A machine learning technique: the system requests human labels for “uncertain” results to improve training. Google’s spam detection uses this principle.
Are you relying on guesswork to figure out which content Google truly loves? I know that feeling of throwing content into the void and just hoping it sticks. I have found that the real magic happens when you teach the search engines what is best, not just wait for them to decide.
Today, I am going to share a powerful, technical concept, What is Uncertainty Sampling (Active Learning in IR)?, and show you simple ways to use this idea to improve your website’s performance.
Get ready to stop guessing and start building a smarter, more highly ranked website.
What is Uncertainty Sampling (Active Learning in IR)? Explained Simply
So, What is Uncertainty Sampling (Active Learning in IR)? is a method used to train smart systems, like search engines, more efficiently.Imagine the search system is unsure about whether a document is relevant to a query; Uncertainty Sampling tells us to ask a human to review that specific document.
By focusing on the “most uncertain” items, the system learns faster with less effort, making its search results much better over time.
CMS Optimization: Creating Data for Certainty
While we do not directly program Google’s core algorithms, we use the principles of Uncertainty Sampling to guide their systems on our own sites.
This means ensuring the search engine is never uncertain about the relevance of our key pages.
WordPress
WordPress sites often create a lot of similar pages, like archives, that make search engines uncertain about which page is the main, important one.
I use SEO plugins to place canonical tags on these duplicate pages, pointing them clearly back to the “certain” original page.
This prevents the search engine from wasting effort on low-value pages and concentrates the authority where I want it.
Shopify
Shopify’s filtering can generate thousands of slightly different product URLs, causing high uncertainty for search algorithms.
I configure the parameter handling settings in Google Search Console to tell Google exactly which parts of a URL to ignore.
This is like telling the system, “Do not worry about the ?color=red part; just focus on the main product page.”
Wix
Wix’s simplicity is great, but its default settings sometimes make it hard to customize the data that reduces uncertainty.
I use the built-in SEO tools to ensure every single page has a unique, descriptive meta title and meta description.
Clear, distinct metadata helps the system be certain about the page’s topic right from the search results page.
Webflow
Webflow is fantastic because its clean code automatically reduces a lot of the structural uncertainty that plagues other platforms.
I leverage its control over the CMS structure to ensure internal linking is logical and uses keyword-rich anchor text.
This clear path shows the search engine exactly how each page relates to the broader site topics.
Custom CMS
With a custom CMS, I design a structured data (Schema Markup) implementation from the ground up to eliminate uncertainty.
I explicitly define content types like “Article,” “Product,” or “FAQ,” leaving no doubt about the page’s purpose.
This approach gives search engines the most precise information possible, leading to higher certainty and better rankings.
Industry Relevance: Applying Active Learning to Your Business
The principle of focusing on “high-uncertainty” areas is crucial for every business type, helping you prioritize where to focus your SEO effort.
We want to find the pages that Google is confused about and make them crystal clear.
Ecommerce
Ecommerce sites face uncertainty when they have similar product pages or many low-inventory products.
I focus on fixing thin product descriptions and adding unique user-generated content (UGC) to differentiate similar items.
This ensures the system is certain about which page is the definitive result for a specific product query.
Local Businesses
A local business’s uncertainty often comes from vague service pages that do not clearly specify location or service details.
I use location-specific keywords and embed a Google Map and consistent NAP (Name, Address, Phone) data to confirm the page’s local relevance.
This high certainty helps the page rank reliably in the local pack results.
SaaS (Software as a Service)
SaaS websites create uncertainty when they use complex, overly technical language that does not match common user search queries.
I review my content to ensure I use both technical jargon for experts and simple, problem-solving language for beginners.
This dual-approach ensures the page is relevant to the entire audience spectrum.
Blogs
Blog pages can have high uncertainty if they are short, quickly written, or cover overly broad topics.
I look for blog posts with low average time-on-page and immediately update them to be longer, more detailed, and fully answer the search intent.
By fixing the “uncertain” pages, I transform them into valuable, authoritative resources.
FAQ: Uncertainty Sampling in SEO
Q: I am not a programmer. How do I find my “uncertain” pages?
A: I look in Google Search Console for pages with low impressions but average or high Click-Through Rates (CTR).
This suggests Google is uncertain about the page but, when it does show it, users like it, making it a high-priority page to improve.
Q: Does this relate to Core Web Vitals?
A: Yes, these concepts are connected because Core Web Vitals (CWV) are a way for Google to measure uncertainty about the quality of the user experience.
If your CWV scores are poor, the search engine is uncertain if sending a user to your site will result in a good experience.
Q: Is canonicalization a form of reducing uncertainty?
A: I see canonicalization as the most direct way to reduce uncertainty about page identity.
It explicitly tells the search engine, “This is the master version,” eliminating confusion caused by similar URLs.
Q: Should I delete pages that Google seems uncertain about?
A: I do not recommend deleting them right away; first, try to improve them by adding more unique, high-quality content.
If the page offers no unique value after your best effort, then you should consider deleting or redirecting it to a more certain, important page.
