Some days IN - Some days OUT

[mobileman]

I have a site that is specific to the manufactured housing industry. For the keyword phrase MOBILE HOME, without quotes, my sites has appeared on the first page of search results ever since Google started.

Since the first of 2005, my site started disappearing from my normal ranking position about 3 to 4 days a week. On the days the site is gone, I can not find it at all, on any page of the MOBILE HOME search results. Then like magic, there it is the rest of the week on the first page of the search results in it's normal position.

With other search terms, I do not have this issue. With other terms I get shuffled almost daily, but I do not totally disappear.

Does any body have an idea why Google is doing this HERE TODAY, GONE TOMORROW shuffle with my site? ( Only on the search term MOBILE HOME )

[jestep]

I don't think it is a just your search phrase issue with Google. Ever since early February Google has been very unstable for a lot of search phrases. Hopefully they will get their kinks worked out, but I would worry about it being just for your search phrase. There are many webmasters that are equally frustrated with the constant Google instability.

[davestarr]

Originally Posted by mobileman

.....

Does any body have an idea why Google is doing this HERE TODAY, GONE TOMORROW shuffle with my site? ( Only on the search term MOBILE HOME )

I'm no expert here but I noticed very similar behavior with my little site in the past. Wouldn't you expect, however, to get more expert opinions if you told the group which site was yours? Or did I miss some clue here?

[Susie1]

Hi everyone,
Just thought I'd share my experience and opinion on what is going on with Google. My site was experiencing the same thing since late Jan.'05. One day #1 & #2 for my search terms (my site has held those positions for about a year), then gone and nowhere to be found, then back again! Very frustrating! I found that my site was listed at the top (for my search terms) in about half of the data centers, and couldn't be found in the other half. I assume that Google has been swithing search results to different data centers, therefore, giving different search results. It appears as though they are updating/consolidating the results. My site has recently become "stable", so I rechecked the data centers and found my site to be on top for my search terms on ALL of the data centers now. Here is the url to the "tool" that I found to check on this: http://www.mcdar.net/dance/index.php I hope this helps some of you out there experiencing the same frustration that I did. Post back and let us know if you find the same results in the data center search.
Susie

[Susie1]

Anyone out there agree or disagree with my thoughts as posted above?

Susie

[OneMoreBite]

I gave up on trying to keep up with "what's happening to my ranking at Google" a long time ago. It's just too time consuming to even bother. They change things constantly. Sometimes in your favor, sometimes not.

I think it's best to optimize your pages as best you can, then go work on content or other marketing aspects. Spending time checking Google ranks or placement is just not worth worrying over, unless that's your sole job and you get paid to do just that. Obviously, just my opinion though.

I get my best traffic from Yahoo, and my site's not even listed in their directory. It comes from articles, and other postings which Yahoo, Google and others pick up and then display depending on keywords, etc.

Kathryn

[freehits]

I monitor this closely.

The give away to this happening is the total results returned.

I have watched basically two different SERP sets being return, clearly consistant to themselves, but based on a different formula.

I watch a handful of terms throughout the day, and generally there is a large set returned which is the normal set of results, and there is a "small" set which is the new set of results which is always the same to itself, but very different from the first set.

It has become that I see exactly which is currently showing, and know where I am for each of the two.

here are a few factors you will notice in all likliness.

These are not changing daily as you suggest, but throughout the day in blocks of hours.

And you will notice they dont change on the weekends so much. what you see on Saturday will still be there sunday, then monday the new here-then-gone- returns throughout the day in lagre multi-hour blocks.

This began as you stated in january.

once you recognize this 2 set pattern, best to see what is ranking for each. The new smaller set seems less rergarding the incoming anchor links, as I rank better for the larger set of results (the traditional set).

[greeneagle]

I believe we are just seeing the "normal" pre-update instability. It should settle out in the next week or two.

IMO - A little more testing is in order.
Ken

[lanthus]

HOPTOO's depiction, was closest-- just a little off:

1. The alternate-returns started middle of last year (roughly August 2004, I was seeing 65 v. 165 returns on one article search I did every day ... I reported to google but got the runaround about updates);

2. The smaller set is the more accurate return. (The larger includes soft searching ... which went-on for months and it's still not the primary return today.)

PS. The newsletter just resumed after years.

/rkp

[freehits]

To further support what you see, I would have been accurate in my post to have said I first started following this effect on my returns in january.

But it is so marked of a pattern I assumed I was not the only person to see this odd new pattern.

[jmwiley]

This little 'Google updating issue' is a problem just with organic seo or with both PPC and organic? My site's #s dropped tramatically over the last few months but my PPCs remain the same if not better.

Even the spiders that were visiting my site increased by 500+ visits each month over about a 3 month time just after January.

thanks