Question on keyword rankings
-
Hi everyone
Within our campaign it says that we rank number 35 for a specific keyword in Google in the Unites States but when we google the specific keyword we come up as number two on the first page.
Can you help me understand what the current rank is based on as well as how it's results can be different from our Google search?
Thank you.
-
Good morning Cyrus
Thank you for taking the time and answering my question. I also read your article, very informative. Thank you for sharing however I do have a follow up question.
I completely understand what you mean when you say there is no longer anything such as rank but when I do a search on Google and we are number 1 or 2 for a specific keyword and SEOMOZ shows that we rank number 35 there is a big difference and was wondering what can attribute to the big difference. Is there something that SEOMOZ takes into effect that we can replicate when we do a Google search to achieve similar results?
The reason I ask is so that we can see what impacts the results and best optimize our website.
Thanks again for all your help, feedback and sharing of information.
-
This goes to show that there is no longer anything such as "rank"
Over the past couple of years it's gotten to the point that no two people ever see the same result, even unpersonalized, so we tend to think in terms of "average position"
The SEOmoz PRO platform takes great pains not only to
- Depersonalize results but also to
- Display non-localize results.
It's important to do both. The best way to estimate your rank is still to add &pws=0 to the end of your search query. To non-localize it, set your location (left hand side of Google's results page) to the county you reside in. For the US this would be "United States".
I wrote a post on this here: http://www.seomoz.org/blog/google-personalized-search
Regardless, hope this helps! Best of luck with your SEO.
-
Tried it but it's not compatible with the latest Firefox
Also not sure if you seen my response earlier but I tried a proxy IP from New York using Google.com and the results were different then what is posted on SEOMOZ. What do you think could be the issue there?
What location in the United States is SEOMOZ basing it's keyword ranking on and if that is different then Google own's ranking how can we truly optimize keywords without knowing how SEOMOZ results are different from Google's own results ?
If the results are truly different then is the only way to tell is to look up each keyword in Google and not in SEOMOZ?
-
As far as I know depending on where you are searching from google shows different results. So for example:
I run a search from the UK with Google.co.uk and my keyword comes up in position 4
I run the same search from the UK with Google.com and my keyword now appears in position 13
Obviously Google takes a lot into consideration when showing rankings but two things that come into play are your location running the search and the location of the server that hosts your site.
The best way to get the most accurate result is to run a search in Google as if you are in the country that you want the result for. So if you want to know the position of your keyword in Google.co.uk as if you are based in the UK do this.
There is a plugin for Google Chrome which allows you to select a country from a list and get back results as if you where in that country running the search:
http://www.redflymarketing.com/internet-marketing-tools/google-global/
Hope this helps
-
I just used a proxy site to make sure I am searching Google within the United States and we actually ranked number one for the keyword using Google search with a proxy server that has a New York IP address.
This is very weird results.
Marisa would be nice if a SEOMOZ team member would come and explain this to us so we can fully understand what the results are and how we can understand them to effectively utilize them.
-
Yeah, you know, I just looked at my campaign, and it has us ranked number 17 for a keyword when we're actually 11. So, maybe someone else can answer this! Now I'd like to know!
I do know that Google has different servers it uses in different parts of the country and depending on which one they are using at any given time, the SERPs can be different. But the fluctuation is usually only a couple of spaces--nothing like what we're experiencing.
-
Yes Tony I agree the results are still the same in private and non private browsing in terms of the results for a specific keyword on Google.
-
Hi Marisa,
Thanks for the reply but no joy I'm afraid. The SERPs are still the same.
-
Google is probably giving you personalized results. Make sure you are not logged in. Also, even if you're not, you may still be getting personalized results based on location and other factors. The only way to avoid this that I know of is in Firefox, go to Tools > Start Private Browsing and then do your search. Just make sure to go back and exit private browsing when you're done.
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
-
Different audiences with same keywords
**How do wedding venue owners Google for a "restroom trailer rental" different than someone who is planning out their own event? I want to give venues an exclusive offer. Any tips on how they search for it different than regular users? **
Keyword Research | | Joseph-Green-SEO0 -
Google Adwords Keyword Planner Question
Is the keyword volume data shown the number of google adword clicks people made after searching with the used keyword, or is it the exact match search volume??
Keyword Research | | jennie.evans0 -
Keyword tracking- Local
Silly question about Local ranking monitors. If I have a local client in Pheonix, AZ and I want to track rankings for keywords. Is it best to monitor city+keyword or just keyword? I have ran tests with multiple clients and locations, and cannot ascertain the difference- as far as rankings go. I appreciate all input.
Keyword Research | | TammyWood1 -
Ranks moving up & Down for a certain keyword search
Hi, We had lost rankings for certain keywords completely from google's index about 5 months ago. Recently the rank for the keyword reappeared on google. But it keeps moving up and down. One day on 26th position, next day it is on 45th position, then it comes back to 30th position. This has been going on for over a week now. What is the cause of this ? can someone shed some light on it ? Thank you
Keyword Research | | orion680 -
How to Document Keyword Research?
How do you guys document keyword research? My best idea for this is an excel document that is separated into different areas for the topics of the website. Does anyone have any examples of documenting keyword research?
Keyword Research | | qlkasdjfw0 -
Keyword search tool or API
Anyone have a suggestion for a simplistic (scaled down) version of a keyword research tool that I can put on our website? We need our clients to be able to perform some basic keyword research on their own without getting lost in the details of something too robust. We would like to control aspects of the tool, capture the data from the site visitor and move those results (from their searches) into a database or other web application.
Keyword Research | | webindustry0 -
Search Traffic down 50% but rankings same?
One of my client's sites is experiencing a major decrease in search traffic (by 50%) but the main terms she usually gets traffic for, she's ranking the same or even better over the period of time that the traffic has decreased. What could cause this?
Keyword Research | | bvrob0 -
How do I know I have chosen the right keywords?
Hey everyone, I have been working in business dev for just over 3 years in seo/sem. Needless to say I was hooked right away and I think I am finally ready to start something on my own. I have started some work for a client who does not want to spend lot of money(what else is new). They manufacture watches and handbags and have over 2 hundred retailers across Canada. They currently have no online presence with with the site they have now.On top of that they have decided they want to start selling their products online. Also they want to target retailers as well as the general public. So I started thinking how can I use keyword phrase that would attract both retailers and end users I thought a good keyword phrase "buy stylish cheap watches and handbags online in Canada" that has a lot of opportunity because it has several keywords in the phrase, and can be broken down to target several 3 word key phrases. I have checked out Google's Keyword Suggest as well as WordTracker, and found that the phrase as a whole has very little traffic value.However there is tons of traffic when broken up.An example would be. Buy stylish watches online, buy affordable watches online and so on and so on. How do I know If I have chosen the right keywords if my client doesn't have the funds to test them all using PPC? This is my first client and I really don't want to mess this up.They are really good people and I would like to do right by them. Can anyone give me some advice. Great know my keyboard wont let me put in a question mark lol, thankfully its the weekend.
Keyword Research | | chucky_boy0