Should most call-outs on older articles be removed when re-editing?

1. 91

   Chriswillman90posted 6 years ago

   I'm going back to edit several articles and I noticed I would often use call-outs on list-based articles. A few of those articles are still doing well even with multiple call-outs but would removing all call-outs benefit the article or would it not matter.
   
   I stopped using call-outs in newer articles or only use one or two to highlight a point, but what about past articles. Would removing most call-outs from older articles do anything to the rankings/viewership?

   replyreport
   1. 90

      vineliner57posted 6 years agoin reply to this

      I've actually had the editors snip a callout before moving it to a lateral site. I assume they had their reasons.

      replyreport
      1. 96

         Glenn Stokposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         Their reasons were based on what I just mentioned earlier in this thread.
         https://hubpages.com/forum/post/3994915

         replyreport
         1. 83

            Venkatachari Mposted 6 years agoin reply to this

            I think callout is best for highlighting some salient feature or important point of the topic. Not for any other purpose. That's what you also recommend, I hope.

            replyreport
         2. 90

            vineliner57posted 6 years agoin reply to this

            Just trying to add to the conversation, Glen. I am aware of what you posted earlier in this thread.....

            replyreport
2. 96

   Kierstin Gunsbergposted 6 years ago

   Yes! I got rid of most of my call-outs. However, I think they're useful for organizing the articles but I don't think they're helpful for more text than that.

   replyreport
   1. 91

      Chriswillman90posted 6 years agoin reply to this

      Did that help with your Google ranking or traffic in any way?

      replyreport
      1. 96

         DrMark1961posted 6 years agoin reply to this

         I also delete this as I am editing each article. It is impossible to tell you how much it affects the article since there are so many other edits being done at the same time. Traffic usually improves, but is it because of the deletion?

         replyreport
         1. 91

            Chriswillman90posted 6 years agoin reply to this

            I'm done playing the guessing game when it comes to editing, but I will probably remove most of them. Maybe they served a purpose once but now they're unnecessary. The layout has always changed quite a bit since they were initially introduced.

            replyreport
3. 96

   Glenn Stokposted 6 years ago

   I've removed most of my callouts too. The reasoning is this...
   
   If the callout contains a subtitle that belongs to the following text capsule, then it's better for ranking to place the subtitle in the title field of the text capsule.
   
   If the callout contains other information that does not need to be associated with the following content for SEO purposes, then using a callout capsule is fine. That's what Kierstin Gunsberg eluded to above.
   
   Technically the issue is as follows: 
   
   The HTML coding "connects" the text capsule's title with the content of that capsule. Therefore, separating the subtitle in another capsule (a callout capsule) will cause Google to not be able to relate the subtitle to the content.

   replyreport
   1. 91

      Chriswillman90posted 6 years agoin reply to this

      Great information, call out capsules have always been confusing to me. I mainly used them initially for aesthetics but now they just look clunky, and I can't imagine Google being happy about them.

      replyreport