Google's position 11 is better then 6

by jkiley
14 replies
  • SEO
  • |
I am experiencing that if your link is on position 11 (which is the top link of page 2) then you get more clicks compared to the same link on position 6. So, it is like...work hard...but not too hard...
#google #position
  • Profile picture of the author Shakul
    Might be ... Great tip

    Thanks
    Shakul
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  • Profile picture of the author CurtisN
    Instead of dropping your rank by 5, why not raise it by 5?
    Signature
    Curtis Ng (blog) - Product Launch Manager
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    • Profile picture of the author TheCren
      Originally Posted by CurtisN View Post

      Instead of dropping your rank by 5, why not raise it by 5?
      Seriously lol that makes a lot more sense than saying work hard, but not too hard. The way I see it, if you were a decent member of your high school varsity soccer team would you rather be the top player for a junior varsity team or push yourself harder and be number one for varsity?
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  • Profile picture of the author deskmonkey
    Do you have any statistics to show for your conclusion? I would've thought being on the first page is better since, based on my own browsing behaviour, I figured most people wouldn't even bother going to page 2 of the search results.

    Curtis raises a good point, though: why not raise it? If being at the top on page 2 is good, then being at the top on page 1 is infinitely better.
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  • Profile picture of the author minisite911
    this is a great new point of view..
    just might be a big problem to get it exactly at position 11, instead of 8, or 10, lol.

    Cheers,
    Oki Tirice
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  • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
    It is said in theory (no idea if real test have been done) that being in position 4 - 7 will result in more clicks to your site because as a normal human instinct we do not always go for the "first link"...

    No idea how true that is but I remember seeing a video on it by one of the "gurus" not so long ago.

    James
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    • Profile picture of the author abs007
      Hmm sounds interesting but what we need to remember is that to get to page 2 of google the user will need to browse down to the bottom then click page 2. Surely they will see the sites above the next page button before concluding to the next page.

      If your stats are showing that you are doing better on position 11 then say position 6 then have you checked that the traffic is coming from google and not yahoo or msn?
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    • Profile picture of the author Francois du_Toit
      I have not seen a lot of test results but the following results do not support your experience...

      Red Cardinal Test Results

      Can you give more details about your CTR and the number of clicks?

      All the best,
      Francois du Toit
      Signature
      Destiny is not a matter of chance, it's a matter of choice.
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    • Profile picture of the author MacFreddie
      Banned
      Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet View Post

      It is said in theory (no idea if real test have been done) that being in position 4 - 7 will result in more clicks to your site because as a normal human instinct we do not always go for the "first link"...

      No idea how true that is but I remember seeing a video on it by one of the "gurus" not so long ago.

      James
      Completely FALSE.

      Read this article: Click Rate for Top 10 Search Results - Jim Boykin's SEO Blog
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      • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
        Originally Posted by MacFreddie View Post

        I would'nt say FALSE unless you have tested every single niche.. Again as I said in theory. Alot of this depends upon the person doing the searching but some have tried to use "the way the mind works" tactics when coming to a conclusion on this.

        There is a program put out by one of the "gurus" that explains how someone looks at websites and where their eyeballs go. I am sure someone around here could remember the link..

        So many people are so quick to judge something and say it is wrong without having the proof to backup the claims. I never said it was true and I never said I tested it, I did say in theory....

        James
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        • Profile picture of the author deskmonkey
          Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet View Post

          There is a program put out by one of the "gurus" that explains how someone looks at websites and where their eyeballs go. I am sure someone around here could remember the link..
          I don't know the program you're talking about but I recall that earlier this year, Google released results from eye-tracking studies to see how people view search results. Based on their findings, it seems that people tend to linger longer on the top two results on a search page (which I find I do as well).
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    • Profile picture of the author Intrepreneur
      Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet View Post

      It is said in theory (no idea if real test have been done) that being in position 4 - 7 will result in more clicks to your site because as a normal human instinct we do not always go for the "first link"...

      No idea how true that is but I remember seeing a video on it by one of the "gurus" not so long ago.

      James
      I only ever click on the next one down if the Title is not good enough for me to want to click it, so from my point of view the tests might have also been showing that a lot of websites had bad titles.
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      • Profile picture of the author paulgl
        I have had a whole bunch of theories on this.
        The main two are the searchers and sites above yours.

        Searchers: What is the astuteness of the searcher?
        Me, I look at all items, and will not click unless I am
        really satisfied it will be what I want. I have been burned
        too many times by off-topic crap. My wife, will click
        on anything that pops up first.

        If you actually read the items, you may or may not find
        what you want in 1st place.

        Does the searcher give up and move on? If one does not
        find what one wants after clicking on a few, and I rarely
        do more than 2 or 3, does one move on to another search?

        I never even look on the 3rd page, unless I am looking for
        a lot of similar sites for links, or whatever.

        Sites above yours: What are they like? Do the people that
        have sites on keywords that are the same as yours, do their
        sites satisfy the searcher? If not, chances are, they will
        get to page 2. If someone looks for car insurance, gets a site
        for general insurance and does not see car insurance
        right off, they may go back to the search results and
        look for a site that actually specializes in car insurance-
        perhaps yours! In other words, the sites above yours may
        be SEO'd for your keywords, but the info does not satisfy
        people, they will click down to yours.

        I have always wondered how the majority of people search.
        Like me, and actually scan for good results, or just blindly
        click on the first one? Thinking about it, I rarely find
        exactly what I want in position #1, but it is on the first
        2 pages.

        You may not get the most clicks, but you may get the most
        targeted.

        Paul
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        If you were disappointed in your results today, lower your standards tomorrow.

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  • Profile picture of the author Brad Gosse
    My data shows differently. I have a site at #6 right now doing FAR better than at # 11


    Interesting.
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