My new domain lost its Page Rank

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I recently purchased a domain at Godaddy Auctions with a PR of 4 that I confirmed was valid on rankchecker.com. Now, 2 weeks later, I just checked it again and it is showing a PR of 0. I am looking to better understand what caused this to happen and how I can prevent this from happening on domains I purchase in the future.
#domain #lost #page #rank
  • It was hammered during the most recent PR update of google. You purchased the domain at the dead end of a PR update. You never know the domain may get a good PR in the next update.
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  • Profile picture of the author Alex Blades
    Pagerank maybe real, but check if it has backlinks pointing to it...
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    • Profile picture of the author brucebuy
      Originally Posted by Alex Blades View Post

      Pagerank maybe real, but check if it has backlinks pointing to it...
      It did not have any backlinks pointing to it, so that probably has something to do with it losing its PR. Which brings me to another question. How does a domain with no backlinks get a valid PR of 4 in the first place?
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      • Profile picture of the author locke815
        Originally Posted by brucebuy View Post

        It did not have any backlinks pointing to it, so that probably has something to do with it losing its PR. Which brings me to another question. How does a domain with no backlinks get a valid PR of 4 in the first place?
        This doesn't make sense then.
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      • Profile picture of the author MikeFriedman
        Originally Posted by brucebuy View Post

        It did not have any backlinks pointing to it, so that probably has something to do with it losing its PR. Which brings me to another question. How does a domain with no backlinks get a valid PR of 4 in the first place?
        It was not valid in the first place. Rankchecker.com sucks for checking PR.
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  • Profile picture of the author mangomedia1
    Because of low quality contents , with out quantity back links .
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    • Profile picture of the author MikeFriedman
      Originally Posted by mangomedia1 View Post

      Because of low quality contents , with out quantity back links .
      The content has nothing to do with the PR.
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  • Profile picture of the author mark07
    Dont worry about it. Just working in your site. Post unique article, create backlink for directory submission, article posting in article directory, press release.Then you should gain your pagerank again.
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  • Profile picture of the author Danny Woolard
    Because the previous owner had a private blog network or was paying for links that got taken down.
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  • Profile picture of the author davidaviniker
    Surely this demonstrates that the best advice is not to purchase old domains.

    Exact match domains have recently been downgraded. Google is no longer just talking about avoiding anything that looks like a way to black hat your way to the top. Google is taking action. It is easy enough for Google to recognise a change in ownership and wipe the original links out.

    Regards

    David
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    • Profile picture of the author MikeFriedman
      Originally Posted by davidaviniker View Post

      It is easy enough for Google to recognise a change in ownership and wipe the original links out.
      And that would be absolutely ridiculous for them to do. There are plenty of legitimate businesses that change hands every single day. There is no reason for Google to wipe the slate clean on a website just because someone new bought the company.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mike Anthony
      Originally Posted by davidaviniker View Post

      Surely this demonstrates that the best advice is not to purchase old domains.
      David come on.....I mean seriously.....Someone buys a domain name without doing even the most basic test and your say its "Surely" "the best advice" not to buy old domains. :rolleyes:

      Thats like a guy walking on to a lot buying the first car a car salesman shows him and then saying surely the best advice is to not buy cars because it turns out to be a lemon.

      NO. The best advice is to learn something about what you are doing before you spend money buying domains. That can be said for ANYTHING you buy.

      Exact match domains have recently been downgraded
      this has zip, nada absolutely nothing to do with matched domains. Even on domains that no longer ranked after the EMD update the Pr was not lost

      It is easy enough for Google to recognise a change in ownership and wipe the original links out.
      Please if you do not understand what is being discussed refrain from conclusions, suggestions and certainly from giving "Sure" advice. The OP bought an auction at Godaddy. With whois is privacy there is no change of ownership showing. As for the chicken littles who say Google is a registrar so they can look - the whois privacy rests with the registrar based on what I have found and Registrars are not allowed to violate privacy for non registrar business. Google would be open to lawsuits by violating privacy for their own purposes.

      Even if Google did do that then why does every domains I have bought in the last 60 days still show PR and some even increase? IF Google actually did this then there would be a mass outdry from domain buyers but instead the prices just keep going up because they don't (As Mike pointed out registration information can change for all kinds of reasons. Company changes, new onwership, New administrative contacts and on and on)
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    • Profile picture of the author UMS
      Originally Posted by davidaviniker View Post

      Surely this demonstrates that the best advice is not to purchase old domains.
      Not at all.

