What is a Column Page? (How they can help your SEO)

Column pages have been an effective way of grouping and presenting website content to users and search engines for some time.

In this post, I’ll define what a column page is, how it can help your SEO efforts, and some examples of column pages in action.

So let’s start defining column pages.

What Is A Pillar Page?

A column page that focuses on a key topic, resource, product or service area is a landing destination on your website.

It enables users and search engines to quickly access lots of content that is relevant.

Page depth of columns will vary based on their purpose.

Some may be a shallow introduction for quick access to other content (such as the role of a content page), while others will be more comprehensive, providing deeper independent value, supported by related content items.

If you’ve listed down all the core topics related to your business, each of these could justify a column page.

Column pages give people one-stop access to lots of related content in a user-friendly way.

They also provide search engines with logically organized content that can be quickly skimmed, understood and ranked effectively in search.

You may have heard about cornerstone content, content hubs, content clusters, or column pages in various forums, and effectively, they all represent nuances of the same approach.

If you imagine a bicycle wheel, at the center, you have the hub.

From the hub, you have many spokes.

For column content, the hub is the column page (the central theme or topic), and the spokes are the related content areas that lead to and from the column page.

A single pillar page may contain many other pages and content types that all link to the column page, either directly, or through other sub-contents that then link back to the primary/pillar page.

The basic interaction is the same – centering all relevant content from one main landing target (column page).

I’ll provide some examples soon to help reinforce this principle so you can see column pages in action.

How Can Pillar Pages Help Your SEO?

Before moving on to some examples of column pages, it’s useful to understand a little more about how they can help your SEO performance.

There are many benefits to creating column pages on your website, and I cover a few of these next.

Strengthening Topical Authority Signals

Expertise, Authority and Trustworthiness (E-A-T) underpins Google’s guidelines and provides a key factor in assigning overall quality scores to any website.

Simply put, Google uses E-A-T as a yardstick to decide whether content is considered high quality – and if so, it’s likely to be consistently higher.

This is because it will be considered:

By grouping content together in a simple hierarchy, you make it easy for search engines to identify, understand and rank your content.

Your timely signals are clearly being provided to help with broader Google guidelines such as E-A-T.

This means you can shine a light on the areas you want your business to be closely related to online, and make your rankings for those topics more consistent and optimized.

In contrast, consider a website where most of the content is competing with its own face.

Where there is no clear division or hierarchy of topics (or pillars) and every time you add a new blog post, or article to your website, the amount of noise increases for search engines and users.

You can quickly see why column pages add value.

Here, you can find out more about E-A-T and why it matters.

Faster, Simpler, More Complete User Experience

For many years, Google has been increasing the impact of a positive user experience for SEO gains.

A more recent manifestation of this is Core Web Vitals (CWVs).

Another example of this in action is the devaluation of websites and content that imposes barriers between the user and their intended destination, such as inter-statistics, or sites with low-value content.

Site speed and mobile friendliness are other examples of ranking factors.

By using column pages, you are able to focus people on the content they are interested in.

You can provide clear signals of trust by delivering comprehensive and more meaningful content.

You can showcase your experts through the content they are involved with and place it in a central resource.

You can improve user engagement signals by simplifying access to related content, encouraging them to move through the information search and purchase cycle earlier.

Additionally, by focusing your resources on the specific pages of key targets, you can ensure that they are quick to load, intuitive to interact with, and simple to navigate.

You simplify the continuous, iterative changes you make to keep improving through new data sets.

Here, you can find more details about improving SEO with user experience.

Natural, Value-Based, Link Building

By providing a one-stop shop for people to solve a multitude of related questions, wants, needs and pain points, in a simple way, you can naturally collect external trust signals including links.

Consider all the social listening opportunities over and over again to share your comprehensive column pages with your audience.

With your column pages you are providing a free, easy to access, share and promote content resource, perfect for link acquisition, brand building and PR.

Added SEO Benefits Of Pillar Pages

There are many additional SEO benefits to using column pages, but typically you would:

Examples Of Different Pillar Pages

Column pages have many different applications and to complete this article, I thought it would be useful to share a few here.

Product Pillar Page

This sample item from Foresters Friendly Society shows how a single column page can provide the following:

Image from Foresters Friendly Society, December 2022

Topic Pillar Page

In these example snippets from the life of the University of East Anglia (UEA) at the campus landing page, you can see how a single column page gives the user and search engines:

Image from the University of East Anglia, December 2022

Image from the University of East Anglia, December 2022

Image from the University of East Anglia, December 2022

Conclusion

Column pages are not only an effective way to organize your website content, they can have significant benefits for your SEO.

By leveraging column pages, you can create a faster, more streamlined, and generally more user-friendly experience on your website—making it easier for users and search engines to interact with.

If you want to boost your SEO efforts today, put column pages to use!

