My problem with Rent A Sites. SEO/Technical Question. Rent a Sites dead?

23 replies
I'm going after dentists in a city that i do not live in. I've been working on the site for a few months and checking the rankings about once a week. I've finally hit #1 and I'm not getting the hits I should be getting.

I think maybe my ranking software is messed up and I just go in and google the keyword myself. Sure enough, I'm there at #1. Then I notice on the sidebar that I can change my search location and I change it to the city I'm targetting and I show up as #8!! Obviously #8 in the results for their city is all that matters and explains why I'm not getting the hits. Why is this?! How do I fix it?!?

I've checked my rankings in other cities as well ex miami, san francisco, seattle and I'm ranked #1 when I do the searches. Scroogle also says #1. Am I missing something? Is google catching on?
#dead #problem #question #rent #seo or technical #sites
  • Profile picture of the author Stan
    #8 sounds like 7 "places" listings and then your site. Could that be it?
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  • Profile picture of the author baconman
    Yes and no. When I search normally, I appear #1. When I search locally there are 5 google places and 2 organic searches that now rank higher than me.

    The only thing that changes is the search location on the left hand side.
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  • Profile picture of the author Stan
    The opposite has happend to me. All my SERP 'checkers' said the site was #19 but the person who checked it from the city it was in had it on #8.

    I guess all you can do is build more backlinks!

    *inconspicuously nods towards his signature
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  • Profile picture of the author Rus Sells
    Make sure you have your search preferences set correctly. If you have them turned on, Google will display you the results tailored to you're most frequently search term, if you then begin clicking on a particular result over and over, that makes it worse. Also make sure you aren't logged into Google when searching.
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    • Profile picture of the author rhinocl
      Also try your searches with {location}+keywords
      keywords+{location} and
      {no location,location only from setting}+keywords
      They can all come out differently.
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    • Profile picture of the author dminorfmajor
      Originally Posted by Rus Sells View Post

      Make sure you have your search preferences set correctly. If you have them turned on, Google will display you the results tailored to you're most frequently search term, if you then begin clicking on a particular result over and over, that makes it worse. Also make sure you aren't logged into Google when searching.
      Yeah, what he said. Threads have been popping up all the time since Google started doing the "tailored searches." Now my local SEO site ranks #1 for everything! lol
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  • Profile picture of the author baconman
    Yes thank you for the answers. I do have personal results turned off if thats what you guys mean by tailored results. I also logged out of google, had a friend check it, and even checked in scroogle.
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    • Profile picture of the author baconman
      I will provide an example.

      Most of you aren't in SEattle, WA so this should work. When you google seattle plumber, you will see the site seattleplumber.com show up on top.

      While changing nothing except your search location on the sidebar to Seattle, wa you will see that it falls from #1 to #8. Pretty much the same thing that I am experiencing.
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      • Profile picture of the author mojo1
        I'm in Atlanta Georgia and your site seattleplumber.com, is showing #1 Above Google Places listings for seattle plumber without quotes
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      • Profile picture of the author ryanmckinney
        Originally Posted by baconman View Post

        I will provide an example.

        Most of you aren't in SEattle, WA so this should work. When you google seattle plumber, you will see the site seattleplumber.com show up on top.

        While changing nothing except your search location on the sidebar to Seattle, wa you will see that it falls from #1 to #8. Pretty much the same thing that I am experiencing.

        I did exactly what you said (I am in SC). It is #1. Then I changed my location to seattle, it is #3, first organic after the places.

        Ryan
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        • Profile picture of the author videdtr
          I just checked and you're #1 from Az....#3 after "Places" when I switch to Seattle...keep plugin away with the backlinks!
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  • Profile picture of the author link82
    baconman,

    you're not alone in this! The tools show my site #1, I checked while traveling to LA, my site from there ranked #1 as well. When I search manually from within that city, it shows up at #7, which irks me (logged out of Google).

    I'm not sure why this is either. Anyone else?
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    Quietly Selling Powerful Links. Just a handful on clean domains, PM me for inquiry :D
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  • Profile picture of the author Stan
    It ranks #1 for me as well
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    • Profile picture of the author baconman
      Originally Posted by Stan View Post

      It ranks #1 for me as well
      Have you tried changing the google search location to seattle, wa? What result did you see?
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      • Profile picture of the author IMguy123
        Originally Posted by baconman View Post

        Have you tried changing the google search location to seattle, wa? What result did you see?
        I tried it and saw it at the bottom of the page using the location of seattle, wa....and saw it number 1 when using my loc.(non wa state)
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        • Profile picture of the author baconman
          Originally Posted by IMguy123 View Post

          I tried it and saw it at the bottom of the page using the location of seattle, wa....and saw it number 1 when using my loc.(non wa state)
          Yes, this is exactly the problem. Anybody know why the problem is occuring?
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  • Profile picture of the author bryson
    How many hits are you getting and what % is that of the potential hits. Being in the 1 position doesnt mean you get 100% or even 70% of the traffic.
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  • Profile picture of the author Steve Holmes
    Don't rely on 1 search term or 1 website. This still works and I have clients who rent my own sites, just make sure your sites rank for various permutations and have many sites you do this with.
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    "Live like you'll die tomorrow, Learn like you'll live forever" - M. Ghandi
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  • Profile picture of the author dminorfmajor
    Whatever your ranking problems are, local SEO is far from dead. The same rule still applies to all sites: Put Quality content on your site and build Quality backlinks and ranking will not be an issue.
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    • Profile picture of the author MRomeo09
      It makes it fairly difficult to do business across different areas when this is the case. Generally you need to check across multiple browsers as well as play with the different location markets.

      I can assure you that renting sites is not dead. We rented out over a dozen sites already this month with a new campaign we've been testing.

      Just keep plugging away at it, more links more juice and you'll get there eventually.

      Marcos
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      We do not have to become heroes overnight. Just a step at a time, meeting each thing that comes up ... discovering we have the strength to stare it down. - Eleanor Roosevelt

      Your opinion of yourself becomes your reality. If you have all these doubts, then no one will believe in you and everything will go wrong. If you think the opposite, the opposite will happen. It’s that simple.-Curtis Jackson- 50 Cent
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  • Profile picture of the author link82
    Any luck with this baconman? I have still been doing light link building on it but no luck within the area. Damn thing is still stuck on #7 when from other cities it shows up at #1...
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    Quietly Selling Powerful Links. Just a handful on clean domains, PM me for inquiry :D
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  • Profile picture of the author baconman
    anybody figure out this problem yet?
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  • Profile picture of the author link82
    Nope. Very frustrated. My site for the client is still #7 within immediate city, #1 anywhere else. Yesterday, it was in #1 for immediate city and I was so excited, even took a screenshot. Damn thing is back down to #7.

    Which is fine. Because I'm gonna plug away at the backlinks. Still, what an 'ugh' feeling! Don't want to lose a client over this...
    Signature
    Quietly Selling Powerful Links. Just a handful on clean domains, PM me for inquiry :D
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