A popular warning from people who know a bit about websites and content creation is:

It kind of makes sense when you think about it:

Recent reports say there are about 3.5 billion google searches done every day.

Users want unique content.

And google wants users to be happy.

So if users want unique content, does google punish sites who post duplicate content?

Google has specifically said it does not have a duplicate content punishment.

If you want to put content on your site, and that content already exists on another site, google will not punish your site.

But SO many people talk about this myth. So where does the ‘duplicate content punishment’ rumor come from? 

It comes from ranking factors.

Usually, people create sites they want to rank for certain google searches.

And even though your duplicate content won’t get your site penalized, it also will do nothing to help it rank.

Google knows when there are multiple versions of the same content out on the internet.

And it will not let more than one version of that content rank. So while you won’t get penalized, you will not get any ranking benefit from it.

If you think about it, there are many times it would make total sense to put duplicate content on your website.

1. Sharing guidelines published by an association.

2. Re-posting a press release that’s been shared on other sites.

3. Using clinical information from a medical device company.

4. Notifying patients about an announcement from your hospital.

Would it make sense for google to punish a website for doing any of these things?

Definitely not.

At the same time, just because there is no penalty, it doesn’t mean duplicate content is a good idea.

1. If you want your website to rank, google wants to see unique content.
2. If you don’t write your own content, your patients are not hearing directly from you or your practice. It’s less personal.
3. If you use duplicate content without permission, or without crediting the original site, you risk copyright violations.

Conclusion:

Use original content whenever you can. It’s much better for you, for your site visitors, and for google ranking. But actual duplicate content penalties are not something you need to worry about.