Being a content writer for your company's website, you need to be sensitive about using plagiarism-free content in your posts.

That's because Google and other search engines dislike copied or duplicated content. For SEO, Google prefers websites that bring unique and innovative ideas to their content with every blog post and on every page. As we all know, content – especially original content – is key for your website's ranking and visibility.

Google knows everything.

If you think you're safe copying content from the web to place on your website, and it won't affect your website's SEO, think again. Google's algorithms detect duplicate content, whether it's from another website, or even within your own website. And duplicate content negatively affects your site's ranking, because original content is always given preference and better ranking over duplicate content.

Besides, if you're copying content from the Internet, you don't know if it's one-of-a-kind and genuine, or if that content has already been highly-plagiarized or copied in some way. Use an online tool like Prepost to check for plagiarism.

Plagiarized content has various impacts on your rating. Here's how:

How plagiarism-free content can help a website's ranking.

A good website rating on Google and other search engines guarantees better ranking and high-quality web traffic. Plagiarists may copy only small parts from other websites and combine them to form new content, but this doesn't work. You might believe you're getting away with it because duplicate material isn't a ranking issue, but you're wrong. Besides, it's also unethical to steal someone's content and present it as your own.

However, many people are unaware that plagiarized or duplicated material prohibits your site from adequately being searched and indexed by Google. Getting new, valuable material for your website is necessary for good SEO. Working with original content is the only way to achieve high rankings on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).

Take a look at the impacts that plagiarism-free content can have on a website's ranking.

1. Increases brand visibility:
   In the long run, well-optimized content will foster a strong link between you and your customers. Over 70% of buyers utilize search engines to discover more about brands and products. Plagiarism-free writing assists your firm in making a positive impression on customers about the product, which leads to a positive brand image.
2. Boost site traffic:
   Content can help your company establish a strong market position. Concentrating on the quality of your content can help attract more visitors to your website.
3. Website with original content can rank better in the search engine results pages (SERPs):
   The key benefit of unique content is that it helps your company be found in search engine results much better. As you now know, Google and other search engines are seeking content that isn't plagiarized. Search engine bots examine the original content before recommending it to visitors. Sites with unique and plagiarism-free content have a better chance of ranking higher in the SERPs.
4. On social media, your target market will communicate your content:
   When you produce high-quality content, undoubtedly, you could be providing a unique solution to some of the most commonly googled issues that others might not be offering. If you know the value of content, and share it with your customers, they will share your ideas via social media to friends and family.
5. Help customers in making rapid purchase decisions:
   A search is almost always the initial step in creating a purchasing decision. A well-optimized piece of content guides clients on the right path, and if they find their solution through your content, they're almost sure to join your mailing list. More customers imply more business and market opportunities.

What impact does plagiarism have on SEO?

Plagiarism has the same consequences regardless of the form of plagiarism.

• Plagiarized content usually results in a penalty for the website. Plagiarism can also significantly impact SEO rankings because the Internet does not work in the same way that human brains does, which is unable to distinguish between original and copied material.
•  It confuses search engines, leading to inappropriate results that might harm both parties. It can be a waste of time, and cause damage to your website's reputation.
• If you're in the SEO business, there's a workaround for determining plagiarized content. Plenty of tools are available on the Internet to help you determine if the content you're provided is plagiarism-free. Check out prepostseo.com.

There are other plagiarism check tools available as well.

A website called Website Planet has a list ranking the best and more accurate plagiarism check tools available here. In addition, their post suggests some free tools, so if you're curious to see how it works, see their list.

Conclusion.

If you want to rank higher and get more clients, you'll need to strengthen your content strategy and writing skills. Keep your focus on digital marketing, including SEO, to gain traffic to your website. As previously stated, when it comes to SEO: Content is King, and without it, your website might not succeed in reaching your target audiences.

EXTRA CREDIT learning: See how Google determines your websites "Quality Score" for ranking in search ads.

Watch how Google determines how well a website should rank with Google Ads. While determining ad ranking is different than calculating how well your site ranks organically, we can't help but think the same concepts apply to both.

Hal Varian, Chief Economist at Google, isn't the most dynamic spokesperson, and his graphics are downright silly, but the content of this video is really good. See how Google uses your website to determine website's ranking on their SERPs here, or click the image below.