Welcome to Season 4 And Episode 2 of Learn Blogging & SEO With Flash Isaac. Ranking drops happens to every blogger at one point or the other. Today, we shall discuss the top 5 types of Google ranking drops.
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Now, Google Ranking drops is one major thing that gives Bloggers and SEO Experts sleepless night. We try as much as possible to fix ranking issues to avoid stories that touch.
Another issue of concern among bloggers and SEO Experts is the sudden disappearance of articles from Google Search Results. I have already discussed why blogs suddenly vanish from Google here. Now, the 5 Types Of Google Ranking Drops are:
- Google Algorithm Penalty
- Your OnPage SEO has issues
- Another blogger outranked you
- Your site dropped because you are losing links
- Google Flux
Google Algorithm Penalty
Google releases a bunch of algorithm updates yearly. Most times, Google Updates are minor. However, Google releases Major updates to its Algorithm too.
These core Google Algorithm updates impart the majority of sites that fail to follow Google Quality guidelines. In fact, a drop in ranking these days doesn’t always mean you’re doing something wrong.
When your ranking suddenly drops after a Major Google Algorithm update, it could be a sign that you are under Google Algorithm Penalty.
Apart From Algorithm Penalty, you could also be hit by Google Manual Action. You can confirm manual action by clicking on manual action under Search traffic in your Google Search console.
A big difference between algorithmic and manual penalties is that Algorithm penalties are automatic and usually released with various Google Updates, while Manual Actions are manually applied by a Google employee.
Few examples of Google Algorithm Updates are the Google Panda Update, Penguin, Hummingbird and Google Pigeon.
Google pigeon:
Google Pigeon is the code name given to one of Google’s local search algorithm updates. This update was released on July 24, 2014.
The update is aimed to increase the ranking of local listing in a search. The changes will also affect the search results shown in Google Maps along with the regular Google search results.
Google’s Hummingbird:
The “Google’s Hummingbird” update was the first major update to Google’s search algorithm since the 2010 “Caffeine” search architecture upgrade, but even that was limited primarily to improving the indexing of information rather than sorting through information.
Google’s RankBrain:
RankBrain is an algorithm learning artificial intelligence system, the use of which was confirmed by Google on 26 October 2015. The rank brain is majorly to meet users search intent.
It helps Google to process search results and provide more relevant search results for users. As of 2015, “RankBrain was used for less than 15% of queries.”
Google Panda:
Google Panda is a change to Google’s search results ranking algorithm that was first released in February 2011.
The change aimed to lower the rank of “low-quality sites” or “thin content sites”, in particular, “content farms”, and return higher-quality sites near the top of the search results.
Google Penguin:
Google launched the Penguin Update in April 2012 to better catch sites deemed to be spamming its search results, in particular, those doing so by buying links or obtaining them through link networks designed primarily to boost Google rankings.
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Recover From Google Algorithm Penalty
These days, Google says we shouldn’t do anything that Algorithm updates imparting sites doesn’t always mean there is an issue. My advice is to continue doing what is good and stop black hat SEO as it may hurt you in the long run.
For manual action, Identify exactly what happened. This would be to first check your Google Webmaster Tools account. There you’ll have notifications from Google regarding manual actions they’ve taken against your site. Another step to solving ranking drops is to make sure that your site complies with Google quality guideline.
Your OnPage SEO Has Issues
When bloggers hear the word ‘SEO‘, the first thing that comes to mind is link building. Ladies and gentlemen, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is beyond building links. You need to pay attention to your on-page SEO before it leads to ranking drops.
It would be a sin for me to dwell on the issue of Onpage SEO after creating high-quality content that touched everything about Onpage SEO and Google ranking signals. I advise you to check out my famous article on OnPage SEO here.
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Another Blog Outranked You
With every passing day, other bloggers are creating quality content similar to your own. They can easily outrank you when Google notices that their content provides a better solution and add more value.
It is very easy for others to outrank you when your blog is new and without unique content.
Would you fold your hands and watch your competitors outrank you? Never. You need to start doing what your competitors are doing and even better. Update your posts to stay relevant, else your blog will vanish from Google.
You May Be Losing BackLinks
Backlink is a very strong ranking signal. The more the quality of backlinks you have, the more you are able to maintain your ranking and domain authority. As your link drops, you would experience ranking drops. Your best bet is to ensure that you don’t lose too many high-quality backlinks. Many spammy links to your site can hurt your ranking as well.
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Google Flux
This is either a slight or big drop. One of the things that you have no power over is Google flux. This issue is very unpredictable and volatile, so you shouldn’t be on the lookout for any signs.
How to Identify a Google Flux? This is usually harder to spot. Everything should be looking ok:
- No on-page issues
- No linking issues
- No competitor issues
- No known update
It isn’t any rule of thumb on how to handle these kinds of situations and you just have to hold tight. You might be back in a few days. Let me know how you feel via the comment box and don’t fail to share this post with your Blogger Friends.
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