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@cooper-12 Hi Gregory, thanks for taking the time to look. So the part that concerns me is about the https://www.stephita.com line, it shows stephita.com again, when I compare other SERP they show the title tag, or something different. I'm just wondering what part does Google parse to populate that part? So this is next to my FAV ICON graphic

When doing a google search for "Wedding Invitations Toronto", you will find my site www.stephita.com shows up in top 5 results.

I'm trying the figure out why the TITLE of the page no longer shows up in the SERP. Only the domain shows up above the link to the page. So you basically see www.stephita.com twice, when the first instance should be the "title" drawing from the HTML code.

I did implement the JSON code to provide proper site data structure as well. Could someone check my source, and tell me if I'm missing something, or if I put TOO MUCH stuff there?

Thank You!!!!

So I used the Google PageSpeed Insights to get a better idea:

I'm somewhat technically saavy, but I can't seem to wrap my brain on HOW TO Enable Compression fix???

Do you happen to have a "simple example" of what needs to be done?  I understand the concept of having a compressed file will save on bandwidth etc...  But am I literally "gzipping" the files like "jquery.js"... but how does the HTML code work etc..   Any straight forward example you could possibly show me?

Same with ENABLING CACHE...   My site is done w/ PHP, so i thought sending a simple HEADER command like so:

header("Cache-Control: max-age=2592000");

would suffice... but the pagespeed insight still says,the following elements: which are jpgs, css files, js files that my "www.stephita.com" index file references...  Am I doing the Cache statement correct, by putting it on the INDEX.PHP page?  Or do I somehow have to literally have to reference each jpg/css/js file that the PageSpeed insight is saying needs something done?  Again, examples?

I appreciate any help on this matter

When googling on www.google.ca for "wedding invitations" and in my own geo location market of Toronto, my site - www.stephita.com, will show up differently on SERP on desktop (Chrome & IE) vs. mobile (iPad, iPhone, android, etc.).

On desktop SERP, I will show up 6/7 position...  (which is relatively a new position, the past 3 weeks - I was previously on page 2)  (After a bunch of SEO fixes, I've managed to propel my site back to page 1!)

On mobile SERP, I only show up on 1/2 position on PAGE 2

As I mentioned above, I did a bunch of SEO fixes that I think were related to Panda/Penguin algos.  So I'm wondering why my MOBILE SERP has NOT improved along the way?  What should I be looking at to fix this 5-6 position differential?

Thanks all!

I don't know how that .js subpage is looping in the address bar.  I'm just using the foundation.zurb.com code to develop my site as mobile friendly.

I do have an idea why the articles page might be spinning out of control.  It's a dynamic page that pulls my articles content, and it's dependent on the URL, so technically I could have an infinite number of pages spawning.  I will correct the script to realize this error, and have it redirect to a base page.

As for the other previous cloaking pages, I'm assuming if I do a 301 redirect to the homepage, that would be better than to DELETE the page entirely which would return a 404.

Thank for helping out with the site audit!  I truly appreciate it.

How did you detect the loop in the link structure?

Regarding the page count, the current count I thought was < 1000 based on MOZ Site Crawl tool.

** Prior to January of this year (2016), I had a cloaking page that was running that basically generated pages with a different city reference.  So my site came up for searches like "Wedding invitations Banff, W I Timbuktuu, W I any city".  Obviously this was a black-hat tactic, which I figured out a few months ago is a NO-NO with the PANDA update.  So I unreferenced the link from my link structure, and I also requested that the directory structure be removed from the Google Webmaster Tools.  I just realized I didn't take that script offline, or have it re-direct - i.e. www.stephita.com/wedding/type_anything_here is still live.  But there is no LINK from my site that would go there anymore.  ** I'm thinking I should probably do a 301 redirect to my homepage instead now.

So I'm curious as to how Screaming Frog is seeing these pages, if it is indeed these pages.  www.stephita.com/wedding/____________________

Thanks!

Oh..  I was hoping it was a 'penalty' b/c at least there is hope that fixing those issues would make Google smile at my site again  I've basically started this 'clean-up' process the past 3 months, where I've used the MOZ tools to identify "high/medium priorities".

