Took a Hit :(

[lutherlars]

Hey guys did anybody else take a hit yesterday. I've lost a lot of ranking and am not too sure why.

[lutherlars]

I've read that a possible reason for this hit could be because of ads above the fold but by looking at my site:
Dogs | Dog Training | Dog Health | Dog Supplies, would you consider it to be ad heavy? Cheers for input!

[mrtrance]

I noticed all my sites have lost page 1 rankings and have dropped to page 2 and beyond. All are Adsense sites with a variety of backlinks. I don't know if this is just temporary or what, but they had been doing well in the last few months after they got hit in October. But now dropped again.

[SuzanneH]

Google made a big change to their algorithm:

Official Google Webmaster Central Blog: Page layout algorithm improvement

Here's an article from Search Engine Land:

Pages With Too Many Ads "Above The Fold" Now Penalized By Google's "Page Layout" Algorithm

Suzanne

[mrtrance]

Originally Posted by SuzanneH

Google made a big change to their algorithm:

Official Google Webmaster Central Blog: Page layout algorithm improvement

Here's an article from Search Engine Land:

Pages With Too Many Ads "Above The Fold" Now Penalized By Google's "Page Layout" Algorithm

Suzanne

But I've noticed all others that don't even have ads on top got hit and one of my offline clients site got hit as well even though they have no sort of advertising on their site and the whole content is all above the fold. There is has to be more to this than just the content layout.

[lutherlars]

Do you guys think that above the fold on my site looks spammy:
Dogs | Dog Training | Dog Health | Dog Supplies
Thanks.

[cagliostro]

Originally Posted by lutherlars

Hey guys did anybody else take a hit yesterday. I've lost a lot of ranking and am not too sure why.

One website of mine got hit a week ago. A well established website, registered since 2004.

I lost all rankings and about 10 $ per day. No idea why.

[lutherlars]

what was ur ad placement, as it appears that sites that have been hit were ad heavy

[mrtrance]

I've been noticing that alot of the exact match domains and those that were set up for Adsense have been hit pretty hard. I checked a few of my sites that had an EMD and was ranking on first page and all of them have dropped anywhere from page 2 to page 6. Also other competitors that were ranking right below or a few spots under me got hit as well. So I think it has to do more than just page layout since these other sites have different layouts and got hit as well. By the way I have just 1 Adsense block under the title and then the unique content below that.

[yukon]

Originally Posted by lutherlars

what was ur ad placement, as it appears that sites that have been hit were ad heavy

If that was the case, looks like EZA will be in for a major smack down soon, in the SERPs.

I see 7 Adsense Ads + 2 Chitika Ads (per page). I know EZA is a premium Adsense publisher. Just saying...

hxxp://ezinearticles.com/?Get-Peace-and-Relaxation-at-the-Touch-of-a-Button&id=6826114

[lutherlars]

Well I would not have called my site spammy, but I did have an ad above my fold which I have removed. I will file a reconsider request and see what happens. The release from G does say that over time as bots recrawl content your site may come back as long as you follow guidelines so here's hoping...

[SuzanneH]

It's more where ads were prominently above the fold, with little to no content "above the fold."

Suzanne

[GGpaul]

This could be the reason of what happened yesterday. I'm using CTR theme too which could be a problem. I'm not using anything above the fold though hmm..

[lutherlars]

Yes, my site definitely featured a very prominant ad above fold. This is now gone... We'll see.

[mrtrance]

So themes like Clickbump and CTR are getting the hit since those use ad blocks above the content? The sites that I use Clickbump theme on all got hit overnight. Everything went from page 1 to page 2-6. I don't know if it's just the theme layout that is causing this or what? I think my backlink scheme was OK since after the last hit in October I was doing diverse backlinks and the sites all climbed back to page 1 rankings and then last night all of them got hit hard again.

So I wonder if removing the adsense from under the titles would help the sites come back or not?

Anyone using the Clickbump theme and got hit as well?

[Buyseech]

Hmm I went from #5 to #3 .... #12 to #8 and #13 to #9 for my main targeted keywords...I guess clearing up the spammy adsense sites does leave an opening for quality sites to rank higher afterall...

It will only continue and MFA will be totaly demolished in the next year or so. Just my prediction...

Sincerely, Buyseech

[lutherlars]

Well. I could not agree more when it comes to wanting spammy sites out of search results, and will take every step necessary to insure that G views my site as a quality site, because it is a quality site.

[mosthost]

Originally Posted by lutherlars

Well. I could not agree more when it comes to wanting spammy sites out of search results, and will take every step necessary to insure that G views my site as a quality site, because it is a quality site.

Look for 'Google Adsense Best Practices.' Check out their new heat map. I'd probably move that ad unit lower on the page.

I used to have 3 Adsense ads before I read the best practice post. I removed all but one an my revenue went up. It's how Google wants things now.

[lutherlars]

hello, which ad unit are you referring too? thx

Originally Posted by mosthost

Look for 'Google Adsense Best Practices.' Check out their new heat map. I'd probably move that ad unit lower on the page.

