404-like content in webmaster tools

[idreams]

Hello

this is so strange i have just noticed when looking in webmastertools

there are some pages of our website it is showing like 404-like content but in reality the page is getting 200 response and it is good.

but why does google read that as 404-like content! we have product information and image of the product and even buy button in the page..

not only product pages but also for some content pages it showing 404-like content!

thanks in advance for your valuable opinions on the topic..

[AlanMosley]

I assume you are atlking about the soft 404 errors in GWMT

A soft 404 is a page that returns a 200 when it should return a 404.

Can we get a url?

there is a quict test you can do, see if this returns a 200 or a 404

domain.com/randomText

some websites use the 404 page to do url-rewriting or some other reason, this causes a soft 404.

From what I have read, Google can test if you are doing this buy requesting anonsecne url, and see if it returns a 404 or a 200. if it returns a 200 then they look at your pages more closly.

[ASOS]

I have also had this problem when the site goes down for maintenance - it says there are 404s etc. Have you taken the site or any pages down recently and then put them back up?

A

[RyanKent]

If you share the URL we can offer more specific feedback.

In general, look at the top of the page. Is there any text along the lines of "Oops...we can't find the page you are looking for"?

If a page returns a 200 response code but the crawl of the page indicates the page seems like a 404 page, Google will identify it as "404-like" content in WMT.

[idreams]

actually we kept the site for few hours in maintainence mode..

these are some pages

| http://www.digitalcompring.com/aire-y-clima/1022-bp-3100.html | 404-like content | Nov 8, 2011 |

| http://www.digitalcompring.com/internet-tv/55318-ue55d7000.html | 404-like content | Nov 8, 2011 |

and more...

i would like take this opportunity to ask one more question also... can you guys please check the page and give me some feedback to improve the SEO also ?

thanks

[AlanMosley]

Why does this page give a 301 then a 404
http://www.digitalcompring.com/fasfasdfas

Are you creating these 404 like pages dynamicly, or is there actualy a static page tha the address

[idreams]

actually we use prestashop and i guess it is automatically creating..

[AlanMosley]

What I am getting at is, some sites trap a 404, and then decide to return a page depending on the url, this was popular in the old days. where really you ned to do this much earlier in the event cycle.

This often a cause of soft 404s

[idreams]

i am sorry but i didn't understand what we should do to rectify these errors. in google webmaster tools..

as it is reading our good 200 ok pages as 404-like content...

[RyanKent]

Ravi, the likely root-cause of your issue is poor page design.

The page you shared (http://www.digitalcompring.com/aire-y-clima/1022-bp-3100.html) has 28 words of unique text in the main content area, that's it.

Try counting every word on the page. Include all of the header, the footer, the side bar. When examining the header include every word in each of the drop down menus. Also include the "Commentarios" tab which has a bit of text and shows zero comments. When you are finished, that is the amount of duplicated content which appears on every page of your site.

Now look at the main content area. The "Mas" tab starts with "Caracteristicas" which is common to every page, then shows 27 unique words. Above that area is the main product image with perhaps 20 unique words.

You page offers 266 links! That is a lot. A normal 404 page has a few words at the top "Sorry we can't find the page you are looking for" along with links to other pages on the site. Basically your current page does not appear as a unique web page which should be indexed. I would advise greatly reducing your links on the page (try to keep under 100) and greatly increasing your content. The product seems to be a space heater. More pictures of the product, more description of it's usage, etc. I hate to offer anything word-count related but try to at least get 500 unique words on the page.

[idreams]

thank you so much for the detailed explanation..

i have given one more page too which it is showing 404 alike

http://www.digitalcompring.com/imagen-sonido/55318-ue55d7000-8806071261218.html

this got many words. but the only reason i can see is we have way too many link in the page..

but how to reduce them ? the link on the top menu is important o us. because it gives good look to the website..

any suggestions would be welcome on how to reduce the links on our pages.

once again thank you so much Ryan and others who replied

much appreciated..

