SEO pruning is an important activity to maintain a healthy website and optimize its visibility on search engines.
Also known as content pruning, SEO pruning eliminates or improves obsolete, redundant, or low-quality content, making the website leaner, more relevant, and authoritative.
Experts in the web marketing field, such as Everett Sizemore or Manish Dudharejia, have observed increases in organic traffic and revenue after well-planned and properly executed content pruning campaigns.
For this reason, as always, we at Qreativa advise you not to make random changes, as you risk causing significant damage, as we explain further in the article!
What is SEO pruning and what is its impact on website ranking
SEO pruning is the process of reviewing and improving a website’s content.
This involves “eliminating obsolete, redundant, or low-quality content, and improving or” updating relevant content.
The goal is to make the site cleaner, more relevant, and useful for users. Having updated and quality content improves the site’s ranking on search engines.
Google and other search engines tend to reward sites that offer the best user experience and the most relevant and reliable information.
Optimize Crawl Budget through SEO pruning
The crawl budget is the amount of resources that search engines allocate for “exploration (crawling) and” indexing of a site’s pages.
Optimal management of the crawl budget ensures that crawlers dedicate the right attention to the most relevant pages, benefiting indexing.
SEO pruning, by eliminating obsolete or irrelevant content, allows for freeing up crawl budget resources, so search engines can focus on valuable pages and increase the site’s visibility in search results.
A well-structured site free of unnecessary burdens promotes more effective use of the crawl budget, benefiting your SEO strategy!
Rule 1 – Analyze and evaluate content
Content analysis is the first step to understanding the value your site offers to users and search engines.
To evaluate the quality and relevance of content, consider its timeliness, “authenticity,”engagement of users (comments, shares), and relevance to target keywords.
Content considered of little value includes pages with outdated or not updated information, poor or duplicate content, and pages that don’t generate traffic or engagement.
These types of content negatively influence the perception of the site by search engines and users.
Tools like Google Analytics 4 provide data on traffic, time spent on page, and bounce rates, while Google Search Console offers insights on keyword effectiveness and site visibility in search results.
An accurate analysis allows you to identify strengths and areas for improvement, and enhance your content marketing and SEO strategies.
Rule 2 – Identify and remove obsolete or harmful content
To identify and remove obsolete or harmful content:
- use tools like Google Analytics to monitor metrics such as traffic, bounce rate, and time spent on page. This will help you identify content that doesn’t attract visitors or fails to generate interest.
- With Google Search Console, check the performance of keywords. If pages don’t rank well for relevant keywords, they may no longer be relevant.
- After identifying outdated or harmful content, decide whether it’s better to completely remove them, redirect them to more relevant content via 301 redirects, or update them to improve their quality and relevance.
- If you delete a page, make sure to update or remove all internal links leading to that page. Also consider the impact on external backlinks!
- After making changes, monitor the site’s performance to ensure they’ve had the “desired impact on SEO and user” experience.
Rule 3 – Optimize and Update Existing Content
Updating and optimizing existing content is crucial to maintain your site’s relevance and authority:
- Use relevant keywords after conducting careful keyword research. You’ll improve readability, and the site structure will be clearer.
- Optimize meta-tags to accurately describe page content.
- Use alt-tags for images to improve accessibility and Search Engine Optimization.
- Manage the internal link structure and guide users and search engines through your site intuitively.
Rule 4 – Improve Site Structure and User Experience
An intuitive site structure and optimized user experience positively influence SEO:
- Ensure the site is easily navigable, with a clear layout and intuitive menus.
- Focus on a logical content structure and loading speed.
This not only improves user experience but also facilitates site indexing by search engines.
Rule 5 – Always Monitor and Adjust Where Necessary
Monitoring SEO performance allows you to understand the effectiveness of adopted strategies and identify improvement opportunities:
- Use tools like Google Analytics and Search Console to track metrics such as traffic, conversion rate, and keyword ranking.
- Regularly analyze data and, based on results, make necessary corrections and improvements, adapting the SEO strategy to new trends and search engine algorithm updates. This dynamic approach ensures your website remains competitive and relevant.
Who Handles SEO Pruning?
SEO pruning should be managed by SEO specialists, professionals with experience and expertise in website optimization.
It’s up to them to analyze and evaluate content, provide their perspective, study site metrics, and implement strategies to remove or improve content.
If done well, pruning work helps optimize your website, necessary to achieve good search result rankings.
The CNET Case That Deleted Thousands of Articles from Its Website
The tech news site CNET.com, in June 2023, removed thousands of articles to improve SEO, sparking conflicting opinions.
CNET argues that removal is a standard practice for sites guided by SEO strategies aimed at increasing organic traffic.
And SEOZoom data shows that after pruning, CNET.com’s traffic increased.
Google, through Danny Sullivan, Public Liaison for Google Search, emphasizes that content shouldn’t be deleted just because it’s old, but its relevance should be evaluated. Here’s his full tweet (now X):
Do you remove content from your site because you think Google doesn’t like old content? That’s not the case! Our guidelines don’t encourage this practice. If a site has a page with outdated content, it probably won’t rank well. Removing it might help explore the rest of the site better if it’s very large, but that doesn’t mean the entire site will automatically improve. Don’t think that deleting something just because it’s old will magically improve your site’s SEO
.
John Mueller, a beacon for all of us involved in SEO, also weighed in on the topic with these words in a 2023 Tweet:
“Remember that just because something doesn’t get many views (like old news or obscure information) doesn’t mean it’s not useful for those who consult it. Focus on the unique value offered, not on age, number of views, etc.”
Conclusions
SEO pruning, or content pruning, is the process of reviewing and improving the website by removing or updating obsolete content. Through pruning, the website improves its visibility on search engines.
Effective SEO pruning requires:
- In-depth content analysis to evaluate quality and relevance.
- Identification and removal of obsolete or harmful content.
- Updating and optimizing existing content, integrating keywords and improving readability.
- Improving site structure and user experience.
- Continuous monitoring of SEO performance and strategic adjustment based on results.
Do you want to give your website a nice refresh? If you’re looking for someone capable of doing professional SEO pruning with zero risks for your business, take advantage of the free consultation that our web agency offers you. Contact us now!
