What could be the reason?

[WebSpinner]

How can a site do so well on:
Blue Widgets
Big Blue Widgets
Square Widgets
Round Widgets

But on "Widgets" it's nowhere to be found. Should Google not take into consideration the ranking it gave to the sites for the other KWs. How can you do so well "describing" the item, but yet if you're general, then that site does not fit the theme. I would think that their algo would take this into account.

Any thoughts?

TIA,
Spinner

[taxpod]

I've seen it on dozens of different KW searches but cannot explain it per se. Likely it is the confluence of KW in titles, anchor text, domain name, and KW density on the sites high in the serps.

All you can do is try to move up but you need to keep your eyes on the overall position of your site. As Brett says, I'd much rather get 1 referral from 50 KWs than 50 referrals from 1 KW.

Also KW combos are much more important than single KWs. I know I rank really really low on the one single KW which defines my space. I'm talking like number 150 so anybody searching just that KW is unlikely to ever see my site. Yet I get over 2,000 pure Google referrals each day. Add to that 1,000 Yahoogles and lots of the other kinds of oogles, and I think you see that I need not fret too much about the single KW problem.

[Nick_W]

I think it's relatively simple: widgets is more competitive than blue widgets

Do a search for widgets and note the count. then try blue widgets.... see what I mean?

untill this update I ranked page 4-5 for blah blah blah. but put any adjective in front of it and I was on the first page. Like cool blah blah blah and great blah blah blah...

Nick

[WebSpinner]

Nick..That's exactly what I'm talking about. Granted that the single KW in some categories is too generic, but in others, it's as necessary as the? widget KW.

It's just strikes me as strange that if Google feels (well you know) that some site fits several more discriptive searches well, why it does not feel that the generic term also applies.

Does anyone have good position on single and multi KW searches. If so, please share some of your approaches.

TIA,
Spinner

[Nick_W]

It's not that google doesn't 'feel' that it's not relevant. It's that for a one word KW you have far more competition. Simple.

if you type widget, you're up against 'blue/green/red widgets' 'cold wdigets' widgets new' etc..

if you type blue widgets you're up against 'cold blue widgets' 'blue widgets' etc... less terms - less competition - easier to rank for...

Nick