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Let Google index user generated content or not?

by Cash37
2 replies
  • SEO
    • |
Hey,

I'm looking for an expert SEO opinion on a problem I've been having for a while. I have a site that generates a large amount of user generated content... approx 5-10 new pages per day. Some pages are very similar, but most have unique content on them. A few months ago I blocked all the user generated content after getting hit by Panda and doing a large SEO campaign. Results were "ok." I came back to the third page of Google for most of my keywords.

I recently recoded my site, and decided to unblock the spiders from the user generated pages, thinking that with the way they were coded now they would be seen as unique- unique title tags and descriptions, and mostly unique content. Result is Google banished my site out of the SERPS.

I reblocked the user generated content again and now Im back around the 5th page of google. This is in a really tough niche with several news sites in the first two pages, however the #11 ranked site is a site that lives off its internal links- thousands.

What do you think I should do? Leave the content blocked and continue to SEO as normal, or unblock it and hope I get credit for the internal links + unique content generated by my users?

Would really like a pro opinion on this. I've been wrestling with this issue for a year now and I don't know where to take my SEO campaign.
#content #generated #google #index #user
  • Profile picture of the author dminorfmajor
    I'd unblock em. Most big sites who allow user generated content don't block and they're all doing just fine. Just whether the storm
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  • Profile picture of the author kaswistry
    Since I would have no personal reason to block them, I'd let it be.

    I have two considerations:

    1) user generated content (I assume something similar to articles) end-up as fresh content which in turn and without your effort, make your site look like you're delivering fresh content every time. We all know google loves fresh content.

    2) many big companies open up their websites to user generated content and as dminorfmajor pointed out, they're doing well.

    If you're worried about the new content jamming your SEO efforts, why don't you try testing how it is if you unblock or block it? Since you mentioned it's been a year, maybe you can do one month for each and see if there's any difference. Also, is it possible to just isolate the user generated content part and that have that area blocked? That could be a good idea if you don't want your SEO campaign jammed.
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