      The only thing it demonstrates is that you shouldn't buy an expired domain with PR unless you do your due diligence.
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  • Profile picture of the author shonny
    Two things does not add up together. May be the PR4 was fake. You cannot have a PR4 without having quality backlinks pointing to your site. I just do not get it.
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    • Profile picture of the author fortony
      PR is not going to last unless you have the right content there regardless. Don't worry about it and work on building up your site.
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    • Profile picture of the author darrenlc
      I suspect that they had other domains pointing to it via a 301. They probably turned them off once they sold the site and pointed it to their next victims site instead.
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  • Profile picture of the author ronnieavelino
    Originally Posted by brucebuy View Post

    I recently purchased a domain at Godaddy Auctions with a PR of 4 that I confirmed was valid on rankchecker.com. Now, 2 weeks later, I just checked it again and it is showing a PR of 0. I am looking to better understand what caused this to happen and how I can prevent this from happening on domains I purchase in the future.
    The reason might be is the links of the domains. Most of the domain buyer don't know the must way to do to check if the PR is legit and worth buying.

    Check this thread: http://www.warriorforum.com/adsense-...ml#post7190458

    Ronnie
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  • Profile picture of the author gotlinks
    Originally Posted by brucebuy View Post

    I recently purchased a domain at Godaddy Auctions with a PR of 4 that I confirmed was valid on rankchecker.com. Now, 2 weeks later, I just checked it again and it is showing a PR of 0. I am looking to better understand what caused this to happen and how I can prevent this from happening on domains I purchase in the future.
    As Mike said RankChecker sucks.

    My money says that although the PR may have been real the backlinks that made it have the PR4 were already gone by the time you bought it. Use a tool like SEOSpyglass to check and that way you can not lose PR on future domain purchases.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mike Anthony
    OP my bet would be that the domains was not faked. It simply had lost all the links. three points

    1) Never ever enter into doing something without learning about it properly ESPECIALLY when you are going to spend money.

    2) Never ever buy a domain based on PR alone. when you buy an aged domains with PR you are buying the property for the links pointing at it.

    3) PR has nothing to do with anything else but links. If they are not there then the site will lose its Pr at the next update even if it is not faked. Don't be fooled by people running around on this board talking about content and other issues. PR measures link juice. Nothing else. The only problem is Google only releases its measurement 3 or 4 times a year but just like the economy it can go down without any official report (PR updates) from google in between those times.
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  • Profile picture of the author Rehmat
    The owner may had "paid links" for the domain before selling it you.
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    • Profile picture of the author gotlinks
      Originally Posted by Rehmat View Post

      The owner may had "paid links" for the domain before selling it you.
      Yes. Again which is another reason why Mike has suggested to look at the backlink profile. If all the backlinks are side-bar links, chances are they were all bought just to get pagerank themselves before losing the domain into auctions.
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  • Profile picture of the author Martinsee
    Honestly, This PR is Fake !

    See my post and you'll understand how : http://www.warriorforum.com/adsense-...ml#post7370742
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    • Profile picture of the author MikeFriedman
      Originally Posted by Martinsee View Post

      Honestly, This PR is Fake !

      See my post and you'll understand how : http://www.warriorforum.com/adsense-...ml#post7370742
      Your advice in that post is actually pretty bad.

      1. Check its PR on cekpr.com or checkpagerank.net or something you know.
      Google it by typing : info:yourdomain.com - if it shows its real URL ( not another one), the PR is temporily real !

      2. Go to archive.org , check its histories.
      - Click on the recent screenshot on archive.org -> If it shows its REAL URL (yourdomain.com) and a screenshot of website. The PR is truely REAL
      - If it shows another URL such as : Time out, Redirected to abc.com..., Can't see because of robots turn off.,.... -> THE PR IS awesome FAKE !

      Neither of these will protect you from buying crap. You need to inspect the backlinks. End of story.
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    • Profile picture of the author Cosmit
      Originally Posted by Martinsee View Post

      Honestly, This PR is Fake !

      See my post and you'll understand how : http://www.warriorforum.com/adsense-...ml#post7370742
      There is no such thing as "fake PR" just like there isn't a "real PR". All PR is calculated the same way, regardless, and google doesnt hide it. I could have a website with 10,000 backlinks and a PR of 6 and you would call it "real PR". But if I would then sell it and, at the push of a button, remove those 10,000 backlinks, you would end up with a dead PR0 website and then call it "fake PR".

