Have your SEO search rankings suddenly dropped? : Introduction of causes and examples of recovery
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Despite diligent SEO efforts, it’s not uncommon for a site’s ranking for specific keywords to suddenly drop out of the ranking altogether.
We will explain the reasons based on a case where a client’s site recovered from such a penalty. If you are a complete beginner, it’s advisable to read ‘What is SEO? A Guide to SEO‘ before proceeding with this page.”
Causes of Ranking Drops for SEO-Optimized Websites
There are mainly two reasons for ranking drops concerning targeted keywords.
- Internal SEO factors
- External SEO factors
In terms of internal SEO, a common issue is a drop in rankings due to high similarity or copied content which devalues the original content. For external SEO, acquiring low-quality backlinks can negatively impact rankings.
Examples of SEO Ranking Drops and Recoveries
Previously, the site was ranking within the top positions on the first page, but in the last six months, it dramatically fell to beyond the ranking list…
The most common reason we encounter through consultations is content duplication or copied sites.
Look at this chart.
On October 17, 2019, the site was ranked 14th but suddenly dropped out of the rankings. It remained out for about three months. During this period, no new external SEO efforts were made, which implies that the drop wasn’t caused by external links.
Upon consulting with us, we conducted an investigation into the internal content. We found that duplicate pages were being created via WordPress, leading to many pages with high duplication or similarity.
We meticulously checked the text using a plagiarism tool, deleted all pages identified as copies, and rewrote the content on important pages. Just these actions alone naturally restored the rankings.
If your rankings drop, ensure to do these two things
- Check for low-quality links. Recently, there has been an increase in cases where sites receive tens of thousands of links from abroad as a form of negative SEO. Make a disavow request to remove these low-quality external links.
- Check the duplication rate of your site content. Use a free plagiarism tool to ensure there are no duplicates within your site or high similarity with external pages. Aim to reduce the duplication rate to below 30%.
These two actions have restored rankings for many sites. If your rankings do not recover, please consult with us!
How to Detect Duplicate Pages
First, check your website’s text using a plagiarism check tool (https://ccd.cloud/).
↑Copy and paste up to 4,000 characters of text into the tool, as there is a limit of 4,000 characters. To exclude your own website from the search results, enter your site’s URL in the ‘exclude domain’ section. Scroll down and click the green “Check” button.
As you scroll down, you’ll see the results of the plagiarism check.
If the duplication rate is below 30%, the text is considered good to use as is. If the result is over 30%, you must rewrite the text or replace it to reduce duplication and change the content.
By checking all pages this way, you can eliminate duplications. If rankings do not improve after completing these steps, the cause might be external links.
How to Discover Low-Quality External Links
Use MOZ to check your site’s URL. On the left sidebar, select the spam score option.
Scroll down.
A graph will show the quality of the external links. Links with a spam score of 60% or higher are displayed in a red graph.
Below the graph, you will find a list of external links. Scrutinize links with high spam scores, and if they are from sites that are completely unrelated to your site, add them to a list for removal and submit a disavow request through Google Search Console.
The key to identifying low-quality external links involves checking the content within the link, the spam score, and the external links that link to them for a comprehensive analysis.
Related Articles on SEO Ranking Drops
- >>What is Google’s Algorithm? An Overview and History of Updates
- >>How to Create Content with Google’s Algorithm in Mind
- >>Understanding the Essence of SEO from the History of Algorithm Updates
Summary
When implementing SEO strategies, there will inevitably come a time when your rankings drop for targeted keywords. The cause must be investigated—whether it is due to issues within your own site or natural declines caused by stronger competitors. We’ve discussed that problems can generally be divided into two main categories: internal and external factors. If improvements don’t result from addressing these, we recommend investigating competitor sites. If the cause is still unclear, please consult with Tokyo SEO Maker.
Author Profile
Mr. Takeshi Amano is a graduate of the Faculty of Law at Nihon University. With 12 years of experience working in the advertising agency industry, he discovered SEO and began his research during the early days of SEO. He self-taught and conducted experiments and verifications on over 100 websites. Using this expertise, he founded Admano Co., Ltd., which is currently in its 11th year of operation. Mr. Amano handles sales, SEO consulting, web analytics (holding the Google Analytics Individual Qualification certification), coding, and website development. The company has successfully managed SEO strategies for over 2000 websites to date.
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