The best meta robots tag for a product page depends on its purpose, availability, and SEO strategy. Here’s a guide to help you decide:
1. Standard Product Page (In Stock and Active)
- Meta Robots Tag:
index, follow
- Reason:
- Allows the page to be indexed in search engines.
- Links within the page are followed, helping with link equity distribution and crawling.
2. Out of Stock Product Page (But Still Relevant)
- Meta Robots Tag:
index, follow
- Reason:
- If the product is temporarily out of stock but will return, keep it indexed to preserve its ranking and traffic.
- Add a “Back in Stock” alert or suggest related products to retain user engagement.
3. Permanently Unavailable Product Page
- Redirect to a Relevant Page (Best for SEO)
- Use a 301 redirect to a similar product or category page. No meta robots tag needed.
4. Duplicate Product Pages (e.g., Filtered, Sorted Versions)
- Meta Robots Tag:
noindex, follow
- Reason:
- Prevents duplicate content issues and keeps link equity flowing to other pages.
5. Product Pages with Low or No Content
- Meta Robots Tag:
noindex, follow
- Reason:
- If a product page lacks meaningful content (e.g., no description, few images), it might harm SEO. Consider noindexing until it’s improved.
6. Canonical Tags Instead of Meta Robots
If multiple URLs lead to the same product page (e.g., via sorting, filtering, or session-based parameters), using a canonical tag is better than altering meta robots tags. The canonical tag points to the primary URL, consolidating SEO signals.
Best Practice Recommendations:
- Keep High-Value Product Pages Indexable:
- Ensure
index, follow
is used for in-stock and popular products.
- Ensure
- Structured Data:
- Include structured data (e.g.,
Product
schema) to enhance visibility in search results.
- Include structured data (e.g.,
- Content Quality:
- Optimize product pages with unique descriptions, images, and customer reviews to increase their SEO value.
- Monitor with Google Search Console:
- Regularly check how Google indexes your product pages and ensure no unintended noindex tags are applied.