      All domains lose backlinks over time. There are only those backlinks that last a little, or last longer. Your job is to check those backlinks, verify their integrity, and decide whether you want to shell out your hard earned money for it.

      There are no "tools" that can distinguish it for you since you do not control backlinks (at least not those).
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  • Profile picture of the author gotlinks
    Here is a quick video I made to show you how to check domains and or potential links you want to buy using spyglass. This is the best way I know to do so. Have fun and keep your pagerank next time!

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  • Profile picture of the author jsjullia
    Banned
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    • Profile picture of the author MikeFriedman
      Originally Posted by jsjullia View Post

      Its May Happen Due To Duplicate Content. Check This And Use Only Quality And Unique Content To Get Ranked In Google.
      Duplicate content has nothing to do with PR.
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      • Profile picture of the author Mike Anthony
        Originally Posted by MikeFriedman View Post

        Duplicate content has nothing to do with PR.
        I guess just like result count being an indication of competition the whole nonsense of PR having something to do with content will never die.
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        • Profile picture of the author MikeFriedman
          Originally Posted by Mike Anthony View Post

          I guess just like result count being an indication of competition the whole nonsense of PR having something to do with content will never die.
          Ahhh... The Classics....
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  • Profile picture of the author ProSence
    Actually, what happens is this kind of domain name marketers use expired domain, when they see that any high pr domain is expiring they register that domain and the pr of that domain would go after few days or weeks.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mike Anthony
      Originally Posted by ProSence View Post

      Actually, what happens is this kind of domain name marketers use expired domain, when they see that any high pr domain is expiring they register that domain and the pr of that domain would go after few days or weeks.
      Nope. False. Understandable because people thought that but I have been buying expired domains and as long as the links stay so does the PR. Tested it for 6 months and just closed the test. I'm not alone. the guy tht runs register compass has said the same thing and almost every expired domain comes through his system, So it has nothing to do with anything except the domain losing the links.

      I dunno why people are making up things. The OP said straight out he bought it with no links. I gotta say I am never going to understand gven all the different opinions you find in this forum many of them just dead wrong why people think they can trust advice on this forum enough to start pulling out cash and buying things.
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  • Profile picture of the author squadron
    Originally Posted by brucebuy View Post

    I recently purchased a domain at Godaddy Auctions with a PR of 4 that I confirmed was valid on rankchecker.com. Now, 2 weeks later, I just checked it again and it is showing a PR of 0. I am looking to better understand what caused this to happen and how I can prevent this from happening on domains I purchase in the future.
    I suspect it was forged PR. Rankchecker can be fooled if you know what you are doing.

    I buy domains based only on the number of live links, not PageRank. I can usually get PR2 or PR3 domains for $15 each.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mike Anthony
      Originally Posted by squadron View Post

      I buy domains based only on the number of live links, not PageRank. I can usually get PR2 or PR3 domains for $15 each.
      You won't get quality PR3 links for that. Those would have to be built up to even keep their PR.
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      • Profile picture of the author UMS
        Originally Posted by Mike Anthony View Post

        You won't get quality PR3 links for that. Those would have to be built up to even keep their PR.
        It depends. I bought a deleted PR3 domain about 12 months ago, so I paid the standard .com registration fee and the homepage is still a PR3 after at least two public PR updates as the quality backlinks have remained.
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        • Profile picture of the author Mike Anthony
          Originally Posted by UMS View Post

          It depends. I bought a deleted PR3 domain about 12 months ago, so I paid the standard .com registration fee and the homepage is still a PR3 after at least two public PR updates as the quality backlinks have remained.
          I got you. It happens no doubt but its rare. Given the frenzy in the marketplace most very good PR3s never make it without being bid on in auctions or caught by services like snapnames. Picked up a PR4 last week for registration cost that dropped and it still had some decent links. That also is rare.
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  • Profile picture of the author chazkey
    This started out as a short comment... And turned into this... Enjoy the read...

    Originally Posted by brucebuy View Post

    I recently purchased a domain at Godaddy Auctions with a PR of 4
    Look buying domains for PR is awesome! But there is more that you can gain from this. I would share a couple that I have picked up that were expired and through link "link restoration", I restored the entire past PR and created future PR... But that's not going to happen here, so I will share a little about this.

