Plagiarism is a major issue that can ruin a business’s reputation and get them penalised by search engines. For content marketing agencies and ecommerce businesses relying on blog content, avoiding plagiarism in content writing is crucial. This article will explore what plagiarism is, the effects it can have, and how to avoid it when working with in house writers, freelance writers or white label content agencies.
What is Plagiarism in Content Writing?
Plagiarism in content writing refers to using someone else’s work or ideas without properly crediting them. This includes:
- Copying and pasting long sections of text from another website or source without using quotation marks or explicitly citing where it came from.
- Paraphrasing someone else’s writing without attribution
- Using statistics, facts, or other information without citing the original source
Plagiarism extends beyond just content writing. It can apply to visual assets, data, concepts, and more.
In the world of search engine optimisation (SEO) and content writing, plagiarism most commonly refers to copying written content. This could mean stealing full blog posts or just snippets of text without attribution.
Search engines like Google can detect duplicated content online. If you publish plagiarised content, it can lead to penalties like lost rankings, removal from search results, and even manual actions by Google. For a business relying on organic traffic, this can be devastating.
Beyond SEO risks, plagiarism also leads to loss of trust and reputation. If customers find you publishing unoriginal content, it reflects poorly on your brand image.
The Effects of Plagiarism
Let’s explore some of the common effects businesses face if they use plagiarized content:
Search Engine Penalties
As mentioned above, Google and other search engines can detect duplicated content and plagiarism. Some of the penalties may include:
- Removal from search results – Plagiarised pages may no longer show up for relevant queries.
- Lost rankings – Your website could drop in rankings for important keywords.
- Manual actions – In severe cases, Google may manually penalise your whole domain.
These penalties mean a drastic loss of organic traffic. For ecommerce stores and content sites relying on SEO, this can destroy revenue streams.
Loss of Trust & Reputation
Audiences expect original, high-quality content. If you’re caught plagiarising, it reflects poorly on your brand. Customers will see you as untrustworthy and doubt the quality of your products/services.
Your reputation with partners like bloggers, journalists, and influencers could also take a hit if you have a history of plagiarism in content writing. They’ll be unlikely to work with you again.
Legal Action
In some cases, plagiarism can lead to legal consequences like copyright infringement lawsuits. For instance, if you copy long extracts from a book or duplicate an entire blog post without permission.
Always give proper attribution to avoid legal issues.
High Bounce Rates & Low Dwell time
Plagiarised content is often low-quality and poorly optimised. It may not align well with searcher intent.
As a result, pages with stolen content tend to have high bounce rates and low average time on page. This signals to Google that the content is not useful, leading to lost visibility.
In summary, the risks of plagiarism in content writing far outweigh any temporary gains in output. Avoiding copied content is critical for long-term success.
How Can You Avoid Plagiarism in Content Writing?
Here are some best practices to ensure plagiarism-free content as a business:
Work With Reputable Content Writing Agencies and Writers
The top way to avoid plagiarism in content writing is hiring trustworthy content creators. This starts with the hiring process:
- Screen writers carefully – Review past work and portfolio samples for plagiarism using tools like Copyscape.
- Check references & reviews – Talk to past clients about their content quality.
- Explain your no-plagiarism policy – Make sure expectations are clear from the start.
- Use plagiarism checks – Scan any completed articles with tools like Copyscape before publishing.
When working with a white label content agency, do due diligence to ensure they follow best practices. Review samples of their client work and test finished articles yourself as well.
Avoid AI Content Writing Tools
While AI tools like ChatGPT can generate content quickly, there are major plagiarism risks. The AI may pull snippets from across the web without citation.
Until the technology improves, avoid fully relying on AI for content creation. Use human writers instead, even if there is some production delay.
Rewrite Existing Content Where Possible
For websites with existing product descriptions, blog posts, or articles, consider having these professionally rewritten instead of quoting verbatim. This avoids self-plagiarism.
The same applies if you have content written for other sites – get it rewritten for your new publication to make it completely original.
Follow Proper Citation Practices
When repurposing statistics or including quotes, always cite your sources. Link back to the original content where possible or list the author name and publication.
Using quotation marks also helps indicate that certain passages are being cited directly from another website rather than being stolen.
Address Intentional Plagiarism
If you catch a team member or writer stealing content deliberately, take action quickly. Make it clear through warnings or termination that intentional plagiarism will not be tolerated.
Also, re-check previous work by that person for any incidents you may have missed.
Avoiding plagiarism takes work but pays off tremendously in the long run. Protect your business reputation and search visibility by using only original, well-cited content from trustworthy sources.
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If you need blog, website, or newsletter content, let our white label content agency help. We provide 100% original articles researched and written from scratch exclusively for your brand. With thousands of pieces published across clients, we have a proven track record of delivering plagiarism-free content that engages audiences while avoiding search engine penalties.
Get in touch to learn more about our content writing services. We would be happy to provide custom samples showing our commitment to creativity and quality. Don’t leave your business reputation at risk any longer – let us create the engaging, original content you need to succeed online.