[RyanKent]

This other link you are sharing is much better with respect to content. You are up to 228 words of unique content. It is still very thin on content.

With respect to the 404 issue, the URL you shared with me (the one receiving the 404 notice in WMT) is:

www.digitalcompring.com/imagen-sonido/55318-ue55d7000.html

When I enter that URL I am taken to the following page:

http://www.digitalcompring.com/imagen-sonido/55318-ue55d7000-8806071261218.html

I still receive a 200 header response code. Your server is changing the URL and I can't see the actual URL you listed.

With respect to links, if you value SEO at all you need to remove most of the links on the page. One step is you can link to the categories instead of the sub-categories and individual pages. For example you presently link to the "Televisions" category then offer links for "Televisions 3D", "Televisions Internet", "Televisions HD" and so forth. Simply link to the "Televisions" category and remove all the sub-category links.

Check your Google WMT and see which links are not used. If you offer 250+ links on a page it can be difficult for users to locate a useful link. If you only offer 50 links on the page, users will have a lot easier time finding what they need.

[idreams]

this is the complete url http://www.digitalcompring.com/imagen-sonido/55318-ue55d7000-8806071261218.html..

few days back we tried one module to make the url a bit beautiful what that module done was removed the numbers at the end of the url. but it slowed the very much so we disabled it..

some what i cant agree with this statement

////////

If you offer 250+ links on a page it can be difficult for users to locate a useful link. If you only offer 50 links on the page, users will have a lot easier time finding what they need.

///////////

because the links which we gave in the menu are making it is very easy for the client to get what he want every easily.. for example if one client is looking for LED tv he can just go to that sub category in tv's with out much difficulty. same case with every subcategory.. if you take games section... if the client is looking for ps3 console or games he can navigate there very easily.. we designed that menu mainly to keep it easy for the client..

i can give you some big brands for example who are using the same thing for example

http://www.target.com/

http://www.pixmania.com/es/es/home.html

but what i see in target product pages is there are many comments of clients for each product. i guess this will make difference ?

[RyanKent]

You are comparing your site with Target which is not an equivalent site. Target has a DA of 95 which is amongst the highest on the internet. Your site does not have the authority to make such a system work, and likely never will. That's nothing wrong with your site. 99% of the sites on the internet don't have a DA that high.

Another question before comparing yourself with Target. How is their SEO? Don't assume because they are a large retailer in the physical world that their online SEO is good. Have you tried searching for "Buy TV" or "Buy Television" and checking where Target ranks? I see stores like Circuit City and Best Buy ranking on the first page, but not Target.

How about more specific searches for common products? When I search for a popular brand which Target sells, I don't see them on the first page of results, but I see their competitors. Try searching for "phillips 32" tv" or "buy phillips 32" tv".

Also, look at Target's own menu for "TVs". They offer a link to their "TVs and Video" category (under Electronics) and to "TVs". Target has a MUCH larger selection and they do not break down "TVs" the way you do into the various types.

There are two things to consider with respect to your links. The first is useability. Take a look at your Google Analytics. It will show exactly how frequently each of your links is being used. I am willing to bet most of your 266 links are almost never used. That should indicate a need for change.

The second consideration is flow of PR throughout your site. You offer a link to "MP3" and "iPods", but then you also offer a link to 260 other items. Are the other items you are linking to less important? Because you are flowing the same amount of link juice to everything, which means that your more important pages receive almost none. Why? Because you are sharing your link juice with other pages which are not as important.

You are welcome to disregard the suggestion I shared. It is my advice to you, but you are in control of the site. The question is, are you happy with your rankings in Google presently? If so, keep doing what you are doing. If not, something needs to change. You could leave your navigation in tact and work on other aspects of your site, but 266 links on a site with such a low DA stands out as a major concern.

[idreams]

really appreciated your time and advice. i respect your opinons. actually i just wanted to give a example (target) for why we are using all these subcategories at the top.

we are not satisfied with the google rank and this is actually a new design of our site. its been just a week days since we are using this new system and the template.

by considering your words now i am rethinking and surely will need to take actions.