post. This gives you powerful backlinks and can make real live, actual readers decide they want to check you out and find more content by you. This is a big win for you!
Licensing Builds Authority
When your awesome work is posted on a larger, more active website, it helps build your credibility. If you want to become known to a particular circle of readers, licensing can be the way to do it.
As you can see, there are pros and cons to the concept of licensed content. Take some time to read up on any licensing or syndication network you are considering joining and perhaps start small. For many writers, it is an excellent way to get your name out there and let many other readers discover your unique style.
Tracy S is an experienced writer specializing in construction and real estate topics. In her spare time, she enjoys playing pool and eating breakfast sandwiches.