Featured Image: oatawa/Shutterstock

How much does a pillar page cost?

Column page template $300-$500. This is a unique template with several features including a floating Table of Contents with jump links to the page sections. Column page content.

What is a 10X content column page? 10X Content Pillar Page More commonly implemented, 10X pillar content is a single web page that completely deconstructs every aspect of your core content. Page 10x is 10 times better than any other resource out there that covers that topic. It is an ungated subject with infinite possibilities.

How many bullet pages should you have? How many bullet pages should you have? For each main column, there should be a set of at least three sub-columns as well as three supporting blogs and no less than three supporting blogs per sub-column. This means that each column is supported by at least 16 pieces of shorter material.

How long should column pages be? Column pages should be broad and comprehensive. They should touch on almost every question a user might have on a topic, but not answer them too deeply. Think of column pages as “everything you need” or an “A-to-Z” guide to a topic ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 words.

What should a pillar page include?

A column page covers all aspects of the topic on one page, with room for more in-depth reporting in more detailed post clusters that hyperlink back to the bullet page. Column pages generally cover a specific topic, while cluster content should target a specific keyword that is deeply related to that topic.

How do I make a column page? How to Create a Pillar Page in 6 Steps

• Choose a core topic. The first step in building your column page is choosing core content. …
• Develop subtopics. …
• Write, edit, and organize your column page. …
• Build your column page. …
• Share, promote and showcase your new page! …
• Update your page as needed.

What is a pillar pages?

Basically, a column page is a hub or base on which the cluster pages are built. It provides a comprehensive overview of a topic but leaves room for more detailed coverage of the topic on the cluster pages, which usually focus on a specific aspect of the topic, often a keyword.

What is a column page? What is a Column Page? Basically, a column page is a hub or base on which the cluster pages are built. It provides a comprehensive overview of a topic but leaves room for more detailed coverage of the topic on the cluster pages, which usually focus on a specific aspect of the topic, often a keyword.

How do you use column pages? Column pages generally cover a specific topic, while cluster content should target a specific keyword that is deeply related to that topic. For example, you might write a column page about content marketing – a broad topic – and a cluster piece about blogging – a more specific keyword within the topic.

How does a pillar page look like?

A column page is high-level content that provides a general overview of a main topic and links to in-depth articles on specific subtopics. Think of it as a table of contents, and the cluster pages as individual chapters.

Is a column page the same as a landing page? A column page aims to build your brand’s authority on a specific topic, whereas a landing page aims to generate leads for follow-up marketing campaigns.

How do I promote my pillar page?

Start adding column pages & topic clusters now

• Decide on the content you want to rank.
• Enter it into a keyword research tool.
• Group keywords into a keyword column and cluster.
• Create SEO-optimized content.
• Apply as many internal links as necessary.
• Promote your column pages as much as possible.

What is a column page in marketing? A column page is a high-level piece of content that provides a general overview of a core topic and links out to in-depth articles on specific subtopics. The clustered column model is good for SEO because it shows your expertise and authority, while adding context and improving PageRank flow through internal links.

Can a column page be a blog post? A column page is not the same as a blog post (even if that blog is 3,000 words long). The main differences are that a column page provides structure to the overall SEO column strategy and connects to the rest of the cluster through related keywords and hyperlinks.

How long should column pages be? Column pages are usually long content of 2,000 words. It links to cluster pages, and they link back to the column page. A column page is an evergreen piece of content that you should update from time to time.

What makes a good pillar page?

At its core, a good column page must provide quality content that answers questions your users may have about a particular topic. They tend to be more “complete guides” and contain enough content to be crawled and indexed by search engines.

What should be included on a column page? A column page covers all aspects of the topic on one page, with room for more in-depth reporting in more detailed post clusters that hyperlink back to the bullet page. Column pages generally cover a specific topic, while cluster content should target a specific keyword that is deeply related to that topic.

How does a pillar page look like?

A column page is high-level content that provides a general overview of a main topic and links to in-depth articles on specific subtopics. Think of it as a table of contents, and the cluster pages as individual chapters.

Is a column page the same as a landing page? A column page aims to build your brand’s authority on a specific topic, whereas a landing page aims to generate leads for follow-up marketing campaigns.

What are column pages? Basically, a column page is a hub or base on which the cluster pages are built. It provides a comprehensive overview of a topic but leaves room for more detailed coverage of the topic on the cluster pages, which usually focus on a specific aspect of the topic, often a keyword.

What are the Five Pillars used for?

The five pillars – declaration of faith (shahada), prayer (salah), almsgiving (zakat), fasting (sawah) and pilgrimage (hajj) – are the basic rites of Islamic practice. They are accepted by Muslims all over the world regardless of ethnic, regional or sectarian differences.