I've put in the effort to remove all "duplicate pages" which were marked as HIGH, and I've adjusted the META TITLES which were marked as MEDIUM.  According to MOZ crawl report, I'm down to a few issues vs. 900 or so when I first ran the report a few months ago.

As for the Penguin fixes, I only discovered this 3 days ago, and submitted my first DISAVOW list yesterday which contained 900+ urls and about 210 domains.

** If the 10 placement drop wasn't a penalty, I can only hope this 'clean-up' attempt can only help?  But the big question is timeframe...  Is it possible Google would have only assessed my site a MINOR penalty?  Or is it either nothing or SEVERE?

You are soooo right about the scouring the internet till I'm cross-eyed! hahaah

I read this article: http://www.brafton.com/news/seo-1/penguin-to-join-googles-core-algorithm-what-you-need-to-know/   That 'expert' says Penguin has already been put into the core algorithm.  ** I can't seem to find anything that "Google" has said, do you know?

Here's a quick rundown, my site www.stephita.com, used to rank on near the top of page 1 for google.ca on search term "wedding invitations", some time ago (I haven't been keeping track, but I believe maybe 1-2 years ago probably) my site has dropped to page middle of page 2.  So I'm thinking my site got dropped about 10 spaces.  If I was hit with any penalties b/c of Panda & Penguin, does a 10 place drop seem reasonable, or would it have been more?  A few facts:

• I never got a manual action

• I believe Panda penalty b/c I had some 'black-hat seo' pages, like a cloaking page, and also some relatively THIN content.

• I believe Penguin b/c I just did a backlink audit, and felt I had about 200 spammy domains linking to me which amounted to about 900 urls.

So with those 3 points, does 10 place drop seem reasonable, or does my site just suck hahaha

Thanks for the input!

What's your understanding of how sites recover from penalties now?  I've seen a posting about how Panda and Penguin are now 'baked in' the search algorithm.  Where as in the past, sites would have to wait till Google rolled out a Panda/Penguin update for sites to show any 'recovery'.   So, if it is 'baked in', if I submitted my 'disavow' list a few hours ago, should I hopefully see immediate results now?

Thanks!

1. When submitting a disavow list, should I put a COMMENT on each one?  Does someone at Google read it?

2. If I send 10 at a time, when I send the second batch, should I re-include the first batch with it?  So basically just upload the same file over and over with new additions.

Hi Todd,

Thanks again.

1. In your opinion, I should disavow those low quality directory listings?  Would Google/Bing consider those as SPAM?

2. I thought those "stat" type referring links look more spammy then directory listings.  Would these have "hurt" my ranking at all?

3. I've looked at my Google Analytic profile, and have noticed a steep decline the past 2 years.  The fact that some of these links might have been there for a while, does cleaning it up 'now' greatly improve my standing?

So the drop in my SERP is based on users doing a keyword search for the term "wedding invitations", on google.ca.  I started this company about 14 years ago, and pretty sure my domain has been on page 1 for the first 10-12 years.  Especially in my local market in Toronto, we were top 3 results.  I've only noticed earlier this year, that my site has dropped to page 2!  (it probably dropped to page 2 much earlier, which probably coincides with my traffic drop, so let's say it has been on page 2 for the past 2 years).  There are now 4 other local based companies that sit ahead of my site, along with some large US domains (like Minted.com, weddingpaperdivas.com).

I only realized YESTERDAY, that there have been 375 linking domains to my site.  I actually thought my SERP dropped b/c of the Panda Algo (which probably still is part of the reason).  I had thin/duplicate content, and a cloaking page setup.  I've cleaned up those 2 high priority issues.

I've read other postings about Penguin Cleanup, some have noticed a change within a week.  But my question is b/c I left this lingering for SO LONG, am I put into a bad position?

Hi Todd,

Thanks for your input!

1. I'm not quite sure I understand what you mean by 301 redirect.  My website is just referenced as a standard direct ahref link on these domains to my site.

2. Makes sense!  I figure Google could see more

3. thanks for the screenshot, where did you compile that profile from?

