Ranking going down and down and disappears.

[EcomLkwd]

I asked a question a few weeks ago about a main keyword that we are targeting that is fluctuating up and down. The keyword is "trash bags" and that is what my company sells. All different colors, thicknesses and sizes. This isn't just a random keyword we are trying to optimize for, this is our business.

Before I started optimizing the website for "trash bags" we used the term "garbage bags", now that we started we have been off the charts and on the charts, but we have never regained rankings. The trend finally looked like it was going upwards... but now I see I dropped off of google again. Is this normal? Should I be worried that google is penalizing me for this keyword (There is many links that have trash bags in the anchor text - but we do sell that!)?

Here is a screenshot of our ranking history for trash bags:  https://www.diigo.com/item/image/3vpdp/no01

[EcomLkwd]

Thanks for that screenshot, you definitely put me at ease to know that our anchor phrase is fine.

[jesse-landry]

Well it's definitely not based on your anchor text profile for that keyword. Here's a screenshot showing why I say this. You will see that your number one anchor phrase is for your website by a large margin:

http://gyazo.com/ee24420ec14c9c8141169804d3d5ac23.png

I'm honestly not sure what to say. Is the page being updated or rebuilt, or is anything happening to coincide with these dips and peaks?

I can't think of what would cause it otherwise. If it were me, I'd keep building links and content and monitoring any edits I make to see what changes they have in my SERPs. Sorry I can't be more help right now..

[EcomLkwd]

Thanks for the response.

Here is the site I am trying to optimize: http://www.plasticplace.net. I'm not sure you noticed on the screenshot, but the blank spot after the past week's ranking shows that the keyword is more than 50 positions away in Google.  We are targeting a lot of different keywords and long tail keywords as well. The other keywords are more or less stable. This keyword seems to be the ticket for more visits as the monthly searches are the highest.

My question is really why is it so unstable if the only changes I have made were positive. (It used to be at position 20)

[jesse-landry]

Well gee it looks like you're rankings have improved more recently and are sticking around up there.. Did they fall again since this screenshot? A true penalty wouldn't allow you to regain ranking like that without it being lifted. I'm assuming you haven't received any notices in Google's Webmaster Tools, correct?

As always, it would probably behoove you to provide the domain for folks here to take a peak at. Although I can't guarantee anyone will be able to provide an answer other than "keep on building SEO for your site!"

Are you targeting other keywords as well that aren't fluctuating? For example "55 gallon trash bags" or "buy trash bags online" or something? (if you aren't targeting those, get on it!) Just trying to get a full picture of the problem.

You do want to vary your anchor text. We understand that is your business and what you sell, but that doesn't mean you can't make your link read "Check out our awesome deal on trash bags by clicking here!" Or "We got trash bags over at http://www.trashbagstore.com" or something along those lines.

That's about all the advice I know to offer at this time. Keep adding more info and I'm sure this community can help you get to the answer. Good luck!