How do the five pillars of Islam imply? These five pillars of faith support the main beliefs of the religion and give followers a sense of identity. They preach Muslims on how one must behave in daily life. They also guide the believers to overcome challenges in life and create aspects of Islam.

What do the 5 bullets do? There are five pillars “or fundamental principles” of the Islamic faith. These are the person’s professing faith; praying five times a day; giving zakat, or donating a certain portion of one’s wealth; fasting during Ramadan; and make a pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Each of these pillars is an important part of being a Muslim.

Why are the pillars important?

The Pillars are important acts of worship that develop the Muslim character and strengthen Islam. Allah orders the Muslims to perform these duties and to follow the example of the Prophet (salallaahu alaihi wassallam) in the way they perform these duties.

What do the 5 pillars teach? The Five Pillars are the foundation of Islamic religious practice. These basic duties – faith, worship, fasting, almsgiving, and pilgrimage – guide Muslims in their daily life and worship of God.

Why is the first pillar the most important?

For Muslims, the Shahada is the most important pillar of Islam because understanding and accepting it means that one understands and accepts the essence of the entire faith.

Which one of the pillars is considered to be the most important pillar? 1. The profession of faith (the shahada) The profession of faith (the shahada) is the most fundamental expression of Islamic beliefs. It simply says “There is no God but God and Muhammad is his prophet.’ It emphasizes the monotheistic nature of Islam.

What is the most important pillar of Islam and why?

The most important pillar of Islam is the First Pillar, Shahadah (Profession of Faith). Here they express their belief that there is only one God and that Muhammad delivers God’s message.

Which pillar of Islam is the most important? The first pillar: Shahada (Declaration of Faith) The first shahada promotes the essential unity of faith, declaring that there is no god but God.

Why the Five Pillars are so important?

The five pillars of Islam define the fundamental identity of Muslims – their beliefs, faith and practices – and bind the community of believers around the world in a community of shared values ​​and concerns.

What are the 5 most important pillars? They are: Muslim faith, prayer, charity to the poor, fasting in the month of Ramadan, and the pilgrimage to Mecca for those who are able.

What is the most important 5 pillar?

They are: Muslim faith, prayer, charity to the poor, fasting in the month of Ramadan, and the pilgrimage to Mecca for those who are able.

Why is the first column the most important? For Muslims, the Shahada is the most important pillar of Islam because understanding and accepting it means that one understands and accepts the essence of the entire faith.

What is the most important of the Five Pillars?

Hajj, the pilgrimage to Makkah, is the fifth pillar and the world’s most significant expression of Islamic faith and unity. For those Muslims who are physically and financially able to make the journey to Makkah, the Hajj is a once-in-a-lifetime obligation and is the pinnacle of their religious life.

What is the significance of the Five Pillars? The five pillars – declaration of faith (shahada), prayer (salah), giving alms (zakat), fasting (sawah) and pilgrimage (hajj) are the basic norms of Islamic practice. They are accepted by Muslims all over the world regardless of ethnic, regional or sectarian differences.

Which pillar of Islam is the most important?

The first pillar: Shahada (Declaration of Faith) The first shahada promotes the essential unity of faith, declaring that there is no god but God.

What is the most important part of Islam? Profession of Faith (Shahada). The belief that “There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God” is central to Islam. This phrase, written in Arabic, often appears prominently in architecture and in a variety of objects, including the Qur’an, Islam’s holy book of divine revelation.

Which one of the pillars is considered as the most important pillar?

1. The profession of faith (the shahada) The profession of faith (the shahada) is the most fundamental expression of Islamic beliefs. It simply says “There is no God but God and Muhammad is his prophet.’ It emphasizes the monotheistic nature of Islam.

What are the 3 pillars of Islam? Giving alms (zakat) Giving alms is the third pillar. Although it is not defined in the Qu’ran, Muslims believe that they are meant to share their wealth with those less fortunate in their religious community.

What are the 4 P’s of content development?

In summary, the 4 P’s are the core concepts of creating the right product at the right price in the right place for effective promotion. Inspired by the 4 P’s, I created the 4 P’s for my book, Global Content Marketing: Plan, Produce, Nurture and Perfect.

What are the 4 big P’s? The four PSs are a ‘marketing mix’ consisting of four main elements—product, price, place and promotion” used when marketing a product or service. Typically, businesses consider the four Ps when creating marketing plans and strategies to effectively market to their target audience.

Why are the 4 PS important? The 4Ps of marketing is a simple way of thinking about marketing plans across four key areas: product, price, place and promotion. This ‘marketing mix’ can help you put together a plan to ensure a successful introduction of your product or service to the market.

What are the 4 steps of content strategy?

There are four stages in the content marketing process: strategy, content creation, distribution and conversion.

What are the 4 pillars of content marketing? The answer lies in four pillars of content creation that will help you create high-quality content that ranks well in search engines: originality, relevance, engagement and relevancy. What is Content Marketing anyway?