Completely lost Google Local rankings for main keywords
-
Hi there,
Our website, petmedicalcenter.com, used to rank very well in Google in the local section - usually within the top 3 spots for 8 or so keywords. Then last fall our rankings started to diminish. We would rank really well for a few days and then would be no where to be found in the local section - this cycle kept going for a few months. Now, within the last few weeks our website is nowhere to be found in local for our usual keywords.
After a few years of success with SEO, I know the landscape is really starting to change. My problem is that I don't even know where to start to try and get us back on to the top spots. I know this question is rather broad, but I am really at a loss here. Any help is greatly appreciated!!
http://www.petmedicalcenter.com
Main Keywords: veterinarian las vegas, vets in las vegas, veterinarians las vegas, las vegas veterinarians, vet las vegas
Thank you for your help!
Brant
-
Brant - You are welcome. Check this out:
http://searchengineland.com/google-scraper-tool-185532
Seems like that may be totally relevant for you right at this moment!
-
Hi Miriam!
Your list is awesome and am starting to comb through it now. Thank you for taking the time to answer my question!
Brant
-
Yep - that could certainly be hurting. Duplicate content of this type can definitely harm Google's ability to trust your data. I think you've uncovered a big piece of the puzzle. Hopefully, you can also take a look at the list of other issues mentioned in my reply.
-
To add, yes maybe if you put Las Vegas, NV as there is also a Las Vegas New Mexico might help
-
Thanks again for taking a quick look! I found that there is a website - justinchina.co.uk - that has copied our entire website - images, content, template, everything. All the links on the site point to our real site - so I am not sure the purpose of it. Do you think that this could be hurting our rankings on Google?
-
Might be a little spammy in your title tag with "Las Vegas"
-
Hi BCB1121,
Troubleshooting local ranking failures and fluctuations typically requires several hours of work. As I can't offer to do this within the space of the forum, I'd like to share a simple list with you of things I initially check for:
1. Violations on the Google+ Local page
2. Duplicate Google+ Local listings, including old listings, main listings, partner listings, etc.
3. NAP consistency issues across the Internet
4. Thin or duplicate content on the website
5. Known bugs or penalties reported in the Google And Your Business Forum that date from around the time you saw rankings change
6. An inequality of reviews (competitors have more than you)
7. Location of business in respect to the local business cluster (are you near the cluster or far from it)
8. Resolution of the Google MAP changing from search to search so that some businesses are showing when the resolution is broader and some are falling out when it narrows (learned this one from Linda Buquet!)
9. Are you standing still while competitors are moving aggressively forward with their marketing?
10. Sheer citation count of your business vs. competitors.
These are good places to begin your research. Hope this helps!
-
Hi Ruben,
I only looked over a half dozen pages quickly and couldn't see anything that stuck out, such as empty pages, thin content, spammy use of keywords, etc.
The pages appeared to be a decent length and didn't seem to be trying too hard.
That said, I would need to do a complete scan of the site to check for other issues that you can't just see with the eye, such as duplication and canonicalization, spelling, plagiarism (I'm sure there is none).
-Andy
-
Andy,
Quick follow-up: When you wrote "just a cursory glance at your site would suggest this" what jumped out at you? (I'd like to have better 'first glance' skills, but I really don't even know what to look for until I run the site through OSE or something like that). Is there some specific icon/layout/spacing, etc that made you think "Penguin" that you would suggest people to look out for?
Best,
Ruben
-
Of course Brant - And the link profile is in a bit of a poor state I'm afraid. Lots of random directories and non-related site links.
Before I would even suggest looking at other possible on-page issues, I would get this link profile cleaned up. There is no doubt that some of these links will be hampering efforts.
-Andy
-
Hi Andy,
Thanks for your help! This has really been stressing me out so it is nice to have another pair of eyes looking at it. If you wouldn't mind taking a quick scan I would really appreciate it!
Brant
-
Hi Brant,
I see a lot of this and I am going to guess Penguin (bad link profile) over Panda. Just a cursory glance at your site would suggest this, although I reserve the right to change my mind if I was to spend any time looking at this
Happy to run a quick scan and give you a better idea if you wish?
-Andy
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
2 Google my business listings for one company
Hello all I work for a small company. we do carpentings and old wooden furniture repairs. With the same company, we've started a tiny house building business, which is completly different of what we usally do and this is a national business wj The question is, can a create a different google my business listing for this activity ? It has different brand on logo but same phone number and same physical address. From what i ve found in google help pages , i would say yes, but i d take opinions about this , tks for your precious answers from google : Departments within other business, universities, or institutions
Local Listings | | uservices
Departments within businesses, universities, hospitals, and government institutions may have their own listings on Google.