I used to have 3 Adsense ads before I read the best practice post. I removed all but one an my revenue went up. It's how Google wants things now.

[lutherlars]

Would you agree that the ads inside posts are ok?

[usearchme2]

Hi guys

i have lost a lot of rank on some of my sites too, and a few of them dont have hardly any adverts on them, so its all a bit baffling.

i dont see any problem with teh first site on here either the smartpet site as you only have one ad on there, so I dont see how this could be affecting you.

Ste

[lutherlars]

I think its more to do with where the ads are placed than how many there are

[mosthost]

Originally Posted by lutherlars

Would you agree that the ads inside posts are ok?

I don't think your ad placement is an issue. The content is accessible above the fold.

It doesn't seem like the change from Google on ads is your issue.

Did you lose all your rankings of just some?

[usearchme2]

Maybe luther why dont u put the ads on teh right rather than in ur posts ?

Ste

[bobcarlsjr]

my sites improved as well for all the keywords.. but i have niche sites with a lot of content.. maybe this is the end for MFA sites as we know it?

[lutherlars]

Not all ranking is gone, but all ranked keywords have dropped between two to six pages. This is in line with what I am seeing from other webmasters thus is some form of penalty which because of the reason behind the latest algo update, leads me to believe that ad placement was the deciding factor.

[paulgl]

I can't believe some of the nonsense.

Just because you took a hit, in no way means
it's google's new or old algorithm.

If people would just read for themselves, instead
of going ga-ga, they may actually get the real story.

This algorithmic change does not affect sites who place ads above-the-fold to a normal degree, but affects sites that go much further to load the top of the page with ads to an excessive degree or that make it hard to find the actual original content on the page. This new algorithmic improvement tends to impact sites where there is only a small amount of visible content above-the-fold or relevant content is persistently pushed down by large blocks of ads.

But still, we hear people screaming now, OH! I had ads above the fold!
I am doomed! Crazy. No, not crazy. Silly.

New? It's always been against adense TOS to have zero content above
the fold. I've been telling people that for a long time.

But there's no way the lot of you suddenly took a hit because of
any new algo.

But it does make a good story, and since one cannot believe that
search results are dynamic, well,...

We also ignore the fact that this will not affect more than 99%
of searches. Yes, over 99% of searches will not be affected.

So that means all of you are in the <1% ? At least we know
where those people hang out.

Paul

[usearchme2]

Hi there

When they say above the fold what do they mean ?

I agree paul people could be overeacting, but when u take a hit its hard not to panic a bit lol

Ste

[yukon]

Originally Posted by usearchme2

Hi there

When they say above the fold what do they mean ?

I agree paul people could be overeacting, but when u take a hit its hard not to panic a bit lol

Ste

Above the fold means everything that's on a monitor when the page is first loaded, without moving the browser scroll bar.

Everyone doesn't run the same size monitor (screen resolution) so it's another shot in the dark trying to figure out which resolution is the ideal size.

True, no need for anyone to panic or assume a SERP drop is caused by this (above the fold).

[TheFBGuy]

Originally Posted by paulgl

We also ignore the fact that this will not affect more than 99%
of searches. Yes, over 99% of searches will not be affected.

So that means all of you are in the <1% ? At least we know
where those people hang out.

Paul

That less than 1 percent you are making sound insignificant equates to roughly around 900,000 sites or more on the WWW that have been affected negatively. From this perspective, the virtual universe of the WWW is like the equivalent to the real Universe. If <1 % stars in the Universe were today to be swallowed by a black hole, doesn't sound much until you really look deeper into the numbers...

Anyway, just saying...

[usearchme2]

Hi there

True FBI guy but I think what paul was saying is it likely to be something else, unless your really putting adverts on pages where you shouldnt be.

As it looks like generally if you use your common sense with adsense ads your really going to be ok.

Ste

[jameskahon]

My site decreases 10% of its search traffic. I don't know what happened though. All my keywords dropped its rankings.

[The General Public]

I was ranking above the Google places results prior to yesterday and since I have dropped just below them. I think that this is just a temporary move and will eventually be right back where it started since I have about 4,000 more backlinks than the competition.

[lutherlars]

Would a page like this, be deemed as having enough content above the fold,?
Frontline For Dogs | Dogs | Dog Training | Dog Health | Dog Supplies

[lukedidit]

Originally Posted by yukon

Above the fold means everything that's on a monitor when the page is first loaded, without moving the browser scroll bar.

A bit like this?

[mrtrance]

Something weird that I just noticed is that when I do my searches on my mobile device my rankings are still there, but when I do it on my desktop my sites have really taken a dive. Usually it's the same results whether I search on my mobile device or desktop. What can be causing this?

[iamtheceo]

I have maintained the same rankings. I even have a few emd's and everything is still good.

[TheFBGuy]

For those of you who took a hit... i hope this will be some kind of consolation https://twitter.com/#!/FattGutts/sta...12290247028736

[yukon]

Originally Posted by TheFBGuy

For those of you who took a hit... i hope this will be some kind of consolation https://twitter.com/#!/FattGutts/sta...12290247028736

That's hilarious Fatt Gutts.

