SEO tips – duplicate data canonicalisation script
Duplicate data will result in diluted page rank and search results positions. Google is very good at identifying duplicate data. Do do not do it. The rules are clear, every web page must be unique and original, there is nowhere to hide so avoid it.
However, there are inadvertent ways to create the problem and this relates to URL duplication known as canonicalization.
This is where you can access your website by typing in http://www.yourwebsite.co.uk and by just by typing http://yourwebsite.co.uk.
Essentially search engines see these two methods of access as two independent website with duplicated content. This was declared an issue by Google in February 2009 but is common amongst most search engines.
The way to resolve this is to adopt one method of addressing i.e. always http://www…. or http://….. But this is not really practical.
The easiest way to overcome the problem is to use a .htaccess file (which works with most unix based servers). This redirects all access to your website to a one standard.
Use a simple text editor (not word processor) i.e. editpad lite which is a free download.
Here is the code:
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#htaccess courtesy of http://cirencester-website-design.co.uk/
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} !^yourwebsite\.co.uk$
RewriteRule (.*) http://www.yourwebsite.co.uk/$1 [R=301,L]
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Replace yourwebsite\.co.uk and http://www.yourwebsite.co.uk with your own website details.
You will then need to load the .htaccess file to your server using an FTP product. We recommend Filezilla which is free and very good.
See the Matt Cutts, of Google, video for a detailed canonical explanation and options