Can't figure this ranking out..

[enriquef]

Hi,

This is puzzling me. I've been in the second/third position for a week or so for my best keyword. That is for Google US unpersonalized, which is the one that brings more traffic, as far as I understand.

It can't get MUCH better. Well, I can be first, but second and third position is really awesome in my case (highly competitive keyword according to SEOMOZ PRO).

Then, why on earth my traffic for that keyword was 8 times better a year ago??

I mean, a year ago I received an average of 800 visits per day and now I can barely reach 90 visits per day being in the second / third place. Visits can't increase from 90 to 800 just for increasing one spot.

I've never seen in my stats such drop in my rankings. I thought that due to google updates my site was sent below the 20th position or something. But my I was shocked today when I saw that I still have the second/third position

Am I crazy or this looks wrong? The page title and description that shows in google hasn't changed, so people looking for that keyword are seeing the same as one year ago. It is not a seasonal or time sensitive keyword.

My best guess is that people are now always logged in and results are personalized. Don't know much about personalized results but I don't think you can optimize much for those. If that's the case, then how on earth can we optimize a page if everybody is using personalized results?

Is there a way to improve your rankings in those cases?

Thanks,

Enrique

[NoahsDad]

I agree with Ryan. Without being more specific it's impossible to tell what is going on. It could be any number of things. One thing you could do is look at GA for your top pages, then look at what keywords are bringing people to those pages. If a large majority is "not given" you may be able to guess what some of those words are if that makes sense.

[RyanKent]

If you can share the actual keyword and your site name, we could offer better details. Without that information, we are left to generalities. A few things to consider:

• Google now considers searches by those logged in as private. A chunk of searches for your site no longer show for the keyword involved.

• While I love the SEOmoz toolset, a rating of "highly competitive" has little meaning. There is not a meaningful way to rate competitiveness without an experienced SEO examining the rankings and factors involved.

• Any change in rankings (from 2 to 3 for example) would certainly impact traffic

• The ads can change and impact traffic

• Your competitors might be using more compelling titles or meta descriptions (i.e. Free Shipping or 25% off)

• keyword volumes can fluctuate wildly throughout the year. For example "gift basket" searches are much higher before mother's day, then the term drops

• Many keywords fall out of favor as they are replaced by other keywords over time. A singer/actor's popular can fluctuate wildly from year to year. Interest in various topics can change wildly

• Google has made hundreds of changes over the past year which impacts search results. One example is the increased importance of local search. You may rank #2 in organic search, but the way the search results are displayed you might not even show as above the fold. There could be 3 ads, then the first organic result, then 7 local results, then your second place organic position.

There are other factors as well. You can continue to apply  SEO best practices to improve your ranking over time.