    Originally Posted by MikeFriedman View Post

    And that would be absolutely ridiculous for them to do. There are plenty of legitimate businesses that change hands
    YEP... It happens everyday...



    Originally Posted by davidaviniker View Post

    Surely this demonstrates that the best advice is not to purchase old domains.
    REALLY Dude...? I'm sorry you feel this way...

    Originally Posted by Mike Anthony View Post

    David come on.....I mean seriously.....Someone buys a domain name without doing even the most basic test

    Mike A. is right...


    There is a lot of work and research that needs to happen and I call this "link restoration". You must do your research about what past owner did. You need to learn what the past owner used the domain for. You need to make sure the past owner didn't just have the domain forwarded to another site. For some strange reason when a domain is forwarded to another site, the pagerank is traveling backward in a lot of cases... No I don't have an answer for this... Maybe somebody here does. "But" sometimes and only sometimes can you salvage the PR that was created by the forwarding, less than 25% of the time... Although, just about 95% of the time, you can salvage the old PR through what I call "link restoration", if the old domain was a real site before you bought the domain... But you have to do your research!

    Originally Posted by MikeFriedman View Post

    It was not valid in the first place. Rankchecker.com sucks for checking PR.
    Here are a couple of great tools that might help you spot a dud...
    PageRank Prediction
    Fake PageRank Checker


    Here's a quick tip to for all of you.

    If you're anything like me and you have 100's or maybe 1000's of domains just sitting around.

    "STOP PARKING YOUR DOMAINS!"

    Go into your domain manager and forward all your domains to relevant sites or pages of a relevant site. Google has a tool to tell if the domain is parked. If your future site is going to be about dogs, then forward it to an authority site about "Dogs". If the future domain/niche is going to be about blue widgets, forward it to a authority website about blue widgets.

    Next...
    From time to time throw a link or two against it. Use your future anchor text or just use "read more" or "learn more". The "read more" or "learn more" will help your fight against the "penguin update". Let's call this "natural link diversity". Come on we all do articles/posts and this is a great way to camouflage your links that you really want to get credit for. This is called "Link Camouflage" (remember you heard that term here... LOL).

    Next...
    Just before you get ready to launch your domain... Start building more soft links to the future domain. Even go as far as adding some future URLs. Something like "hotelweekly.net/group-hotels/" - Group Travel - Group Hotel Rates & Event Planner Discounts | Group Travel Reservations by Hotel Planner or "hotelweekly.net/group-travel/" - Group Travel - Group Hotel Rates & Event Planner Discounts | Group Travel Reservations by Hotel Planner . This way you're going to let the SERPs know what your domain is going to be about. By the way use the pagerank perdiction tool and see what the it says about the above URLs PageRank Prediction.


    Important...
    Do not use domain masking. If you use domain masking, this will create a 302 Redirect. You want to forward the domains using a 301 Redirect.

    Here's why...
    I call this "domain ageing", remember that term it's important. You see Google doesn't respond to well surprises the way we would like them to. Domain ageing comes in two forms. First is what is a domain going to be about. Second is letting the domain age like a nice wine or cheese while you work on building your new future site. Check out "grouphotels.net" - Group Hotels by GroupHotels.net | Group Hotels by GroupHotels.net - Group Hotels and Group Travel Made Easy!, it's a PR 3 and I have done nothing to this site other than a few soft links and what I told you above... The internal pages actually have a PR 1, just checked it... I am in the process of building a site for it. Right now I am just letting the SERPs get to know it. Just like dating... LOL.


    One more thing...
    I have a new course coming out about buying expired domains and "Link Restoration". I am going to be giving away a lot of free tips. If you want to stay in touch, go to Mimes In Motion and add yourself to my newsletter. Don't worry, I promise to try and sell you something someday... "LOL". Yes I just shamelessly plugged myself...



    Have Fun,
    Chaz Key


    PS: Mimes In Motion was an expired domain once a long time ago... And I am always looking for guest bloggers who can deliver some value other than the junk I put on there, LOL... I also have a few other sites that need some good content and have authority.
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    • Profile picture of the author NikkiBlue
      Originally Posted by chazkey View Post

      This started out as a short comment... And turned Right now I am just letting the SERPs get to know it. Just like dating... LOL.
      .
      Ha,ha ! Thanks for the tips Chaz
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  • Profile picture of the author NathanCee
    Same thing happened to me. I purchased a PR 4 site and after a week it is gone. Sigh....

    Thanks for the tips guys.
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