156 lines
5.1 KiB
Markdown
156 lines
5.1 KiB
Markdown
# Content Quality Gates
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## Minimum Word Counts by Page Type
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| Page Type | Min Words | Unique Content % | Notes |
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|-----------|-----------|-----------------|-------|
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| Homepage | 500 | 100% | Must clearly communicate value proposition |
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| Service / Feature Page | 800 | 100% | Detailed explanation of offering |
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| Location (Primary) | 600 | 60%+ | City headquarters or main service area |
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| Location (Secondary) | 500 | 40%+ | Satellite locations |
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| Blog Post | 1,500 | 100% | In-depth, valuable content |
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| Product Page | 400 | 80%+ | Unique descriptions, specs |
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| Category Page | 400 | 100% | Unique intro, not just product listings |
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| About Page | 400 | 100% | Company story, team, values |
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| Landing Page | 600 | 100% | Focused conversion content |
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| FAQ Page | 800 | 100% | Comprehensive Q&A |
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---
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## Location Page Thresholds
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### Warning Level (30+ pages)
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- ⚠️ **WARNING** at 30+ location pages
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- Enforce 60%+ unique content per page
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- Content must include:
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- Unique local information (landmarks, neighborhoods)
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- Location-specific services or offerings
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- Local team or staff information
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- Genuine customer testimonials from that area
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### Hard Stop (50+ pages)
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- 🛑 **HARD STOP** at 50+ location pages
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- Require explicit user justification
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- Must demonstrate:
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- Legitimate business presence in each location
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- Unique content strategy for each page
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- Local signals (Google Business Profile, local reviews)
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### Why This Matters
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Google's doorway page algorithm penalizes programmatic location pages with thin/duplicate content. Signs of doorway pages:
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- Only city/state name changed between pages
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- No unique local information
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- No local business signals
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- Keyword-stuffed URLs
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---
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## Safe vs. Risky Programmatic Pages
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### Safe at Scale ✅
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| Page Type | Why It's Safe |
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|-----------|---------------|
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| Integration pages | Real setup documentation, unique technical content |
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| Template/tool pages | Downloadable assets, unique functionality |
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| Glossary pages | 200+ word unique definitions |
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| Product pages | Unique specs, images, reviews |
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| User profile pages | User-generated unique content |
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### Penalty Risk ❌
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| Page Type | Why It's Risky |
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|-----------|----------------|
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| Location pages with only city swapped | Duplicate content, doorway pages |
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| "Best [tool] for [industry]" | Often thin, no industry-specific value |
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| "[Competitor] alternative" | Requires genuine comparison data |
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| AI-generated mass content | No unique value, E-E-A-T failure |
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---
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## Title Tag Requirements
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| Aspect | Requirement |
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|--------|-------------|
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| Minimum length | 30 characters |
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| Maximum length | 60 characters (Google truncates ~60) |
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| Primary keyword | Near the beginning |
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| Brand name | At end (if included) |
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| Uniqueness | Each page must have unique title |
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### Good Examples
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- "Emergency Plumbing Services in Austin | ABC Plumbing"
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- "How to Fix a Leaky Faucet: Step-by-Step Guide"
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- "Enterprise SEO Software | Comprehensive Platform"
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### Bad Examples
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- "Home" (too short, not descriptive)
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- "Best Plumbing Services for All Your Plumbing Needs in Austin Texas and Surrounding Areas" (too long)
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- "ABC Plumbing - Plumbing - Plumber - Plumbing Services" (keyword stuffing)
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---
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## Meta Description Requirements
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| Aspect | Requirement |
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|--------|-------------|
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| Minimum length | 120 characters |
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| Maximum length | 160 characters (Google truncates ~155-160) |
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| Call-to-action | Include compelling CTA |
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| Primary keyword | Include naturally |
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| Uniqueness | Each page must have unique description |
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---
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## Image Alt Text Requirements
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| Aspect | Requirement |
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|--------|-------------|
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| Required on | All non-decorative images |
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| Length | 10-125 characters |
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| Content | Describe the image content, not "image" or filename |
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| Keywords | Include naturally where relevant |
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| Decorative images | Use `alt=""` or `role="presentation"` |
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### Good Examples
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- "Professional plumber repairing kitchen sink faucet"
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- "Red 2024 Toyota Camry sedan front view"
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- "Team meeting in modern office conference room"
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### Bad Examples
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- "image.jpg" (filename, not description)
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- "plumber plumbing plumber services" (keyword stuffing)
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- "Click here" (not descriptive)
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---
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## Internal Linking Guidelines
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| Page Type | Internal Links Target |
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|-----------|----------------------|
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| Blog post (1,500+ words) | 5-10 internal links |
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| Service page | 3-5 internal links |
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| Category page | Links to all child pages |
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| Product page | 2-4 internal links |
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### Anchor Text Rules
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- Use descriptive anchor text (not "click here")
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- Vary anchor text (don't always use exact match keywords)
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- Link to relevant, related content
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- Ensure no orphan pages (every page linked from at least one other page)
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---
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## Content Freshness Signals
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| Content Type | Update Frequency |
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|--------------|------------------|
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| News/current events | Within hours/days |
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| Blog posts (evergreen) | Review annually |
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| Product pages | When specs change |
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| Service pages | Review quarterly |
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| Company info | When changes occur |
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### Required Elements
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- Publication date visible (for articles/blogs)
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- Last updated date (if significantly revised)
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- Changelog for major updates (optional but good)
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