Personal Sandbox Experience

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Hi Everyone,


I still consider myself a newbie and have been working on affiliate marketing for about five months. For some of you veterans, the experience of seeing one of your first sites disappear out of the blue is an extremely disheartening thing for someone that is just starting out. Well, I've gone through the experience and come out the other side.

One of my sites had been earning $60/week solidly for a month until it suddenly disappeared. I did what a lot of people do and began a minor panic. I scoured the Warrior Forum for answers, looked all over Google and finally gave up on the site defeated.

Then I began working on a much larger affiliate site and thought I really got it this time. I was much more clever with backlinking, used all sorts of elaborate methods and low and behold, sandbox again! This time I did not give up. I just acted like nothing happened and kept pushing through as many guys have advised.

The results?

For the first site I had made and gave up on it came back after two months in Google Hell. It is sitting pretty at number one and earning again. For the second site that I acted as if nothing happened, it came back within 2 weeks and sitting higher than ever.

This is a message to newbies. Please do not become disheartened by this mystical sandbox. It's a really natural process and so far has happened to most of my sites. Just remember you are in this for the long haul and keep on trucking!

All the best,
Steve
#experience #personal #sandbox
  • Profile picture of the author RustyF
    I've got a site that Google liked for about two weeks then disliked for two weeks.

    Then it came back for a few days. Then it died for a few days, then back again for a few days.

    Hey, it had almost a 100% increase in traffic today, from 3 to 5 visitors. lol Was doing over a hundred a day which was enough for that site to earn cash. I think it will bounce back again.

    Yeah, I'm building backlinks. I need to get started on another affiliate site so Google can dance with me there too.
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  • Profile picture of the author Hotness
    Originally Posted by steveperch View Post

    Hi Everyone,


    I still consider myself a newbie and have been working on affiliate marketing for about five months. For some of you veterans, the experience of seeing one of your first sites disappear out of the blue is an extremely disheartening thing for someone that is just starting out. Well, I've gone through the experience and come out the other side.

    One of my sites had been earning $60/week solidly for a month until it suddenly disappeared. I did what a lot of people do and began a minor panic. I scoured the Warrior Forum for answers, looked all over Google and finally gave up on the site defeated.

    Then I began working on a much larger affiliate site and thought I really got it this time. I was much more clever with backlinking, used all sorts of elaborate methods and low and behold, sandbox again! This time I did not give up. I just acted like nothing happened and kept pushing through as many guys have advised.

    The results?

    For the first site I had made and gave up on it came back after two months in Google Hell. It is sitting pretty at number one and earning again. For the second site that I acted as if nothing happened, it came back within 2 weeks and sitting higher than ever.

    This is a message to newbies. Please do not become disheartened by this mystical sandbox. It's a really natural process and so far has happened to most of my sites. Just remember you are in this for the long haul and keep on trucking!

    All the best,
    Steve
    Good share there mate.

    A few days up and down are commonly known as Google dance. There are sites that sunk for months and came back. Am glad your sites are back up now.

    Rock on!
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  • Profile picture of the author nicktyler
    I have been through the dance with a very big and established site. I had a very bad week hoping to see it back every day but it did and in a stronger position.

    It's Googles playground and they send you to the sandbox sometimes. Seemingly to try to break your spirit because they know there is cat poop in there!! If you just carry on playing and clean yourself off you will come out smelling of roses, get respect for not giving in and get picked first for the break time playground football!!
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    1000's of IT jobs in the UK online now at Dice

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    • Profile picture of the author dburk
      Hi Steve,

      I think you are referring to the temporary boost of Google's QDF feature wearing off as a sandbox. That is a common misconception among new webmasters.

      You will learn, in the fullness of time, that the temporary boost that your new pages receive is normal and should be expected, just as the subsequent drop when the temporary boost wears off should be a normal expectation.

      As your pages and promotional activities begin to earn trust, you will see your pages climbing back towards higher rankings. How far you drop and how long it takes to come back is determined in part by the level of competition you have for your targeted keywords.

      The important thing to realize is that this is the normal algorithm at work and not a penalty and that your site has not been singled out for punishment. There is nothing you did to cause it and nothing you can do to prevent it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Marko Vel
    Maybe your site is still there?

    Did you check it with "site:www.mydomain.com" ?
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