[mrnobody]

Lost a bit of traffic as well with this algo update...

[satrap]

Originally Posted by lukedidit

A bit like this?

Talk about not obeying your own rules!

[webjedi]

Originally Posted by mrtrance

Something weird that I just noticed is that when I do my searches on my mobile device my rankings are still there, but when I do it on my desktop my sites have really taken a dive. Usually it's the same results whether I search on my mobile device or desktop. What can be causing this?

Log out of Google, or use a diff browser, then put "gl=us" in the url after the search and hit go.

The results will be pure us based serps.
WJ

[Loloy Diango]

Originally Posted by mrtrance

So themes like Clickbump and CTR are getting the hit since those use ad blocks above the content? The sites that I use Clickbump theme on all got hit overnight. Everything went from page 1 to page 2-6. I don't know if it's just the theme layout that is causing this or what? I think my backlink scheme was OK since after the last hit in October I was doing diverse backlinks and the sites all climbed back to page 1 rankings and then last night all of them got hit hard again.

So I wonder if removing the adsense from under the titles would help the sites come back or not?

Anyone using the Clickbump theme and got hit as well?

Got hit as well and I'm using the latest Clickbump theme.

But I've just built a couple of high PR homepage backlinks to the two sites that took a hard hit so it could be because of the link building activity. I've noticed ranking drops every time new inbound links are built for a site before they bounce back to claim higher SERP rankings, so this could be it.

I think I'll have to ride this for a few days and see how this develops. I'm set to add additional quality pages on the sites that were hit in the next couple of days, so we'll see what happens in the coming weeks.

Maybe we'll just have to hold tight to our seats on this and keep doing what we've been doing in the past to make our sites really valuable to web users.

[naturegirl321]

I'm not making much at all via adsense, about $1 a day, but until last summer it took me about 18 months to make even 100, so I guess that's some improvement. I've got one advert at the top and am going to see if I make more by having it at the top of the page, top of the post or on the right.

[Bambu]

Originally Posted by Loloy Diango

Got hit as well and I'm using the latest Clickbump theme.

But I've just built a couple of high PR homepage backlinks to the two sites that took a hard hit so it could be because of the link building activity. I've noticed ranking drops every time new inbound links are built for a site before they bounce back to claim higher SERP rankings, so this could be it.

I think I'll have to ride this for a few days and see how this develops. I'm set to add additional quality pages on the sites that were hit in the next couple of days, so we'll see what happens in the coming weeks.

Maybe we'll just have to hold tight to our seats on this and keep doing what we've been doing in the past to make our sites really valuable to web users.

My Clickbump websites are still doing fine. I run one Adsense block below an image with text wrapped around it, and a 160 X 600 block in the sidebar above the fold. Much lower on the page, I have an additional ad block.

Remember, there isn't anything wrong with having Adsense ads above the fold. Just don't go crazy and fill the whole space with Adsense blocks. These are the sites this latest algorithm change was supposed to hit.

I have had a few sites take some big jumps in the SERPs during the same time.

[Loloy Diango]

Originally Posted by Bambu

My Clickbump websites are still doing fine. I run one Adsense block below an image with text wrapped around it, and a 160 X 600 block in the sidebar above the fold. Much lower on the page, I have an additional ad block.

Remember, there isn't anything wrong with having Adsense ads above the fold. Just don't go crazy and fill the whole space with Adsense blocks. These are the sites this latest algorithm change was supposed to hit.

I have had a few sites take some big jumps in the SERPs during the same time.

I, too, have some sites running on Clickbump that are doing good. I am only talking about my sites that seemed to have taken a hit with the latest Google algo update on page ad layout in my above post.

We have a similar ad set up with AdSense on my sites - the only difference perhaps is that my sites don't have any ad block in the lower portion of the pages like yours.

It is really hard to pin any clear cause of ranking drops like this as most of the time, the results are conflicting. Some people say with certainty that they are hit, yet others say they experience the opposite, claiming to even see ranking improvements in the wake of reported updates.

That is why I say I'd rather ride any update than switch to panic mode. Essentially, there is nothing much I can do to change Google's mind to take my side in the event that any of my sites are actually hit by an algo update. An update is an update and it's going to be implemented no matter what.

Running around in panic won't lift it. The only better option is to keep building sites that provide high quality user experience to the best of our knowledge and skills, taking into consideration whatever clear and specific guidelines Google has disclosed for all of us to learn.

[jdooley13]

Do any of you use the 100K Adsense Blueprint theme? I just startedwith it so I can't say anything has taken a hit since I am not ranking for anything yet anyway. However, it appears to me that there is zero content above the fold on their most recent theme. I am just curious as I would hate to put in dozens, if not hundreds of more hours trying to promote a site that will never rank becuase of the ad placement. Your thoughts would be appreciated.

[jburke81]

I've dropped on some keywords too. Not exactly sure why though. All part of the SEO game I guess?