So here is a sample of some of the referring links that are linking to my site:  Can you advise me if you would "disavow" these types of links

A) The following 3 are "random" directory listings

http://www.skoobe.biz/index.php?go=results&search=enjoy
http://www.incrawler.com/dir/Shopping/Gifts/Weddings/
http://www.directorydump.com/shopping/weddings/

B) The following 6 are just page stat type random links.

http://com.stephita.qirina.com/
http://webstarratings.com/ratings-reviews/stephita.com
http://www.kikstat.com/www/stephita.com
https://www.aihitdata.com/company/00872FAC/STEPHITA/overview
http://dig.do/stephita.com
http://www.statsfuse.com/stephita.com.html

C) The following 3 are domains in foreign countries (i.e. Iran, Korea, etc..)  I've translated them, but visually it's mumbo jumbo, not an article, just random talk....

http://onvar.ir/term/Invi
http://www.acegreen.co.kr/community/design_news_v.asp?seq=738&intNowPage=1&searchGubun=&searchString=
http://fungood.ir/more/75931_21/Wedding-Invitations-Toronto-Invites-with.html

D) Last set are links that show up in my SEARCH CONSOLE information, but the referring links are "dead", 404 etc...   Should I still disavow these broken links?

I appreciate any help on this matter!  I don't have any "manual actions" in my search console, but from your experience, would you say I might have been hit with a Penguin Penalty?  If so, the fact that I've not taken any action until now, does that hurt me even more?  (i.e. these could have been up for years, I wouldn't know... :()

I've been trying to figure out why my site www.stephita.com has lost it's google ranking the past few years.  I had originally thought it was due to the Panda updates, but now I'm concerned it might be because of the Penguin update.  Hard for me to pinpoint, as I haven't been actively looking at my traffic stats the past years.

1. So here's what I just noticed.  On my Google Search Console - Links to your Site, I discovered there are 301 domains, where over 75% seem to be spammy.  I didn't actively create those links.

2. I'm using the MOZ - Open site Explorer tool to audit my site, and I noticed there is a smaller set of LINKING DOMAINS, at about 70 right now.  Is there a reason, why MOZ wouldn't necessarily find all 300 domains?

3. What's the BEST way to clean this up???  I saw there's a DISAVOW option in the Google Search Console, but it states it's not the best way, as I should be contacting the webmasters of all the domains, which is I assume impossible to get a real person on the other end to REMOVE these link references.

HELP!  What should I do?

My site: www.stephita.com, is based in Toronto, Canada.

It used to rank top 3 in local and national searches for "wedding invitations" and "wedding invitations toronto".  I've now been placed on the dreaded page 2 ;|

I didn't keep up with the times and news, and wasn't aware of Google Panda Penalty until earlier this year

So, I've cleaned up most of my site with what I suspect what caused me to drop:

a) Cloaking pages - I had PHP script generate about 1000 pages of "cloaked" pages.  This has been removed, and I've used Google webmaster tools to "remove" the directory as well.

b) Duplicate Content pages - (not cloaked, but I've done content writing on the majority of my product pages)

The 2 items above is what I "assume" caused a Google Penalty...  I started this cleanup endeavour late January, and with the content writing to remove what MOZ tools notices as duplicate pages.

I've read online that Panda is now part of the search algorithm.  So does that mean, ideally, I should start seeing "better" ranking results now?  Or is there a process I should be following and submitting my site for "reconsideration"?

Thanks all!

Yes, I've removed all the "shortcuts" of bad thin content now.

But I'm a little confused by your comment:

But anyone who looks closely at these cookie cutter pages will see that  the wording is awkward, the photos don't match the names or the colors listed, and problems  like Oren & Bar Mitzvah sneak in.

Do you see something in particular that is bringing this to your attention?

As always, I appreciate your knowledgeable feedback on these issues.

I'm cleaning up my site, and removing some of the 'black-hat' SEO techniques that I had thought worked 5 years ago...  I had created a script to generate "doorway" pages on my site.

i.e., if you searched "wedding invitations" + random city, like "wedding invitations thornhill, wedding invitations richmond hill, wedding invitations brampton, etc...

http://www.stephita.com/wedding/invitations/thornhill

http://www.stephita.com/wedding/invitations/richmond+hill

http://www.stephita.com/wedding/invitations/brampton

My site is listed on the first page for most of these "wedding invitation city" type searches.

