1 reply to this topic

[Hex]

The easy one 1st, I think.

How accurate is webmaster tools in terms of the impression data? I usually use the google adsense keyword tool to get an idea of if a keyword is worth targeting for volumes but I have started to think that if I am showing as an average position of 40 in webmaster tools and seeing 20 impressions per month then this is probably a good way to pik a word to go after too, if the impressions in there are reasonably accurate (numbers made up for example use).


Now the main bit, google is doing it wrong!

So I have a site and it was doing well, its a new site and it was in 4th for a very competitive keyword, google then drops me 40 places and changes the target page to another page on the site that I have not optimized, a few days pass and its back to normal but then the swap happens again. What are they playing at!? And how can I get them to index the right page.

I would think that if a page ranks 4th then it should see it as more important and use that one? There is text using the keyword on the secondary page pointing to the 1st page too.

[Michael Martinez]

The easy one 1st, I think.

How accurate is webmaster tools in terms of the impression data? I usually use the google adsense keyword tool to get an idea of if a keyword is worth targeting for volumes but I have started to think that if I am showing as an average position of 40 in webmaster tools and seeing 20 impressions per month then this is probably a good way to pik a word to go after too, if the impressions in there are reasonably accurate (numbers made up for example use).
Now the main bit, google is doing it wrong!

The data reported by Google Webmaster Tools is rounded to 3 decimal places. In AdWords be sure you look at the "LOCAL" numbers, not the "Network" numbers. Network includes Google's search partners.

So I have a site and it was doing well, its a new site and it was in 4th for a very competitive keyword, google then drops me 40 places and changes the target page to another page on the site that I have not optimized, a few days pass and its back to normal but then the swap happens again. What are they playing at!? And how can I get them to index the right page.

This type of behavior is often a result of (or at least may be attributed to) the various algorithmic tweaks that Google makes throughout the week. You generally need to look at things like on-page optimization (emphasis and repetition), internal navigation (including anchor text), and external links if you want to stabilize a specific page for a query. That doesn't mean go out and get as many links as you can. It means get thoughtful links, be thoughtful in your own linking, and make sure you're not trying to accomplish too much with your page.

Understand that a page may "rank" for hundreds of different expressions. Just because you're focusing on only 1-3 doesn't mean the search engine is. Their algorithms look at a much larger, more complex keyword picture than SEOs do.