Is it possible to get my website back to the no.1 ranking?

[apicalsoft]

We have a 4 years website, it ranked no.1 on google when you search < a 3-word phrase > before. recently it's ranking drop down from no.1 to about 400. I think the reason is that we didn't update the website for about 1.5 years. We keep update the software, add new features, fix bugs, and so on. but only one thing we forgot: update the website.
So we changed the text and layout of the website, add some new text to the main page. Soon it gets back. When I search the keyword, it ranked no.1, but unfortunately, after stay in the no.1 for about 3-5 days, it goes back to the no. 400.
Can we get it back the no.1? if so, how?

Thanks a lot.

<Sorry, no specifics.
See Forum Charter [webmasterworld.com]>

[edited by: tedster at 6:53 am (utc) on April 2, 2007]

[skweb]

If anyone knew the answer to this question, they wouldn't be here in the forum. They would retire in paradise. No I am not being cynical or unhelpful; it is just that no one knows how to go to #1.

[apicalsoft]

I mean get back to no.1
I've been the no.1 and suddenly dropped to number 400. so I think that's because we didn't update the website for a long time. Recently we updated it, and it back to the number 1, then 3-5 days later, it dropped to 400 again.

[apicalsoft]

Is it allowed to post my url in this forum? So someone may point out what's wrong.

[jbinbpt]

I am afraid it's not allowed. Describe the service. Is it perhaps something Google might frown on?

[apicalsoft]

It's a very simple website, only has 5-10 pages. We describe and sell our software. Generally, it's all about our software: software description, free download, purchase online, support information.

[apicalsoft]

Just curious, after we updated the website, it's back to the no.1, but then it back to 400 again.

[jbinbpt]

I did that and I see your backlinks are totally dominated by one company. I suspect that this is kicking you back and will continue to do so.

[Miamacs]

'website monitoring software'

Does your software make direct queries to Google via HTTP or the SOAP API ( may it rest in peace )?

[apicalsoft]

Does your software make direct queries to Google via HTTP or the SOAP API ( may it rest in peace )?

No, never.

[MattJ]

I also notice you had a link exchange page until recently (still in the cache). Perhaps google noticed the crosslinks?

[apicalsoft]

The links page already there for several years, and we've just deleted it.

[tedster]

The "new" Google of recent months has been frustrating for many people who had long-standing top rankings. I'm afraid that no one has the be-all and end-all answer right now for whatever the new factors are.

Some other threads where many people are chewing over similar "yo-yo" problems with their websites are:

Google's 950 Penalty - Part 6 [webmasterworld.com]
March 2007 Google SERP Changes [webmasterworld.com]
April 2007 Google SERP Changes [webmasterworld.com]
"Phrase Based Indexing and Retrieval" - part of the Google picture? [webmasterworld.com]

I do not to be inhospitable, but we cannot offer specific site reviews here. That would drown the forum very quickly with threads that are of little interest to the general community. < See the Google Forum Charter [webmasterworld.com] >.

The general ranking problems that apicalsoft describes are very real and very painful for any business that suffers from it - I do not mean to make little of them. On the contrary, i want this forum to be a think tank where just possibly we may uncover valuable help from discussing many sites that suffer from similar issues.

These ranking problems seem to fall into a pattern and I think it will be more valuable both to apicalsoft and to the entire community if we take this discussion into one or more the above threads -- there's a lot more observation to make use of that way.