Assuming my site has already been "Panda Demoted", does it make sense that these links are still on the first page for those "long tail searches"?  Is it because of these specific pages that my site's index page (www.stephita.com) has been demoted in SERP when searching for the broader "wedding invitations" locally?  ** I hope I am making sense here **

I used to have links in the footer and sitemap that would lead crawlers to these "doorway pages", but I have removed all traces of it from the site now.  How long will the pre-existing indexed pages live in their results?  Should I take steps to pro-actively remove them?

I'll make an effort to improve the THIN content pages.  Assuming I've "fixed" all issues that the Panda Algo doesn't like - how "soon/long" would it take to be "out of demotion".  Is it re-calculated daily, or only when there are Panda updates (how often?)?

Is there anyway to flag a "product page" so that Panda wouldn't look at it?  I'm just thinking in the case where I create 1000 product display pages, does that mean I would really need to write 1000 content HEAVY pages?  --  Sorry, I just realized there is the META NOINDEX method...

If my site is built 80% product pages, and I suddenly add the NOINDEX meta tag, will that negatively impact the result?  Or would that benefit me in this situation?  It was never my intention for any searchers to land on any direct product page.  My main focus for any searchers is to reach my main index page.

Is there a "magic number" of number of words to make it a suitable content page?  (i.e. NOT-THIN)

I really appreciate you helping me out with this!

Thanks for giving me a better understanding of how Panda works.

I agree, I'm targeting my local market, but I noticed when using "google.ca" (vs. .com)  Searching for the keywords "wedding invitations" (without Toronto), does yield a few of my local competitors (along with the big boys like vistaprint) that have leapfrogged me this past year....

So if my site had, hypothetically speaking, 1000s of product pages, but with a simple one line description, along with photo and price to be simple.  Would Google penalize me for having THIN content then?

Lastly, does PageRank matter anymore?  My site was a PR3 - does that matter when the other local competitors that have leapfrogged me are all PR1s?

Thanks for your feedback!

Yes, I agree, I feel that my page 1 placement was more due to my searches based on my geographic location.  That is my biggest concern at the moment, that other customers in my area are not finding my site anymore.

I'll definitely remove those footer links that serve very little purpose other than to direct users to content that they can get from the main navigation.

To get a better idea of how Panda works, or Google Search Algo in general...  does it look at my site as a "whole" when it scores the value of sending users to my index page?

For pages on my site that obviously are only meant as a "product" with simple photo, sku and price.  Does that mean it would see it as very thin content, and penalize my site as a whole?

I haven't been paying attention to my sites SERP for the past year, and only realized I've dropped to page 2 on a keyword search.

Specifically, on Google.ca, searching the keywords "wedding invitations"

My site, www.stephita.com, used to consistently rank in the top 3 links.  While my competitors have leapfrogged me.

I realized that my site wasn't "mobile-friendly", and had a few other issues like keyword stuffing, long meta descriptions and titles.  I've fixed these issues "now", but wanted to know does this mean my site was severely penalized by the Panda/Penguin updates for the last few years?

Does having a PR3 site mean anything?  My competitors who our rank me on SERP, are all PR1 sites.

Greatly appreciate any feedback you can give me!

Hi Chris,

I appreciate you giving me the feedback on my site issues.  I've rectified a few, and will thoroughly go through my site to ensure it complies with the suggestions.

What is the likelihood that once Google sees that the page is cleaner, will my site jump back up to the top?  Does the PR3 still factor in SERP?

Thanks!

My website, http://www.stephita.com/ used to appear on the first page of my "locally" searched terms on www.google.ca.  Specifically, when users searched for "wedding invitations", we would appear between 1-3 on the rankings.

Sadly, I "ignored warnings" of making my site "mobile friendly" for too long, and only recently made drastic changes to my site to get it to "mobile friendly" status.

So, I've fallen far in the SERP, down to the dreaded second page, for my keyword search: "wedding invitations".

The "mobile friendly" version of my site has been up and running for about 1 month now.  My site's home/index page has a PR3, compared to all the other sites that have leaped frogged mine are all at PR1.

Does anybody know the likelihood that my site will ever see the page 1 daylight again?  Or has Google Penalized my rankings

Very much appreciated any help the community can provide!