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Google changing algorithm may be causing the loss of long tail traffic - are you losing traffic too?

by moneymakingwiz
12 replies
  • SEO
    • |
Hi everybody,
Did you experienced lately a sudden loss of long tail traffic?
Maybe I know why...
Here is the answer:


"Sure, Google makes minor algo tweaks like this all the time, but around April 28th-May 3rd a lot of sites... noticed a sudden loss of 5-15% of their normal long tail traffic"

"What happened here? Why did you (or someone you love) lose their precious long tail search referrals? There are a lot of theories out there: Google reduced the size and depth of the primary index to keep Caffeine fast; there was broad link devaluation; there was a shift in how phrase match is performed; increased bias was given to authority/brand sites; etc. Some, all, or none of these may be true, the important thing is DON'T PANIC! If you saw a drop in traffic, you need to figure out why...don't start blindly changing things lest you care to break what may not be broken."

Google's May Day Update & What It Means for You


SEOmoz | Whiteboard Friday - Google's May Day Update & What It Means for You
#algorithm #causing #changing #google #long #losing #loss #tail #traffic
  • Profile picture of the author l23bc
    Great post thanks for the heads up and yes i lost a little traffic but not exactly what i expected since today when i installed awstats on the site some of my long tail keywords have dropped in traffic in may but its picking up slowelry again after adding short exact and less long tail broad keywords that are heavy in competition.
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    • Profile picture of the author moneymakingwiz
      If you watch the video, he asks to compare the traffic the week before apr 28th-may 3rd to the week after.
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  • Profile picture of the author GaryHarvey
    Is *that* what happened? I had several alarmed
    clients contact me - and I just surmised it was
    some "Google thing". Thanks for confirmation.

    Gary
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    • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
      My traffic has been on the increase lately. Didn't know why.

      Maybe it's because of Google's changes? After all, if traffic to Google remains about the same, and some people are experiencing a decrease in traffic, then others must naturally be experiencing an increase in traffic, no?
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      • Profile picture of the author PhilipSEO
        Dear friends,

        I am a big fan of SEOmoz and of Rand. However, this "trend" is sheer nonsense. Here is why (and I pointed this out in my comments on that very SEOmoz post):

        For any site that moves down N positions in its ranking for a certain keyword (whether longtail or not), there is one or more sites moving up the page for the same keyword, to the total of N positions.

        There may have been a change in the Algo, perhaps it's Google caffeine, whatnot. Rankings for various keywords may have changed. However, search volumes for specific keywords are not affected by changes in the algo, and someone is ranking for those keywords. So the amount of traffic does not change. You may have lost a few rankings but someone else gained them.

        Losses in rankings are reported much more widely than gains, but they balance each other out.


        QED.
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        • Profile picture of the author Nigels
          My long tail traffic also has gone up for no obvious reason (=I have not analyzed why) this month so I suppose I must be one of the winners from this algorithm change if that's what it is.
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        • Profile picture of the author Kurt
          Originally Posted by PhilipSEO View Post

          Dear friends,

          I am a big fan of SEOmoz and of Rand. However, this "trend" is sheer nonsense. Here is why (and I pointed this out in my comments on that very SEOmoz post):

          For any site that moves down N positions in its ranking for a certain keyword (whether longtail or not), there is one or more sites moving up the page for the same keyword, to the total of N positions.

          There may have been a change in the Algo, perhaps it's Google caffeine, whatnot. Rankings for various keywords may have changed. However, search volumes for specific keywords are not affected by changes in the algo, and someone is ranking for those keywords. So the amount of traffic does not change. You may have lost a few rankings but someone else gained them.

          Losses in rankings are reported much more widely than gains, but they balance each other out.


          QED.
          You are correct that top rankings seem to be zero sum, and if one site drops out of the Top 10 another takes it's place, and assumably it's traffic.

          However, there's a few more dynamics at play...

          A couple are personalized and localized SERPs, which means multiple "Top 10". This will cause the same amount of traffic to be divided between more sites.

          Another factor is the new "Everything" column on the left. This pushes all the SERs and the top Adwords about two inches to the right. The top AdWords ads are now right smack in the middle of the "hottest" zone, according to Google's own heat map. This could raise click-throughs by a percentage point or two, and lower them to the organic SERs.

          Plus with the new "Everything" column, if it is expanded it offers all these choices:

          Everything

          <LI class=mitem>Shopping <LI class=mitem>VideosMoreFewer
          Search Options
          That's a lot more options for users to choose....

          There could be plenty of other factors, but the one's I pointed out above have nothing to do with what we'd call "typical SEO" or algorithms, but simply Google offering users more choices and customization which would result in less traffic for the same keywords.
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          • Profile picture of the author PhilipSEO
            Kurt, great points all, thanks. I would say that as far as changes in rankings and redistribution of traffic are concerned, on money is on the same old: Google depreciating more kinds of backlinks.

            However, the big question still remains: why the heck would this affect long tail searches more than any other searches? Beats me.
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  • Profile picture of the author tecHead
    ... just another level of proof that (on the net) putting all your eggs in one basket can be very hazardous to your business health...
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  • Profile picture of the author Toby.T
    traffic increasing on two of my sites. thats always welcomed! clients happy!
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