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Can anybody tell me what happened here? http://5lx.co.uk/images/searchconsole2015-12-22 13.37.16.png That is the ranking pattern of my UK site on Google UK for my main keyword. It reached number 1 on 7 December but three or four days later, dropped like a stone. It has been very erratic ever since, slumping as low as the mid-30s. I checked the search console but there were no manual penalties. There is an update signalled on the chart but I can't find any info about it and anyway it seems to have happened after the drop began. I barely touched the site between its top ranking and the slump and certainly didn't do anything to deserve that roller coaster (as far as I know). Does anybody have any ideas? Thanks

When I type my domain into OSE I get a list of linking domains. Most of them I have seen before and I know were active last year. However, when I click through, many of these links have been removed (which is what I wanted/requested) and some of the pages return 404. Google (via  link:www.mydomain.com) doesn't show these links as active either. My question is why does OSE show them? Thanks

Here is part of a URL that takes the local number 1 spot for "implant dentist glasgow" [website] /implant-dentistry-glasgow-scotland/implant-dentistry-glasgow-scotland.html The first  /implant-dentistry-glasgow-scotland/ directory or page is protected and presumably just exists for ranking reasons. I am tempted to copy that URL on a client's implant page to compete for the keyword (I believe I have better content). Given that it works well for the other site, can you think of any reason that would that be a bad idea? Thanks very much.

Here is a site that is sitting at number 1 on Google UK (local results) for a number of its keywords: http://www.scottishdentistry.com/ If you look at the links in the navigation many of them have urls such as this: http://www.scottishdentistry.com/glasgow-scotland-dentistry/glasgow-scotland-hygienists.html These have clearly been created to be keyword rich. For example, there is no publicly-available page at: http://www.scottishdentistry.com/glasgow-scotland-dentistry Do you think this tactic has helped with the site's rankings? Is it worth imitating? Or will it ultimately attract a penalty of some kind? Remember this is in the UK where Google seems to be slower at penalising dodgy tactics than in the US. Thanks everyone.