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Never ask for help on Google Webmaster forums, because you will....

by zaco
9 replies
Here is the case..

I posted this question on Google webmaster forums asking for their help to decide what should I do ( I posted the question on the 28th I think so the Panda 3.4 update was already rolled out and I saw an increase in rankings)

Since Google said they will penalize the over optimized sites, I decided to take their opinion on this issue, i will be using the keyword "phone" as an example

My site has a menu on the left side, the anchor text in the menu items are blackberry phone , samsung phone, htc phone, apple phone...etc

I have like 80 items in the menu and each one has the word phone in the anchor text, now each one has a link back to website/keyword-phone , like website/blackberry-phone .. etc..

The admins there and the experienced people messaged back and they were like that is keyword stuffing, and u r disrespecting ur users intelligence..blah blah.. so I decided to remove the keyword "phone", when I check the keyword density using the tool, it shows that its 24% for the keyword "phone"...

Now I was ranking at page#2 for a keyword like "phone reviews" the moment I removed the "phone" keyword from the submenu items my site went back to the 8th page lol so what the hell? Google liked my keyword density when I had it but the moment that I removed it, they pushed me back..

It's funny how those "Experienced people" and Google claims BS about stuff and ask u to follow what they say and when u do , u get screwed lol

**Rant**
#forums #google #webmaster
  • Profile picture of the author Val Wilson
    It is possible that it is just a coincidence - your site is maybe just doing the Google dance, and will come back up in the rankings again. But I always try to remind myself that an 'expert' opinion is just another opinion, and no more valid than anyone else's.
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    • Profile picture of the author cjreynolds
      Originally Posted by Val Wilson View Post

      It is possible that it is just a coincidence - your site is maybe just doing the Google dance, and will come back up in the rankings again. But I always try to remind myself that an 'expert' opinion is just another opinion, and no more valid than anyone else's.
      That's what I would tend to think - give it at least a week or two before evaluating...
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      I just added this sig so I can refer to it in my posts...

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  • Profile picture of the author sscot
    "Never" ask for help on Google Webmaster forums.....

    Sir, your admonition isn't fair. But, thanks for warning.
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    • Profile picture of the author seotothecore
      google likes keyword stuffing, but don't like to tell you that
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  • Profile picture of the author Tadresources
    I wouldn't hold much stock in what anyone on those forums say. They often don't know anymore than people here or in other forums. I also don't think it's keyword stuffing if the word used is relevant to your niche. If your site is all about phone reviews obviously the word is going to be used quite a bit.
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  • Profile picture of the author zaco
    Sorry I forgot to mention that I did split testing on another page, it has the same keywords but I didn't remove the keyword that is being repeated, the page has gained more ranks..

    I will keep it for a week and see how it goes.. but its funny how they encourage not to over optimize your site and once you do it then you lose ranks, I didn't add the menu to stuff keywords, Honestly with all the sites that I have created, I never gave attention to the keyword density but I got worried this time because of the new rules and when I did the density check that keyword had density of 24%
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  • Profile picture of the author John Romaine
    Stop dicking around with silly tactics and start building a real business.

    24% keyword density is ridiculous.
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    BS free SEO services, training and advice - SEO Point

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    • Profile picture of the author zaco
      Originally Posted by John Romaine View Post

      Stop dicking around with silly tactics and start building a real business.

      24% keyword density is ridiculous.
      Silly tactics? did you even read what I said? those were anchor text for the menu so it is not that I stuff the whole site with keywords and I SAID that I never noticed they were there until they started talking about over optimizing the site might harm it so I went and checked my site and it turned out like this..

      Looks like the silly tactics got me ranked , my bounce rate is around 14% and I notice that people spend their time and browse thro the menu I have created, they actually read and enjoy + share what is posted , so for you to come and say build a real business is a bold comment...

      The fact that the visitors are happy with the menu structure means something

      Maybe I should tell u stop links stuffing in your signature? lol
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  • Profile picture of the author J Bold
    You really have to wait and see what happens after a couple of weeks. When you make drastic changes often your site drops way down until Google decides where to put it more permanently. It may come back stronger or weaker. you have to wait and see rather than posting a premature rant.
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