Learn more
Publicly-facing departments that operate as distinct entities should have their own page. The exact name of each department must be different from that of the main business and that of other departments. Typically such departments have a separate customer entrance and should each have distinct categories. Their hours may sometimes differ from those of the main business.
• Acceptable (as distinct listings):
o "Walmart Vision Center"
o "Sears Auto Center"
o "Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Dermatology"
• Not acceptable (as distinct listings):
o The Apple products section of Best Buy
o The hot food bar inside Whole Foods Market
For each department, the category that is the most representative of that department must be different from that of the main business and that of other departments.
• The main business "Wells Fargo" has the category "Bank" whereas the department "Wells Fargo Advisors" has the category "Financial Consultant"
• The main business "South Bay Toyota" has the category "Toyota Dealer" whereas the "South Bay Toyota Service & Parts" has the category "Auto Repair Shop" (plus the category "Auto Parts Store")
• The main business "GetGo" has the category "Convenience Store" (plus the category "Sandwich Shop") whereas the department "GetGo Fuel" has the category "Gas Station", and the department "WetGo" has the category "Car Wash"1 -
How to create a filter view to view local search traffic in google analytics ?
Id like to be able to drill down into the local search traffic for a site in google analytics, i know i can get some analytics data via google's local places dashboard, but id like to see a more detailed chart in google analytics. I read this article and installed this filtered view dashboard from Local U, but it seems its stopped working since it was originally published back in July 13. Is there a more up to date method for capturing this data ?
Local Listings | | jpeg800 -
How to tell Google My Business what area is local to my company?
Hello Mozers I've been stumped by the changes in the interface with Google My Business. I used to be able to set up the area for which I wanted a business to cover. Now I can't find anyway to tell Google. The company I work for is in St Albans and our main workload is London. It would be helpful if I could actually control what Google Local sees as Local for my company, i.e. to encompass central London which is only 19 miles away. Can someone give me an idiots guide has to how to tell Google the area I'd like our local listing to cover? Thanks
Local Listings | | Catherine_Selectaglaze0 -
Average Percentage of Clicks on Google (Adwords vs Local 3 Pack vs Organic)
Does anyone know the allocation, percentage-wise, of clicks that go to Adwords vs Local 3 Pack vs Organic on Google Search (average)?
Local Listings | | OhYeahSteve0 -
SEO Google local listings
Hello We've recently started a campaign for a local business, and now the domain authority and the number of links to the site are equal if not more to all local major competitors (bar one) and organic rankings for relevant terms are increasing well... However we still do not appear in the google local listings, despite having a verified location business account - fully set up and active and linked to the website. Does anyone have any advice for increasing local rankings? Thanks in advance kind mozzers
Local Listings | | wearehappymedia0 -
What would Cause listing to fall off local search map spot?
Any reason a listing that was showing in Google between the 3 and 5 spot on local map search would suddenly disappear all together from the map position for a specific keyword?
Local Listings | | scott3150 -
'People Also Searched for' appears on some but not all local businesses, why? (Google Local Knowledge Panel)
I have a client who does not want the 'People Also Searched for' section on the Google Local Knowledge Panel to appear. I informed her that this is a standard part of the search presentation and that we cannot change. She then pointed out that the 'People also searched for' does not appear on her competitors' Google Local Knowledge Panels. (See the attachment for comparison) This raises a couple of questions: Why are the local businesses different? Can I change the content of her panel? I would appreciate any feedback. google-local.jpg
Local Listings | | sirgeorge0 -
Site links mutually exclusive with Google+ Business?
Hey all! I've been looking at the search results for our company name (Angelsmith). Looking at our listing, our search result has title, authorship, ties in with Google+, reviews, link to map, plus the big sidebar Google+ Business result with map, logo, directions, hours, etc. Our site is well-indexed, we're using a sitemap, etc. but I notice we do not have any sitelinks under our result. And come to think of it, I can't remember seeing any search results that have authorship and Google+ listings on it AS WELL AS a nice set of sitelinks underneath. So I'm wondering: are Google+ Business and sitelinks mutually exclusive? How about authorship and sitelinks? Do we have any control over which get displayed on search results? Thanks in advance, --eric
Local Listings | | EricOliver0