What is Article Spinning?
Article spinning - aka content spinning - is a technique used to generate multiple versions of a piece of content by altering its words, phrases or sentences.
The purpose is to minimize the efforts to generate original and quality material by copying someone else high-quality work.
In the past, this technique used to work because search engines relied on keyword matching. It encouraged creating multiple articles for better rankings. People started manipulating this and now due to advanced algorithms, this approach does not work.
How does article spinning work?
To understand this, let's consider an example:
The magnificent sunset painted the sky with vibrant hues.
Rewritten examples:
The stunning sunset adorned the sky with vivid colours.
The breathtaking sunset transformed the sky into a vibrant display.
The awe-inspiring sunset covered the sky in a spectrum of lively shades.
These variations demonstrate how spinning software can replace words to generate different versions.
This software can explore numerous possibilities to create a wide range of rewritten sentences by using its complex algorithm.
Article spinning vs paraphrasing
Paraphrasing involves expressing the meaning of a source text in your own words while retaining its original message.
The focus is on conveying the information using different sentence structures and simplifying the language to enhance clarity.
It usually condenses a longer article into a summarized form without altering the context of the original content.
On the other hand, content spinning relies on the use of automated tools or software which only changes the words or alters its structure without adding any additional value.
Likewise, paraphrasing tools have also automated the process of paraphrasing.
However, it is worth noting that content-spinning or paraphrasing tools can sometimes produce grammatical errors with poorly structured sentences. It can be easily recognized as machine-generated.
Conversely, when a human performs these tasks, there are higher chances of producing text with fewer errors with a more natural flow.
Article spinning in past
In the early days of SEO, search engines had simplistic algorithms that were susceptible to manipulation.
Back in the early 2000s, algorithms heavily relied on backlinks and keyword density as crucial ranking factors.
Article spinning emerged as a technique that allowed website owners to effortlessly generate a large number of articles.
These articles could then be utilized for marketing or guest posting, wherein a substantial number of articles containing backlinks to the main website were submitted to external sites.
Besides that article spinning also facilitated the creation of PBNs (Private Blog Networks) where site owners produced a large number of articles within a short time.
However, article spinning is now widely regarded as a black hat technique which is penalized by search engines.
How does article spinning affect my search rankings?
It can have detrimental effects on your search rankings. One of the key issues is that the generated content lacks authenticity or quality which is often difficult to read.
Such content fails to provide value to a user which is also a negative sign in the eyes of Google.
Duplicate content - even if disguised through spinning - is heavily discouraged. When search engines identify duplicate or low-quality content, they may impose penalties on websites - ranging from temporary ranking drops to more severe actions like de-indexing.
Being de-indexed can have significant consequences for your website's visibility and organic traffic.
Rebuilding search visibility after being de-indexed can be a challenging process.
What alternatives are there?
There are several alternatives that you can consider to make the most of your existing content while staying within Google's guidelines.
Repurpose your content
Instead of spinning someone else's content, repurpose your own content in different formats or presentations.
Take parts of your existing blog posts and repurpose them as social media posts or transform key information into infographics.
You can give it new life to reach different audiences without resorting to spinning someone else's work.
Cover a topic from a different angle
Rather than spinning existing content, explore the same topics from a unique perspective or delve deeper into specific aspects that others may have missed.
Provide your own insights and analysis. This way you can create unique content that adds value.
Republish older articles
Identify underperforming content on your website.
Consider republishing these articles by rewriting them from scratch or updating the majority of their content.
This allows you to give them a fresh look, update the information with the latest data and attract new traffic to those pages.
Tools to help you with writing
Here are some helpful tools that can assist you in researching and creating quality content:
SEMrush Writing Assistant & Topic Research Tool
SEMrush Writing Assistant is indeed a valuable tool for addressing various content writing needs.
It provides a comprehensive evaluation of your writing based on four essential parameters:
readability
originality
tone of voice
SEO
Simply input your target keywords. It will generate a range of SEO recommendations tailored to your content.
These recommendations are designed to enhance the visibility of your piece of content in SERPs.
Additionally, the tool provides word count recommendations which offer guidance on the optimal length for your content.
The Writing Assistant also assigns an originality score to your piece. This score indicates the level of uniqueness in your content.
CoSchedule Headline Analyzer
CoSchedule is a comprehensive work management software.
One of its prominent features is the Headline Studio. It is a powerful headline analyzer that provides valuable feedback based on a vast database of data points.
CoSchedule's free browser extension makes it easy and fast to improve your headlines. It only takes 30 seconds to optimize them.
It ensures that your headlines are well-crafted to attract more traffic to your content.
Grammarly
Grammarly is an advanced writing tool that swiftly detects writing errors in a matter of seconds.
It supports different variations of English, including American, British, Canadian and Australian. It makes sure your spelling and wording match the particular style of English you want to use.
Canva
Capturing the attention of your readers with visually appealing images is crucial. Canva is a valuable tool that can assist you in achieving this goal.
It allows you to create professional-looking images for your website or social media channels easily.
It offers a vast library of resources with over 420,000 customizable templates and more than 75 million premium stock photos, videos, audio files, etc.
This large collection gives you the flexibility to pick from different creative elements that match your requirements.
GrowthBar
GrowthBar is a highly regarded tool. It offers a wide range of features that greatly assist in content creation.
It provides article outlines, suggests keywords and even takes care of essential elements such as images, headlines and references for your blog posts.
Besides that, it also generates insightful data related to your competitors.
This includes information about their website traffic, Google & Facebook Ads, backlinks and organic keywords.
Conclusion
Article spinning has gained significant controversy in the field of content creation and SEO.
While it may have once offered perceived benefits, the drawbacks outweigh its advantages.
Search engines have become more sophisticated in detecting spun or duplicated content and prioritize those websites that have high-quality original content.