WMT message: "Big traffic change for top URL"

[klark0]

Got this new message in Webmaster Tools. (url and message id edited)

Search results clicks for http://domain.com/category/internal-page-125 have increased significantly. Yay!

Details

Message ID: x1x1x1x1x1x1x1. Please include this ID in any messages you post in our Help forum.

The site in question recently got top 3 for several keywords and a 2000% increase in traffic overall. This page is indeed now the top page on the site.

Anybody seen this before ?

[edited by: Robert_Charlton at 8:01 am (utc) on Mar 8, 2012]
[edit reason] delinked example url to make visible [/edit]

[lucy24]

Someone sit on his feet. I'll go get the brass knuckles.

:-P

[snickles121]

Good job, never seen that before. Is this a new site or a older site that got out of Panda?

[goodroi]

Google reported that they are making a huge boost in sending emails via Webmaster Tools. They sent over 700,000 in January & February.

[netmeg]

Geez, all the sites I have in there and I haven't gotten *one message*, good, bad, or indifferent.

Just wait till July 4.

[klark0]

@snickles, it's a year old site. Never been affected by Panda.

[Planet13]

So...

What did you do to get the 2,000% increase in traffic?

[klark0]

@Planet13,

Over the last 3 months, I did Yahoo, BOTW + 12 other niche related directories, PRweb submissions, Youtube, lots of guest posting on related sites, answered questions on answer sites, a few paid PR links from related sites and a bit of link begging. :P

[Sgt_Kickaxe]

Just imaging, klark0, how much additional content you could have created if you didn't have to do all of those things for Google's benefit :)

[buckworks]

Kickaxe, if Google didn't exist, what kinds of promotions would you suggest for getting a site known?

[nicolasss]

Maybe you are hacked! I got same messages...and Im hacked via timthumb.php and my wordpress site...read this:

[computerpartsgreenvillesc.com...]

[tedster]

I noticed that SERoundtable [seroundtable.com] is reporting a message for traffi changes in the opposite direction - down.

In addition, messages about low quality pages are also being reported on Google's own forums - see [google.com...]

[aristotle]

I don't understand. Are these computer-generated messages? Is there a system that "watches" each website and sends messages in response to what it sees?

[tedster]

Yes, they are automated messages... and yes, there is such a "watcher" system. Webmaster Tools has immediate information available right when we verify a website because that system is always working away.

[aristotle]

Thanks Tedster. I still feel a little confused. My simple idea is that there is a system for collecting, organizing, and presenting the data. And also an algorithm for analyzing the data and determining the rankings. But this "watcher" system somehow seems to be a different type of animal.

[tedster]

Google monitors all kinds of things - for purposes of feedback on how their algorithm is working, for example. If you use Webmaster Tools, you know, for instance, that they record how many impressions a URL gets in the SERPs, as well as how many clicks. They share that data with the webmaster and there is no other way to learn about it.

In fact, I'm pretty sure that if impressions or clicks for a certain URL sake a sudden leap or drop, some system kicks in so they can make sure it's all legitimate - like a sudden viral interest in the page would be legit, but some kinds of spammy manipulation could be caught that way.

I'm sure Google monitors even more than we can dream about - but a regular study of their patents uncovers a lot of ideas. They monitor all kinds of signals that are not currently in use, just in case they might become useful ;)

[tedster]

Another thought - this kind of system feedback is an essential part of any AI effort, and we know Google is very much pointed in that direction. With automated feedback, the next step is that the system can automatically learn to adjust itself. And I'm pretty sure that's happening, too.

[backdraft7]

< moved from another location >

Today I logged into my Webmaster Tools account and I find two messages regarding my business site...
It states: "www.mydomain.com - Big Traffic Change for Top URL" - and naturally, when I go check it out, it's a huge DECREASE of 50,000 clicks, I'd have fallen out of my chair if they gave me an increase!

What's also maddening is that they are referring to both my canonical www.mydomain.com and the non-canonical mydomain.com when my .htaccess clearly handles this issue (years ago). Google just disobeys the rule and still lists the non www version of my site, which really should not even exist.
Type mydomain.com in the browser and you automatically get www.mydomain.com

No recent changes to the site and it's been running fine (almost) for well over 10 years.
My main bread & butter keyphrase is still yo-yo-ing between the #1 and #3 spot on page one, to the #1 and #3 spot on page TWO! This has all the business killing makings of a new MAYDAY update.

Oh, and Amazon now appears to be the ruler of the Google SERPS.

On the bright side, at least Google now has the courtesy to tell you they are throttling your site F.N.F.R.

It's pretty obvious they are turning those knobs again at Google and killing off legitimate M&P e-commerce sites once again.

[edited by: tedster at 5:59 pm (utc) on Mar 13, 2012]

Thanks for the move tedster, I didn't see the OP...cheers!

[g1smd]

Use the Live HTTP Headers extension for Firefox to check the server responses for both www and non-www requests.

Scan the site using Xenu LinkSleuth for both the www and non-www versions (untick the "check external links" box).

I'll guess you're returning a 302 response, not a 301. Either that, or some of the navigation links within the site point to the wrong version.

Also try both of these searches:

[site:www.example.com]

and

[site:example.com -inurl:www]

One should return nothing.

[Sgt_Kickaxe]

I wonder if Google assigns an I.D. to pages that suddenly raise in rank or if all pages have one.

I guess the people running the help forum have access to "the vault" or they wouldn't care about I.D. numbers (no way to look them up).

Oh, and Amazon now appears to be the ruler of the Google SERPS.

Nah, eBay's up there too for transactional, in fact ebay google traffic is up a HUGE amount this year. How do you compete with user generated keyword stuffed titles? If you try and do the same you get a quick -500.

My theory - Google's ignoring nofollow if they trust the receiving site and they are passing rank through redirected nofollow affiliate links in an effort to erase the middleman.

The biggest affiliate program reigns supreme while the lowly guy trying to support a family types until his fingers bleed only to prop his competition up more with his affiliate links...

It's plausible.

[dhaliwal]

< moved from another location >

I am not sure, if other members are getting similar messages in WMT.

Search results clicks for [siteurl.com...] have increased significantly. Yay!

I have received 10 such messages. I am not sure, if Google will keep on sending me such messages in WMT?

[edited by: tedster at 3:25 pm (utc) on Mar 24, 2012]

[lucy24]

You're not complaining are you? ;)

Unless it all gets fed into a big computer, and if you pass a certain number-- or a certain percentage of your pages-- the good news changes into "You must be doing something black-hattish so we're busting you".

[agent_x]

I've had four of these messages now - for the same page. Should I report them for spam?