Business owners and SEO experts have often noticed Google rankings climbing up and down for specific keywords. Some of them tend to panic when they see the Google ranking for some of their keywords has dropped dramatically.
Several factors can cause keyword rankings to fluctuate because Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a long-term process, and it takes time to benefit from keyword rankings.
As a business owner or SEO expert, you must recognize the factors that can cause fluctuations in search engine rankings. It will allow you to understand how you can fix them. We will talk about some of those crucial reasons that result in keyword fluctuations, and now you can deal with them.
Incorrect or Outdated Keywords
Business owners and SEO experts need to target certain keywords that will allow their target customers to land on their website or engage in a conversation about the brand. But there might be some similar keywords that may not link directly with the business. They will prove worthless in bringing potential customers searching on Google to the business website.
These keywords could be incorrect or outdated in the world of SEO, so business owners should avoid them. Also, remember that the English language and the way people speak it keeps evolving with time. Therefore you must consider the latest keywords generated through Natural Language Processing (NLP) to rank your business website.
If you are not confident enough to handle the keyword research process, you can hire a digital marketing company like Digital Junkies to take care of it. These digital marketing companies have been helping businesses analyze the ranking factors and achieve the best possible targets. They will generate the right keywords for you and help you monitor and update them whenever required.
Geolocation Variances
Some keyword rankings can vary a lot depending on the user’s location. Search engines give a lot of importance to the location from where a person searches for a product or service on the Internet.
Many SEO experts believe that the business address proximity to the geolocation of the search is probably the most important ranking factor. That is why it is crucial to use local SEO techniques by including your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) on your website, Google My Business account, and other business listings.
You can also include additional details, such as hours of operations, COVID-19 protocols, business offers, and others on your website as well as other sources. Some businesses also invest in PPC ads with relevant keywords to appear on top of search results because Google always shows 2 to 3 PPC ads for searches.
Google Algorithm Update
Google keeps making changes to its search ranking algorithms, making it challenging for business owners and digital marketers to manage their SEO efforts. Most of these changes are minute, but some of them can impact the search rankings significantly.
That is why it is necessary to keep yourself privy to the upcoming updates so you can adjust your web content strategy accordingly. You should also know that there is one factor that is common in all of these updates.
Google tries to prioritize user experience through its updates because it needs to compete with other search engines. Therefore, your ranking should not get affected by the updates as long as you create website content for humans instead of web crawlers.
Irrelevant Website Content
Your content must be relevant to the keywords you are trying to rank for through your website on Google and other search engines. If Google does not find your webpage content appropriate for the search queries, it will probably drop your keyword ranking. In such cases, you must check if any of these following factors are true.
- You have made any recent changes to your website that may not be SEO-friendly.
- Some of your web content has become outdated and no longer contains the relevant information to support the keywords.
- People may not be using those keywords in relation to your website content while searching online.
- There could be a new trending meaning for a technical keyword you are trying to rank for your website.
You have to understand that website content is not a one-time job. You have to constantly update and optimize your webpage content to include the relevant keywords.
You should also ensure that you upload new content on your website regularly to include the latest keywords. Digital marketing experts use various tools to monitor the relevance of keywords and web pages and make changes accordingly to keep them updated.
Recent Trends and Competitors
It is not uncommon for business owners to notice that their top website rankings have suddenly gone down on search engine results pages. Sometimes, it can be the result of a new trend on their competitors publishing better content optimized for SEO factors.
New competitors often create shifts in keyword rankings not only for you but for other players in the industry as well. Therefore it is necessary to constantly monitor your competitors and look for things they might be doing differently.
For example, you might be missing out on some essential keywords or recent trends on your website content that your competitors are capitalizing on through their efforts. Monitoring your competitor’s content will allow you to spot these keywords or trends and include them in your website content.
Small fluctuations in keyword rankings are common, as they keep moving a few places up or down regularly. However, there can be significant reasons for large fluctuations or huge downward shifts for keyword rankings.
If you notice such changes, you should try to identify the underlying reasons, so you can take appropriate action. If you feel that you lack the expertise or the in-house resources to deal with such a situation, you should hire a digital marketing agency to take care of it.